Kala jamun recipe with step by step photos. Easy and delicious recipe of kala jamun made with khoya and paneer. Be it a festival or just any special celebration at home, make it and enjoy with your friends and family.
Kala Jamun, the sweet is obviously related to the famous gulab jamun and has nothing to do with the tropical fruit, also known as java plum.
While Kala Jamun recipe does have some similarities with its counterpart, it has other regional names. For instance, kalo jaam or kala jaam. The difference between a Kala Jamun and gulab jamun, primarily, is in the color and texture.
While gulab jamuns are golden colored balls, kala jamun have a dark color with just some shades away from black. Hence the word ‘kala’ which means black. This color is achieved by frying the jamuns at a low heat for some time to get the dark color.
Another feature that makes these both distinct in their own is the fact that after you make a Kala Jamun recipe, you usually serve it at room temperature. Whereas, gulab jamuns are technically served hot or warm, and sometime at room temperature as well. But whatever it is, the combination of vanilla ice cream with any of these 2 jamuns is just supreme! Try it too.
Traditionally khoya or mawa is used to make gulab jamun or kala jamun. Khoya is basically dried evaporated milk solids. These milk solids are obtained by continuously cooking the milk on a low heat till most of the moisture evaporates.
Gulab jamun, kala jamun, Rasgulla, Coconut ladoo and Jalebi are a few desserts that my folks are too much fond of.
Here the kala jamun recipe is adapted from my recipe of Gulab jamun. This recipe will yield about 35 to 37 jamuns. I made them in an oval oblong shape. You can even make round shaped kala jamun. I used half of the dough to make kala jamun and the remaining half for Dry jamun.
Since Diwali is just a few weeks away, this recipe is perfect for small parties or get-togethers. Make the jamuns a day before and keep them soaking in the sugar syrup in the refrigerator. These kala jamun stay well for about a week In the fridge.
How to make Kala Jamun
1. Take 250 grams of khoya in a plate or bowl. The khoya used for gulab jamuns is the soft khoya also known as daap ka khoya or chikna khoya. This is a soft khoya, so it mashes and kneads very well.
2. Mash the khoya very well with your hands. Keep aside. there should be no lumps or small bits or pieces in the khoya. You can also grate and then mash the khoya. The mashed khoya should not feel granular to touch.
3. Grate 100 grams paneer and keep it aside. 100 grams of paneer yields about ½ cup of grated paneer. Use a fine grater to grate the paneer. If using freshly made paneer then make sure the paneer is strained well of the whey.
4. Now add the grated paneer and 3 tablespoons of all purpose flour (maida) to the khoya.
5. Add 1 tablespoon of milk.
6. Gently mix everything very well.
7. Bring together this mixture and form into a dough. Do not knead the dough. Just mix and gather to a dough. if the mixture looks dry and does not cling together to a dough, you can add 1 tbsp more of the milk
8. Now pinch small marble sized balls from the dough and roll them in a round shape between your palms. Roll lightly and not heavily.
9. Now roll the ball again between your palms to give a oblong cylindrical shape.
10. Roll all the jamun this way and keep them covered with a cotton kitchen towel. Please note that I used half of the dough to make these kala jamun.
Making sugar syrup for black gulab jamun
11. Take 2 cups sugar in a pan.
12. Add 1.5 cups water.
13. Keep this pan on stove top on a low to medium flame and stir so that the sugar begins to dissolve.
14. When all the sugar is dissolved, add ¼ teaspoon lemon juice. The lemon juice does not allow the sugar syrup to crystallize.
15. Cook the sugar syrup on a low to medium heat till you get ½ string consistency or the syrup becomes sticky.
16. Switch off the heat and add ½ tsp cardamom powder and 12 to 15 strands of saffron, crushed. Also add 1 tbsp rose water.
Frying kala jamun
17. When the sugar syrup is cooking, you can begin frying the jamuns. As when you add the fried kala jamun, the sugar syrup has to be hot. heat oil for deep frying in a kadai or deep pan on a low to medium flame. you can also use ghee for deep frying.
18. For testing, slid a tiny dough ball in the hot oil. the ball should come up slowly and not quickly. This is the temperature at which we will fry the jamun.
19. Keep the heat to a low and fry this tiny jamun ball.
20. Fry this small jamun till it becomes golden. If this jamun ball breaks, then add a few tsp of flour to the dough and mix well again. Before you begin shaping the jamuns, you can do this test.
21. Now gently slid the kala jamuns. The flame should be low. Do not crowd and add the jamuns as per the size of the pan.
22. When you see light golden spots, turn over the jamuns gently. Here I was handling the camera too, so the jamuns got browned more. the jamuns fry very quickly, so do be attentive.
23. Keep on turning them in the oil, like a gentle swirling with the slotted spoon, so that they brown evenly. When frying the jamuns have to feel light and not heavy. The lightness is similar to the lightness of thermocol balls, while frying them.
24. Fry till they turn a shade or two darker than the golden color.
25. Place black gulab jamun on paper towels to remove excess oil.
26. Whilst they are hot, quickly add kala jamun to the sugar syrup. fry all the kala jamun in the same way and add them to the sugar syrup.
Note that the sugar syrup has to be hot. To maintain the hot temperature, you can keep the sugar syrup bowl or pan on a hot water bath.
Cover and allow the kala jamun to soak in the sugar syrup for 3 to 4 hours before serving. Once the sugar syrup cools down, keep the bowl covered in the fridge.
27. Serve kala jamun at room temperature or chilled as a dessert or sweet. You can garnish with some sliced or chopped pistachios or blanched almonds while serving.
More Diwali sweets
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Kala Jamun | Black Gulab Jamun
Ingredients
for kala jamun balls
sugar syrup for kala jamun
- 300 grams sugar or 2 cups sugar
- 1.5 cups water
- ¼ teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon rose water
- ½ teaspoon cardamom powder
- 12 to 15 strands of saffron
Instructions
preparation for kala jamun
- Take 250 grams of khoya in a plate or bowl. The khoya used for kala jamun is the soft khoya also known as hariyali khoya or chikna khoya. This is a soft khoya, so it mashes and kneads very well.
- Mash the khoya very well with your hands. Keep aside. There should be no lumps or small bits or pieces in the khoya. You can also grate and then mash the khoya.
- Grate 100 grams paneer and keep aside. 100 grams paneer yields about 1/2 cup grated paneer.
making kala jamun balls
- Now add the grated paneer and 3 tbsp all purpose flour (maida) to the khoya.
- Add 1 tbsp milk. gently mix everything very well.
- Bring together this mixture and form into a dough. Do not knead the dough. Just mix and gather to a dough. If the mixture looks dry and does not cling together to a dough, you can add 1 tbsp more of the milk.
- Now pinch small marble sized balls from the dough and roll them in a round shape between your palms. Roll lightly and not heavily.
- Now roll the ball again between your palms to give a oblong cylindrical shape.
- Roll all the jamun this way and keep them covered with a cotton kitchen towel.
making sugar syrup for kala jamun
- Take 2 cups sugar in a pan and add 1.5 cups water.
- Keep this pan on stove top on a low to medium flame and stir so that the sugar begins to dissolve.
- When all the sugar is dissolved, add 1/4 tsp lemon juice. The lemon juice does not allow the sugar syrup to crystallize.
- Cook the sugar syrup on a low to medium flame till you get 1/2 string consistency or the syrup becomes sticky.
- When the sugar syrup is cooking, you can begin frying the kala jamun. As when you add the kala jamun, the sugar syrup has to be hot. Heat oil for deep frying in a kadai or deep pan on a low to medium flame.
- Switch off the flame and add 1/2 tsp cardamom powder and 12 to 15 strands of saffron, crushed. Also add 1 tbsp rose water.
frying – making black gulab jamun
- For testing, slid a tiny dough ball in the hot oil.
- The ball should come up slowly and not quickly. This is the temperature at which we will fry the jamuns.
- Keep the flame to a low and fry this small jamun till it becomes golden.
- Now gently slid the kala jamun. Do not crowd and add the jamuns as per the size of the pan.
- When you see faint golden spots, turn over the jamun gently.
- Keep on turning them in the oil, like a gentle swirling with the slotted spoon, so that they brown evenly. When frying the jamun have to feel light and not heavy.
- Fry till they turn a shade or two darker than the golden fried color.
- Place them on paper towels.
- Whilst they are hot, quickly add them to the sugar syrup.
- Fry all the kala jamun in the same way and add them to the sugar syrup.
- Cover and allow them to soak in the sugar syrup. Once the sugar syrup cools down, keep the bowl covered in the fridge.
- Serve kala jamun at room temperature or chilled as a dessert or sweet.
Nutrition Info (Approximate Values)
This Kala Jamun post from the blog archives first published in October 2015 has been updated and republished on December 2022.
Can I stuff dry fruits inside the jamuns and make in round shape instead of cylindrical shape
yes radhi, you can stuff dry fruits and make a round shape.
Hello,
I made eggless choclate cake following your recipe it turned out superb.here I want to ask that if I use only 250gms of khoya then how much maida and milk should I add.
thanks gurpreet for the feedback on eggless chocolate cake recipe. you mean you don’t want to add paneer? then just add half tablespoon maida and about 2 to 3 teaspoons milk.