Til ke Laddu (Sesame Laddu)

Til ke laddu is a healthy, delicious, and nutty laddu prepared with white sesame seeds, jaggery, peanuts, and desiccated coconut. A vegan recipe and also a Makar Sankranti festival special sweet.

About this recipe

Makar Sankranti is around the corner and so I thought of sharing these sesame laddu recipe.

Growing up in a Maharashtrian community in Mumbai, during Makar Sankranti, Til gul ladoos (’til’ means sesame seeds and ‘gul’ is jaggery in marathi) were shared with everyone with these words – Til gul ghya god god bola.

This means take the til gul and speak sweet words. By evening we would have a big jar full of tilgul laddu and sugar candies, which we would gorge on happily.

In this til laddu recipe, I have cooked the jaggery syrup to a soft ball stage. So this gives the ladoo a soft and chewy texture. You can also cook the jaggery syrup to a hard ball stage and you will get firm and dense sesame laddu.

The til ke laddu recipe also features peanuts and desiccated coconut. Sesame seeds, peanuts, coconut are a truly winning combination in terms of taste and flavor. Don’t you agree?

If you like peanuts, then do check this easy Peanut Ladoo Recipe which is made with ground peanuts and jaggery.

Til ke laddu makes for a good warming sweet snack during the winters. Make them, store them, and have them whenever you want. The recipe makes for 10 to 12 til ke laddu. But you can double or triple it.

There are many ways til laddu is made. I have shared two easier versions that do not include the tricky part of cooking the jaggery syrup.

If you are a newbie or a beginner, then I do recommend you to try these easy til laddu recipes listed below.

1. Til Gud Ladoo – where the sesame seeds are ground and it is an easy recipe where no jaggery syrup is made.
2. Til Khoya Ladoo – here the ladoo is made with ground sesame seeds powder and khoya (mawa).

How to make Til ke Laddu

Roasting sesame seeds

1. Heat a kadai or pan and add ⅓ cup sesame seeds to it. The pan should not be too hot but on low heat.

TIP: You can use both hulled seeds or unhulled white sesame seeds. I have used unhulled sesame seeds. Note that unhulled seeds are lightly bitter but are superior flavor-wise. But in this til ke laddu recipe, the bitter taste is not felt as jaggery overpowers the bitter taste wholly.

2. On a low flame roast the sesame seeds. Stir at intervals.

3. The sesame seeds pop and change color. On a low heat, this takes about 2 to 3 minutes. Do not brown them.

4. Once the sesame seeds are roasted well, remove them and set aside in a plate.

Roasting peanuts

5. Then add ¼ cup of peanuts to the same pan. These are raw peanuts and not toasted or salted peanuts.

6. Dry roast the peanuts on a low heat stirring often until they become crunchy and get a few black spots or blisters on them.

7. Remove the peanuts in a mortar pestle. Allow them to cool. If you want you can remove the peanut skins by rubbing them between your palms, once they are cooled.

Roasting dessicated coconut

8. In the same pan, add ¼ cup desiccated coconut.

9. Stir continuously while roasting the coconut.

10. Roast the coconut until it becomes light golden or golden. Switch off the heat.

Making til laddu mixture

11. Add the roasted coconut to the roasted sesame seeds.

12. When the peanuts have cooled, crush them coarsely. You can also crush them in a blender or spice grinder.

13. Add the coarsely crushed peanuts to the roasted coconut and sesame seeds.

14. Next add ¼ teaspoon cardamom powder.

15. Mix very well. Set aside.

Making jaggery syrup

16. In the same pan or kadai, take ½ heaped cup powdered jaggery or grated jaggery.

17. Add 3 tablespoons water.

18. Keep the kadai or pan on the stovetop on a low heat.

19. Keep on stirring the jaggery so that it dissolves.

TIP: If the jaggery has impurities, then filter the solution and keep the filtered jaggery syrup back on the stovetop. I used organic powdered jaggery, so there were no impurities.

20. On a low flame simmer this jaggery and water syrup. It will start bubbling first.

21. You have to continue to cook until you come to a soft ball stage in the jaggery solution. Keep stirring non-stop.

22. To check the soft ball stage, take some water in a small bowl. Drop a bit of jaggery solution in the water. Remove it and it should be sticky and form itself into a soft ball.

23. At this consistency in the below photo, the soft ball stage had reached in the jaggery syrup.

Making til ke laddu

24. At this stage, switch off the heat and add the dry roasted mixture of sesame seeds, desiccated coconut, crushed peanuts and cardamom powder.

25. Mix quickly and thoroughly the dry roasted mixture with the jaggery solution.

26. Keep the pan on your kitchen countertop or work surface.

27. When the mixture is still hot, begin to form and shape til laddu from it. If it is too hot, then wait for a minute and then form the laddu.

Spread some oil or water in your palms to form the ladoo. If you are not able to shape when the mixture is too hot, then wait for some seconds and then make the sesame laddu.

28. You can also use a ½ to 1 tablespoon measure spoon, for scooping the mixture and making the sesame laddu. Then just shape the laddu once you scoop them out.

Do shape the laddu when the mixture is hot. if the mixture cools down, then the til ke laddu cannot be made.

29. For the last batch, scrape the sides very well and then make til laddu from it.

30. Make all the sesame laddu this way. Store in an airtight jar at room temperature.

31. Serve Til ke Laddu during Makar Sankranti festival or have them as a sweet snack. You can easily double or triple the recipe and make a large batch that can be stored in an air-tight container for a couple of weeks.

FAQs

How do you determine soft ball stage?

Cooking jaggery syrup to a soft ball stage or consistency is a crucial step in making these laddus. You have to be attentive when the jaggery syrup is cooking and keep stirring often. An easier way is to check the consistency using a candy thermometer.

If you do not have a candy thermometer, follow the steps I have outlined in the step-by-step guide above – that is to drop a bit of jaggery solution in some water taken in a bowl. The water cools the syrup and when you remove it, the consistency should be sticky and form itself into a soft ball. It should not be fluid and mix in the water or look like strands.

Which is better in this recipe – unhulled or hulled sesame seeds?

You can easily make this til ke laddu recipe with both hulled or unhulled white sesame seeds. Hulled sesame seeds have their outer hulls or husks removed and are white, cream or off-white in color.

Unhulled sesame seeds do not have their hulls removed. So they have a tan or light brown or brown color and are somewhat bitter to taste.

Using unhulled sesame seeds is fine when making any laddu as we are using a sweetener (jaggery in this recipe), so you do not feel the bitter taste when eating. The faint bitter taste is overpowered thoroughly by jaggery.

Though when you make a savory dish, for example, tahini with sesame seeds, then it is better to use hulled sesame seeds. I always make any variety of sesame laddu with unhulled sesame seeds as I find they taste way better than the laddu made with hulled or polished white sesame seeds.

My laddu mixture has become hard – Help!

If your laddu mixture has become hard, then add a few splashes of water to it. Place on low heat on the stovetop and mix thoroughly and cook for a few minutes. Mixing with water and heating it will change the consistency and soften it.

Check for the soft ball stage (even if the mixture has the sesame seeds, peanuts etc). Switch off heat and shape into balls.

What can I do if the til ke laddu is not binding?

If you cannot bind the til laddu, this means the jaggery syrup needs to be cooked more and has not reached the soft ball stage. So you can place the entire mixture in the pan on a low heat.

Stir and cook for some minutes until you reach the soft ball stage. Check the soft ball stage with the test, I have mentioned in the step-by-step guide above.

Helpful Tips

• Making til chikki or sesame brittle: If you are unable to shape due to the mixture being too hot, then pour the mixture into a greased or parchment-lined pan. Let it cool and set. Then remove and slice to make til chikki or sesame brittle.
• Roasting: You need to roast the sesame seeds until they pop and become crisp. Do not brown them. For peanuts, roast them really well until they are crunchy. If you use toasted/roasted sesame seeds or peanuts, then simply omit their roasting steps when making the til laddu recipe.
• Sweeteners: The traditional sesame laddu recipe calls for jaggery which is an Indian unrefined sugar made from sugarcane juice. If you do not have jaggery, then use sugar. Simmer the sugar syrup on low heat until you get the soft ball stage. With sugar, the taste of til laddu will have more caramel-like flavors. You can use both white sugar and unrefined cane sugar or raw sugar.
• Peanuts and desiccated coconut: You can omit to add peanuts and desiccated coconut in the til laddu recipe if you do not prefer them or are allergic. But replace peanuts with more ¼ cup of sesame seeds.
• Cardamom powder: Cardamom powder gives a nice fragrant aroma. If you do not have it, then simply do not add it.

More Ladoo recipes

• Atta Ladoo
• Rava Laddu
• Besan Ladoo
• Coconut Ladoo
• Ragi Laddu

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