Boondi Laddu Recipe (Halwai Style)

top shot of six boondi laddu in pink muffin liners on a white plate placed on pink napkin

4.91 from 30 votes

Boondi Laddu is popular Indian sweet made by frying small gram flour droplets (boondi), soaking them in sugar syrup and shaping into laddus. The texture is soft and melt-in-mouth. The recipe includes a classic halwai-style method and tips for Tirupati laddu.

Prep Time15

Cook Time20

Total Time35

Course: Sweets

Cuisine: Indian

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegetarian

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Servings: Boondi Ladoo

Calories: 195kcal

Author: Dassana Amit

Ingredients

For the sugar syrup

1.5 cups sugar
¾ cup water

For batter

1.5 cups gram flour (besan)
1 cup + 1 tablespoon water or add as required - the amount of water to be added depends on the quality of besan
2 pinches crushed saffron strands or saffron powder
½ teaspoon cardamom powder or 5 to 6 green cardamoms crushed to powder in a mortar-pestle
1 tablespoon melon seeds (magaz)
2 black cardamoms - seeds kept and the husks discarded
1 pinch edible camphor - optional
1 tablespoon ghee and some more ghee for applying on your palms while shaping the laddu
oil for deep frying, as required

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Making sugar syrup

Mix sugar and water in a pan. Keep the sugar solution on stove top on a low heat.
Cook the sugar syrup, till you get a one thread consistency. Stir often. Switch off the heat. Set the sugar solution aside.
The sugar syrup should be hot when you add the boondi. So you can keep the sugar solution on a hot water bath by place the pan on a plate or tray filled with hot water. You can choose to fry the boondi and prepare the sugar solution side by side.

Making and frying boondi

Take the dry ingredients for the boondi batter in a mixing bowl - gram flour and crushed saffron or saffron powder.
Add water to make a smooth batter. The consistency of the batter is important. We will check if the consistency is right, by frying a few boondis.
Tap the wired whisk or the handle of a spoon which has a bit of batter in to the hot oil. The boondis should have a round shape.
If they become flat, the batter is thin and if they get tail ends, the batter is thick.
TIP 1: If thin, then add a bit of gram flour and check by frying a few boondi.
TIP 2: If thick, then add a bit of water and then do the same test. Once you get the correct consistency, proceed with the next step of frying the boondi.
Take a dry perforated ladle and place it above the hot oil. Don't keep the ladle too much on a height, as the batter droplets, when falling from a height, do not give a round shape.
With a spoon add some batter on the perforated spoon ladle.
Spread the batter lightly with a spoon. Finish up the batter on the perforated spoon ladle this way.
Fry the boondi till they are cooked. Don't make them crisp or over do the frying. When the oil stops sizzling, remove the boondi.
This step is also important because if boondi becomes crisp then the boondi ladoo won’t be soft and they won’t be able to absorb the sugar syrup.
After each batch, wipe the perforated ladle with a clean piece of kitchen towel from both sides.

Making Boondi Laddu

Strain the fried boondi well with a slotted spoon and then add them directly to the hot sugar syrup. Fry all the boondi in batches with the above method and then add them to the sugar syrup.
Finally add melon seeds (magaz), cardamom powder, black cardamon seeds, ghee and a pinch of edible camphor (optional).
Mix well and shape the boondi mixture into a small to medium-sized round spherical ball. If you are not able to shape them, then add 1 to 2 tablespoon more ghee as it helps in binding.
You can place the boondi ladoo in a small muffin liners. You can also garnish them with raisins or cashews or slivered nuts like almonds or pistachios.
Serve boondi laddu. If not serving the same day, refrigerate them in an airtight container. These laddu keep well for about a week in the fridge.

Notes

Use fresh and good quality gram flour (besan). Avoid using besan which has gone rancid or smells weird.
You can add your choice of nuts and dry fruits. If you prefer, you can fry them in ghee first and then add to the laddu mixture.
Fry the boondi in medium hot oil. At low temperature, the boondi will soak oil. Hence, laddu will end up being oily. In very hot oil, the boondi will brown faster and become crispy. So, they won’t be able to absorb the sugar syrup and will be difficult to bind and shape.
To make Tirupati Laddu, you have to fry the boondi in ghee and not oil. Also make sure to add edible camphor in the laddu mixture to get that lovely, unique aroma that is a hallmark of this particular version. Fry the cashews and raisins too in ghee. Skip adding black cardamom seeds and melon seeds. You can add or omit saffron.
If making this sweet for religious festivals or for deities, do not taste or smell any of the ingredient while cooking. Cook the sweet with cleanliness, devotion, love and a peaceful mind.
For festivals like Diwali, Holi or Ganesh Chaturthi, make a large batch by scaling this recipe. Use a large kadai to speed up the frying process.
The approximate nutrition info is for 1 Boondi Laddu.

Nutrition