Mouthwatering Gourmet Dishes

Saturday, March 30, 2013

Gulab Jamuns

View the story "Gulab Jamun" on StorifyGulab JamunStorified by Arya McLean· Sat, Mar 30 2013 17:54:29Gourmandia

A sweet and milky treat, Gulab Jamun is a popular dessert in India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. Milk flavored dough is rolled into tiny balls, deep-fried, soaked in a sweet syrup and often scented with rosewater. In this gourmet cooking recipe, the balls are flavored with saffron and sprinkled with cardamom for an aromatic and slightly spicy treat. Traditionally served during the Indian holiday, Diwali, Gulab Jamun makes a delightful end to a spicy Indian meal.

You can get a gulab jamun premade mix in Indian groceries but you can also make one at home with some all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, saffron, milk, and water. For the best results, fry the balls in corn or canola oil. Fry the balls over low heat because if the gulab jamuns are fried on high heat they will become hard inside and will not cook completely.

Take note that gulab jamun balls double in size while frying similar to donuts so there should be enough space in the pan for them to expand without touching each other. The dough should develop a deep golden brown color after 10 to 15 minutes of frying. At this state, the balls should then be removed immediately and added to the prepared sugar syrup. In this recipe, the syrup is a basic mixture of sugar and water, heated gently and slowly until the sugar is dissolved and syrupy. Some like to flavor the syrup with rose water, cardamom, saffron, or citrus juice.

The gulab jamuns should sit in the hot syrup for about 20 minutes before serving. They can also be stored overnight so as to absorb more syrup. They can be kept at room temperature for up to a month or refrigerated for about a month. These sweet balls can be served either hot or cold and one serving per person is typically three to four pieces.

Gulab Jamun - Indian Sweet Recipeshowmethecurry

Ingredients

250gms Dry Milk Powder or Gulab Jamun mix of any brand
100gms all purpose white flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 Pinches of Baking Soda
1/2 Cup milk
1/2 cup water
250ml vegetable Oil
3 Cups of White Sugar
3 Cups of Water
2 Green Cardamoms
1 pinch saffron

Preparation Instructions

1. In a large bowl empty gulab jamun mix and kneed it with little water and milk to form a dough and set aside for 10-15 minutes. Roll the dough into small even balls and set aside.

2. In order to make a fresh dough, mix all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, saffron, milk and water and kneed well to form a dough. Roll the dough into small even balls and set aside.

3. To make sugar syrup, add 100gms of sugar to 300ml of water and bring it to a boil. Keep stirring and simmer it for about 20 minutes or till the desired consistency is reached. Turn off the heat and set aside.

4. In a frying pan, heat the oil and slide the gulab jamun balls and allow it to fry on medium heat. You can choose to either brown it completely or slightly according to your taste. Drain the excess oil and set aside.

5. Add these fried gulab jamun balls one by one in the sugar syrup and give it a slight stir without breaking them. Crush 2-3 cardamom seeds and sprinkle on the top for that rich flavor. Allow it to soak for 2-3 hours or till tender and serve warm.