Traditional Gajar ka halwa (Carrot Halwa)

Gajar ka halwa or Carrot pudding is the thick, luxurious, nutty, and indulgent dessert we all wait for in winter in India/Pakistan. We get these beautifully reddish, sweet winter carrots, that we cook with milk, sugar, and fats to create this iconic halwa. My halwa recipe is the traditional method, which I’ve hacked to make it simpler for today’s busy life!

Gajar ka Halwa and Fried Fish are two almost compulsory things we brown people make in winter.

Technically, South Asian desserts, like halwas are a little time consuming to make. But it turns out, this halwa is one of the easier ones of the lot. If you are looking for easy South Asian desserts, you might want to check out this delicious Shahi Tukda (bread pudding) recipe too.

What is Gajar ka halwa?

“Gajar ka halwa” or Carrot halwa is a traditional Indian/Pakistani dessert, made with carrots, milk, fats, and sugar. Even though there are quite a lot of quick-fix recipes out there that claim “it’s just as good”, but I’ve tried them and I tell you no they are not even close.

Having said that, I learned a new trick for halwas, where you don’t have to stir a lot during cooking(check step by step below)!

Ingredients for Halwa

• Carrots – The star of the show is the deep red South Asian carrots. But don’t despair. We’ve tried this recipe with regular carrots as well and it works!
• Ghee – Ghee or clarified butter is the fat that the carrots will cook in. You can use unsalted butter instead of ghee.
• Sugar – You can adjust the sweetness even after the halwa is ready.
• Green Cardamom – This imparts aroma to the halwa.
• Milk solids/khoya –
  • The other magic ingredient in this halwa is called the Khoya or Khoa. Khoa is evaporated milk solids created by heating the milk in an open sauce pan.
  • It is used in various Indian/Pakistani desserts. It adds texture and flavor to the halwa. You can even make Khoya at home (click here to know how) or, just simply buy it at an Indian/Pakistani dessert shop.
  • If you can’t get your hands on khoya, I would recommend using full fat milk powder or some soft unflavored cottage cheese.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities

Traditional Method to make halwa

Making this halwa back in the day was a complete upper body workout. The chef would manually grate the carrots (sometimes 3 4 kgs in one sitting) and then stand right next to the pot stirring constantly and cooking down the milk for as long as it takes.

But thanks to technology and hack culture, we are going to make it the same way with 25% amount of the effort. Let’s go!

NOTE: The traditional gajar ka halwa uses grated carrots. You can use the grated attachment in the food processor for that texture. I prefer the chopped up version.

Now comes the part of “bhunayi”. Bhunayi is the process of stirring the halwa constantly from this point forward until its ready. It takes 30 minutes at the very least.

HACK: Here’s the hack. Keep a gridle or a ‘tava’ below your halwa pot. This avoids any burning. Now relax and only keep an eye on the halwa. Now you don’t have to worry about stirring constantly. You can stir once every 5 to 6 minutes.

Expert Tips

• Obviously the best tip is to add a girdle (tawa) or an insulating pan below your pot, like we do for pulaos (aka dum pe pakana). This neat little trick will prevent your milk from ever burning, plus you will not have to stir your halwa as often.
• This is a very forgiving halwa, even after you have completely cooked the halwa and feel like you need more sugar, you can always go back and add more.
• I personally let the halwa cook an extra 5 minutes even when the ghee has separated, it just makes the texture so much more perfect!

Frequently Asked Questions

More desserts to try

Do you have any questions? I’m happy to help! And of course, If you try this recipe, I’d loveeeee to see it or simply hear about it! Hit me up in the comment section below and I’ll get back to asap! Happy Cooking!