Kala Jamun

what is kala jamun?

Kala jamun or Kala Jaam is one of the most loved sweets. You can call it as the king of sweets. It is black in color hence the name. Both gulab jamun and Kala Jaam are rich and syrup laden sweets. Some people also serve dry kala jamun without the extra syrup.You will see both the varieties in a sweetshop. Hot gulab jamun with cold ice cream is superb. This combination is pretty popular in wedding menu. Some people will just gorge on the chaat counter and sweet one.

This is however a healthier version. Can you guess how? We try to make it healthy although it is still fried 🙂

Well, there is no maida or plain flour in it. We make it from a surprise vegetable which is 'sweet potato'. You got to make it to understand that there is no change in taste. Super tasty, rich and yummy. You can also stuff it with nuts if you like. However, this version is a nut-free one.

Yes so you can actually eat it during fasting. It is totally gluten-free. It does have milk powder and paneer in it, to give it that color. People also make vegan versions but that is for another post. For now, I sign off on this Diwali delight on the gluten-free one. So you can make the gulab jamun with milk powder and sweet potato and kala jamun with milk powder, sweet potato and paneer.  For the gulab jamun version using similar ingredients , you may refer to a recipe by fellow blogger here

What is the difference between Gulab Jamun Rasgulla and Kala Jaam?

Rasgulla is purely made of paneer or chenna and is white in color. It may also have a light brown syrup if you use nolen gur instead of sugar for syrup. Kala jaam and Gulab jamun are brothers. Other than the color, there is a difference in taste which is due to the addition of Paneer .I prefer fresh home made paneer that can be easily crumbled and added to the mix. While frying them ,they will get a dark brown color .The skin of the kala jamun is also thicker than Gulab jamun.

how to prepare kala jamun?

1. Boil and grate the sweet potato. Add milk powder and paneer.

2. Add hot ghee and mix well.

3. Mould in desired shape either cylindrical or round.

4. Cook in ghee/oil on medium flame. Keep stirring all the time.

5. Take out once dark brown

6. Move to sugar syrup once the whole batch is fried. Serve after few hours. You can serve it hot or cold as per your choice.

Read the recipe here

Print Recipe

4.2 from 5 votes

Kala Jamun

Yummy recipe loved by one & all.

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time40 mins

Course: Desserts

Cuisine: Indian

Keyword: aate ka halwa, glutenfree, glutenfree kala jamun, gulab jamun

Servings: 24

Ingredients

• 1 cup sweet potato boiled and grated
• ½ cup paneer/cottage cheese
• 1-¾ - 2 cup milk powder
• 1 tbsp hot ghee

For sugar syrup

• 1.5 cup sugar
• 1.5 cup water
• 3-4 drops of lemon juice
• 5-6 saffron strands

Instructions

for sugar syrup

• Bring all ingredients to a boil.
• Keep it hot by moving to a very very low flame or keeping it over a water bath(on top of a vessel that is boiling water)

for kala jamun

• Boil and grate sweet potato.
• Add paneer and milk powder to it with 1 tbsp hot ghee.
• Knead the dough, add more milk powder if required.
• Shape them into balls or any shape.
• Heat ghee in the kadai on low flame.
• Test the ghee and mix by frying a small ball of mix.
• Fry the full sized balls on low flame.
• Use a spoon to keep on stirring them slowly in the oil/ghee.
• once they turn dark brown, move them to the sugar syrup.
• Let them stay in the syrup for few hours.Do not move them a lot else the shape is not preserved
• Serve chilled or at room tempreture.

Enjoy these melt-in-mouth  hot delicacies with a cold  strawberry ice-cream Indian wedding counter style.

You can also enjoy pairing it with a spicy samosa.

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