Name: Magas Recipe (Magaj Ladoo)
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 2 cups Coarse besan ((aka magas flour or ladoo besan)); 1 cup Ghee (clarified butter); 1 cup Powdered sugar (Confectioner’s sugar or icing sugar); ¼ cup Milk; 1 teaspoon Green cardamom seeds powder; ½ teaspoon Freshly grated nutmeg; Sliced almonds (for garnishing); Charoli (chironji) (for garnishing)

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The easiest magas recipe you’ll ever make and it only needs 6 ingredients. This is a popular traditional Gujarati sweet (mithai) that is made during the Diwali festival.

A stack of magas pieces in a plate with few more in a pyrex pan in the back.

It is also known as magaj or magaz.

❤️About This Recipe

Texture: It is a soft, melt-in-your-mouth kind yet it has a grainy, coarse texture throughout (thanks to the use of coarse besan).
Taste & Flavor: It tastes nutty, and sweet just like besan barfi or besan ladoo and it is flavored with cardamom and nutmeg. Keep in mind, it has the same flavor as besan barfi but the texture is not smooth as mentioned above.

Magas can be shaped in two ways. First is the most popular one, set it like barfi and cut it into small square pieces. Second is magas ladoo.

When Is Magas Made?

Special occasions or Diwali (along with other treats like kopra pak, ghughura, farsi puri, chivda, etc.)
In the olden days, magas and mohanthal are made in large batches for wedding function meals (especially in some villages of Gujarat, in the Patel community to be specific).
Magas ladoo is offered as prasad in some Swaminarayan temples in Gujarat.

🧾Ingredient Notes

You’ll need only 6 ingredients to make this delicious magas recipe.

Magas recipe ingredients in bowls and spoons with labels.

Coarse besan (gram flour): It is available in any Indian grocery store here in the USA. The packet also mentions ‘magaj flour’ or sometimes ‘ladoo besan’.
- You MUST use coarse gram flour to achieve the unique coarse, grainy texture of this magas or magaj ladoo.
- You’ll find many recipes online that use regular besan (with the dhabo procedure done). The “Dhabo” procedure means mixing flour with ghee and milk, resting for 15 minutes, and passing through a large sieve to achieve a grainy texture similar to coarse besan. Traditionally this dhabo procedure is done in mohanthal recipe, not magaj recipe.
- Magas recipe made with regular besan (even with dhabo procedure) will never have the same or similar grainy texture as the one made with coarse besan.
Powdered sugar: Here I have used ready powdered sugar which is also known as icing sugar or confectioner’s sugar. You can grind your regular sugar at home into powder form. It works equally the same.
Ghee: Do not reduce the amount of ghee otherwise barfi or ladoo will not set. To measure the ghee, it has to be in semi-solid form. If your ghee is melted completely, then use slightly less amount (around 2 tablespoons less) as melted ghee has more volume than solid form.
Milk: It helps to soften and enhance the grainy texture.
Cardamom & Nutmeg: Freshly crushed green cardamom seeds in mortar and pestle is recommended. Also, freshly grated nutmeg is recommended.
Garnish or Topping: I have used sliced almonds and charoli (chironji). You can use sliced pistachios as well but traditionally pista is not used.

👩‍🍳Step By Step Photo Instructions

Prep: line 8×8 inch square pan using parchment paper. You can grease the pan lightly first and then place the parchment paper so it doesn’t move. Keep it aside.

1) Heat the ghee in a pan on MEDIUM-LOW heat.

2) Once melted and hot, add coarse besan.

3) Mix and roast with stirring constantly. Keep the gas flame medium-low.

4) In the beginning, the mixture will be like a thick paste and it feels heavy while stirring. As it gets roasted, you will notice the roasted, nutty aroma of the besan and gets slightly darker in color. Also, ghee starts to ooze out and the mixture becomes light, runny and bubbly. It took me around 15-17 minutes.

Collage of 4 images showing adding ghee, besan and roasting it.

5) Now add half of the milk and stir immediately.

6) The mixture will become frothy and as you continue cooking it will thicken up.

7) Add remaining half milk, stir and continue cooking until the mixture becomes thick. Turn off the stove and remove the pan from the stove. Keep stirring the mixture for another 5 minutes as the pan is still hot and we don’t want the bottom part to get more brown.

Collage of 3 images showing adding and mixing milk, cooked besan mixture.

8) Let the mixture cool down for 10-15 minutes. Then add powdered sugar, cardamom powder and nutmeg.

9) Mix everything well.

10) Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and spread the mixture evenly and smooth out the surface.

11) Sprinkle nuts and charoli. Slightly press them using a spatula so it sticks to the magas mixture.

Collage of 4 images showing adding and mixing sugar, spreading into a pan and granishing with nuts.

12) While it is still warm, cut them into square pieces (i got 25 pieces).

13) Let the magas set completely (6-8 hours or overnight). Once set, cut the pieces again using a sharp knife.

14) Remove it by lifting the parchment paper and take out the pieces.

Collage of 3 images showing cutting into pieces, set barfi in a pan and transferred to a conatiner.

Making Magas Ladoo:

Remove the roasted besan into a wide plate and spread a little so it cools down faster. Let the mixture cool down completely.
Once the besan is cooled completely (not warm), add sugar, cardamom and nutmeg.
Mix using your fingers and start shaping into ladoos.

Collage of 2 images showing shaped laddo in a palm and 2 ladoos in a plate.

💭Expert Tips

Using coarse besan is a must here. You’ll not get the same texture with regular besan (even with the dhabo procedure done).
Roasting besan in ghee on medium-low flame is important. If roasted on high heat or medium heat then it gets brown faster but stays raw in taste.
Stir constantly using a spatula while roasting besan. Do scrap the sides and bottom of the pan while stirring.
Use the mentioned besan roasting time as a guideline. This time may vary depending on the size, shape, thickness of the pan, flame intensity and the amount of magaj you’re making.
Cut the magaj into pieces while it is still not set. This makes an indentation. Once the magas is set, again cut as per the indentation made earlier. It is hard to cut the set magas into clean, nice pieces.

🥣 Storage Instructions

At room temperature, magas stays fresh for up to 3-4 weeks (depending on the weather climate where you live). Store them in an airtight container.
Store in the refrigerator, if living in hot or humid weather.
Reheat the refrigerated magas piece in a microwave for around 10-15 seconds only before serving.

7 magas pieces on a plate with napkin under the plate.

Check Out Other Diwali Sweets

Did you try this magas recipe (magaj ladoo)? I’d love to hear about it! Leave a review in the comment section below.