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    Home » Indian Sweets

    Milk Powder Gulab Jamun

    Published: Aug 26, 2020 · Last Modified: Aug 26, 2020 by Kanan Patel / 6 Comments

    Jump to Recipe Pin Recipe
    4 gulab jamuns in a bowl with text on top of the image for pinterest

    Milk powder gulab jamun - a must try Indian dessert! It’s deliciously rich, soft, juicy, melt-in-your-mouth kind that always gets compliments every time it’s served.

    milk powder gulab jamun in a bowl with 2 bowls in the back
    Jump to:
    • ❤️Why I Love This Recipe
    • 🧾Ingredients
    • 👩‍🍳Step By Step Photo Instructions 
    • 💭Expert Tips
    • 🥣 Storage Instructions
    • 📋 Recipe Card
    • ⭐ Reviews

    ❤️Why I Love This Recipe

    No khoya required like traditional gulab jamun recipe. Here in the USA, sometimes I do not get good fresh khoya, so this milk powder gulab jamun comes handy.

    Even though we are taking another route, the taste and texture is not compromised. 

    These are perfect for any kind of festivals or special occasions. 

    🧾Ingredients

    Here is the pic of the ingredients used in making milk powder gulab jamun. You’ll need 10 ingredients (includes water).

    Milk powder: This has to be full-fat milk powder. As you can see in the pic, I got this one from Indian grocery stores which also says mawa powder. The one you get in American grocery stores are fat-free or low fat milk powder and it gives chewy texture. You need enough fat content in your powder to make it soft.

    Baking soda: Do not skip or reduce it’s amount to make it soft and not chewy. 

    ingredients used in gulab jamun inclues milk powder, ghee, flour, baking soda, cardamom, saffron, sugar, water, rose water.

    👩‍🍳Step By Step Photo Instructions 

    1) Warm up the ghee and milk in a microwave or stovetop. 

    2) Add this warm mixture to the milk powder.

    3) Start mixing and it will be damp, lumpy mixture.

    4) Now add baking soda and all purpose flour.

    5) Start mixing and it should come together like a dough. If the mixture is too soft then add little more flour and mix. Do not knead the dough, just gather otherwise, jamuns become dense, hard and chewy.

    6) Divide it into 20 equal portions and make smooth (crack-free) balls. Keep it covered.

    Collage of 6 steps showing milk-ghee in a bowl, added to milk powder, mixed, added flour, dough ball, 20 smooth balls.

    7) To make sugar syrup, take sugar, water, cardamoms and saffron in a wide, deep pan. Make sure that it is big enough to accommodate the jamuns and have enough space to expand while soaking. 

    8) Turn the heat on medium. Once it starts simmering, continue cooking for 3 minutes then turn off the stove. Add rose water and keep it aside. We are looking for just simple sticky syrup (no thread consistency). 

    collage of 2 steps showing syrup ingredients in a pan and ready sugar syrup.

    9) While the syrup was simmering, heat the ghee/oil in a pan on medium-low heat for frying. Oil should be just hot, NOT too hot like we do for pakora. Try checking by adding small portion in the oil, it stays in the bottom for few seconds and then comes on top steadily, meaning oil is perfect for frying. If the added dough comes on top quickly meaning oil is too hot. NOTE: if they break while frying, add some more flour in the dough.

    10) Now add few jaumns in the oil carefully and start frying. Keep moving around for even browning. This frying process takes some time, so be patient. During this process, they do get slightly bigger in size. 

    11) Once they get deep golden color, remove it using slotted spatula and drain the excess oil/ghee.

    12) Remove it to a paper towel lined plate and let it cool down for 10 minutes. Fry rest of them similarly. If needed adjust the gas heat accordingly to maintain the oil temperature.

    collage of 4 steps showing checking oil temp, frying balls, ready balls removing using spatula, fried balls on a plate

    13) Now the sugar syrup may get cold. So just warm up (do not boil) again on medium heat. Add them into the syrup. NOTE: do not add hot jamun directly to the sugar syrup. Let the fried jamuns cool down little and then add.

    14) Let it sit for about 3-4 hours. Meantime, they will absorb the syrup and will again get bigger in size and will become more soft. You can see they have expanded much more than expectation. So after an hour or so, I need to remove 4 of them into another bowl otherwise, there was no room.

    Collage of 2 steps showing added fried jamuns into syrup and soaked after few hours

    💭Expert Tips

    • You must use full-fat milk powder to avoid chewy texture.
    • Do not keand the dough by giving pressure like we do for roti-paratha. Just gather and form a ball otherwise, gulab jamun becomes hard and dense.
    • The sugar syrup should be thin. If the syrup is thick then jamun will not absorb the syrup well.
    • Fry on medium-low heat. If fried on high heat then it stays raw from the center.

    🥣 Storage Instructions

    • At room temperature, it stays good for 2-3 days in an airtight container. If living in hot, humid climate then store in the refrigerator.
    • In the refrigerator, it stays good for 10 days. 
    • In the freezer, it stays good for up to 3 months. Thaw on the counter for few hours or in the refrigerator overnight. 
    • To serve them warm, just reheat in the microwave for few seconds only. If you have over heated then it becomes chewy.
    gulab jamun cut into half in a bowl with sugar syrup

    Check Out Other Desserts Using Milk Powder

    • Carrot halwa in pressure cooker
    • Peda (made in microwave)
    • Vanilla ice cream
    • Instant khoya 

    PS Tried this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comment section. I always appreciate your feedback! Plus, Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook for all the latest updates.

    📋 Recipe Card

    Step by Step Photos AboveWant to make it perfect first time? Don't forget to check out Step-by-Step photo instructions and helpful Tips & Tricks !!
    milk powder gulab jamun in a bowl with 2 bowls in the back
    Print Pin Save Saved!

    Milk Powder Gulab Jamun

    5 from 2 votes
    Tried this recipe? Leave a comment and/or give ★ ratings
    Milk powder gulab jamun - a must try Indian dessert! It’s deliciously rich, soft, juicy, melt-in-your-mouth kind that always gets compliments every time it’s served.
    Author: Kanan
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: Indian
    Calories: 292kcal
    Servings 20 no.
    Prep Time 15 minutes
    Cook Time 20 minutes
    Total Time 35 minutes
    US measuring cups are used (1 cup = 240 ml) See details

    Ingredients  

    • ¼ cup Milk
    • 2 teaspoons Ghee (clarified butter)
    • 1 cup Full fat milk powder (aka mawa powder)
    • ⅛ teaspoon Baking soda
    • 3 tablespoons All purpose flour (Maida)
    • Oil or Ghee (clarified butter), for deep frying

    For Sugar Syrup:

    • 1 ¼ cups Sugar
    • 1 ¼ cups Water
    • few strands Saffron
    • 2-3 Green cardamoms or powder
    • 2 teaspoons Rose water

    Instructions 

    Making The Dough & Balls:

    • Warm up the ghee and milk in a microwave or stovetop.
    • Add this warm mixture to the milk powder. Start mixing and it will be damp, lumpy mixture.
    • Now add baking soda and all purpose flour. Start mixing and it should come together like a dough. If the mixture is too soft then add little more flour and mix. Do not knead the dough, just gather otherwise, jamuns become dense, hard and chewy.
    • Divide it into 20 equal portions and make smooth (crack-free) balls. Keep it covered.

    Making Sugar Syrup:

    • Take sugar, water, cardamom and saffron in a wide, deep pan. Make sure that it is big enough to accommodate the jamuns and have enough space to expand while soaking.
    • Turn the heat on medium. Once it starts simmering, continue cooking for 3 minutes then turn off the stove.
    • Add rose water and keep it aside.

    Frying & Soaking Gulab Jamuns:

    • While the syrup was simmering, heat the ghee/oil in a pan on medium-low heat for frying. Oil should be just hot.
    • Now add few jaumns in the oil carefully and start frying. Keep moving around for even browning. During this process, they do get slightly bigger in size.
    • Once they get deep golden color, remove it using slotted spatula and drain the excess oil/ghee. Remove it to a paper towel lined plate and let it cool down for 10 minutes. Fry rest of them similarly. If needed adjust the gas heat accordingly to maintain the oil temperature.
    • Now the sugar syrup may get cold. So just warm up (do not boil) again on medium heat. Add them into the syrup. NOTE: do not add hot jamun directly to the sugar syrup. Let the fried jamuns cool down little and then add.
    • Let it sit for about 3-4 hours. Meantime, they will absorb the syrup and will again get bigger in size and will become more soft.

    Notes

    • Milk powder: This has to be full-fat milk powder. I bought it from Indian grocery stores which also says mawa powder. The one you get in American grocery stores are fat-free or low fat milk powder and it gives chewy texture. You need enough fat content in your powder to make it soft.
    • Do not keand the dough by giving pressure like we do for roti-paratha. Just gather and form a ball otherwise, gulab jamun becomes hard and dense.
    • The sugar syrup should be thin. If the syrup is thick then jamun will not absorb the syrup well.
    • Fry on medium-low heat. If fried on high heat then it stays raw from the center.
    • How to check the oil/ghee is hot enough or not? Try checking by adding small portion, it stays in the bottom for few seconds and then comes on top steadily, meaning it is perfect for frying. If the added dough comes on top quickly meaning it is too hot.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 2gulab jamun | Calories: 292kcal | Carbohydrates: 36.1g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 14.2g | Saturated Fat: 1.5g | Cholesterol: 3mg | Sodium: 20mg | Potassium: 9mg | Sugar: 25.3g | Vitamin A: 500IU | Vitamin C: 0mg | Calcium: 10mg | Iron: 0.2mg
    *Nutrition information is a rough estimate for 1 serving
    Did you make this recipe?Snap a pic, mention @spice.up.the.curry or tag #spiceupthecurry. I would love to see.

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    1. Nina

      December 20, 2022 at 10:56 pm

      What about the quantity of each ingredients? That is core to a recipe!

      Reply
      • Kanan Patel

        December 21, 2022 at 9:38 am

        It is mentioned in the recipe card at the bottom of the page.

        Reply
    2. Asha

      July 19, 2018 at 4:46 am

      Hi Kanan
      Can one keep the fried gulab jamun balls and dip them in the syrup when needed ?
      Maybe two days before?

      Reply
      • Kanan

        July 19, 2018 at 10:00 am

        no. You should keep them in sugar syrup.
        It stays good for 3-4 days.

        Reply
        • Nady

          November 05, 2018 at 2:14 pm

          Hi can I use baking powder instead of baking soda? And if yes do the same measurement work

          Reply
          • Kanan

            November 09, 2018 at 10:52 pm

            no baking soda and baking powder are not interchangeable

            Reply

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