Rava Besan Ladoo

Rava besan ladoo is a delicious Maharashtrian sweet and is made during festivals like Ganesh Chaturthi, Diwali, etc. These are similar to besan ladoo but with slightly different texture.

Rava besan ladoo stacked in a plate with ganesh idol in the back.

❤️ About This Rava Besan Ladoo Recipe

It requires only 5 ingredients (plus optional nuts).

It’s a beginner-friendly and no-fail recipe because this recipe doesn’t call for one thread of sugar syrup. 

Rava besan ladoo is super easy to make. Just roast the semolina and besan in ghee, and add milk and sugar. Roll into balls and it’s ready.

Taste & Texture: It tastes just like besan ladoo but it has some grainy texture from semolina (similar to magas).

Kid-friendly: You can pack them into their snack box or serve them as an after-school snack.

🧾 Ingredient Notes

Rava besan ladoo ingredients in bowls with labels.
  • Besan (gram flour): Besan is ground up chana dal (split bengal gram) and is very easily available in Indian grocery stores. There is similar flour called chickpea flour (garbanzo flour) and it is more popular in American grocery stores. This chickpea flour is ground up white chickpeas (garbanzo beans).
    • FYI, besan is very fine vs chickpea flour is a little coarse. To make BEST rava besan ladoo, you must use besan (gram flour).
  • Semolina (Rava or Sooji): You can use any (coarse or fine) semolina. 
  • Ghee: It adds richness, plus acts as a binding agent. Please do not reduce its amount.
  • Powdered sugar: I am using confectioners’ sugar aka icing sugar. No, it is not regular sugar in powder form. 
  • Milk: Full-fat whole milk is highly recommended.
  • Nuts or Raisins: I have used almonds and cashews here. If you like you can add raisins as well.

👩‍🍳 How To Make Rava Besan Ladoo? (Pics)

Making Ladoo Mixture:

1) Heat ⅓ cup (half amount) of ghee in a large pan on medium-low heat. Once hot add semolina.

2) Mix and roast with stirring constantly. 

3) After 3 minutes of roasting add chopped nuts.

4) Continue roasting until the rava is lightly golden in color and has a nice toasty aroma. It takes around 8-10 minutes. Remove roasted semolina to a plate and keep it aside.

Collage of 4 images showing adding sooji to ghee, roasting with spatula.

5) In the same pan, add the remaining ⅓ cup of ghee. Once hot add besan.

6) As soon as you mix it becomes like a thick, gooey paste. 

7) Keep stirring with a spatula and continue roasting, within 2-3 minutes it becomes loose and runny.

8) Continue roasting until it gets golden brown color and has a nutty aroma. It takes around 10-13 minutes. 

Collage of 4 images showing adding besan to the ghee and roasting.

9) Add roasted sooji back to the pan. 

10) Mix and cook for 2 minutes. You’ll find the mixture is super liquidy. 

Collage of 2 images showing adding roasted sooji to besan and mixing.

11) Now add milk.

12) Mix and within a minute it starts bubbling and becomes frothy.

13) Keep stirring and cooking for 2-3 minutes or until it comes together like a thick mixture. Turn off the stove and remove the pan from the stove.

Collage of 3 images showing adding milk, mixing and cooking until thick.

14) Add powdered sugar.

15) Mix everything together. Let the mixture cool down to touch (lukewarm).

Collage of 2 images showing adding powdered sugar and mixing.

Shaping Ladoo:

1) Take around 1 ½ tablespoon of portion in your palm.

2) Pinch it together tightly and start rolling it into a smooth ball.

3) It has to be a smooth, crack-free ball.

4) Place it on a plate and repeat the same for the remaining mixture. Place them on a plate in a single layer and let the ladoo set for around 2-3 hours.

Collage of 4 images showing shaping the ladoo using hand.

💭 Tips For BEST Rava Besan Ladoo

  • MEDIUM-LOW HEAT: It is important to roast the besan and sooji on low-medium heat.
  • STIR CONSTANTLY: While roasting besan and rava, you must keep stirring to avoid burning and uneven browning. 
  • Cooking time may vary. Please take the given cook time as a guideline. It may vary depending on the type of pan, flame intensity and quantity you’re making.
  • You can double or triple the recipe. But keep in mind that as you increase the amount, the roasting time also increases slightly.
  • Storage: These stay good for 3-4 days (depending on the climate in your area) at room temperature in an airtight container. You can store it in the fridge for up to 10 days.
8 rava besan ladoo arranged on a plate with napkin underneath.

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

Rava Besan Ladoo Recipe

4.63 from 8 votes
Rava besan ladoo stacked in a plate with ganesh idol in the back.
Rava besan ladoo is a delicious Maharashtrian sweet and is made during festivals like Ganesh Chaturthi, Diwali, etc. These are similar to besan ladoo but with slightly different texture.
Kanan
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Serving Size 15 ladoos

US measuring cups are used (1 cup = 240 ml)

Ingredients

  • ⅓ + ⅓ cup Ghee (clarified butter)
  • 1 cup Sooji (rava or semolina)
  • 2 tablespoons Almonds, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons Cashew nuts, chopped
  • 1 cup Besan (gram flour)
  • ¼ cup Milk
  • cup Powdered sugar (Confectioner’s sugar or icing sugar)

Instructions

  • Heat ⅓ cup (half amount) of ghee in a large pan on medium-low heat.
  • Once hot add semolina. Mix and roast with stirring constantly until the rava is lightly golden in color and has a nice toasty aroma.
  • After 3 minutes of roasting, add nuts and continue roasting. It takes around 8-10 minutes. Remove roasted semolina to a plate and keep it aside.
  • In the same pan, add the remaining ⅓ cup of ghee.
  • Once hot add besan, mix and roast with stirring constantly until it gets golden brown color and has a nutty aroma. It takes around 10-13 minutes.
    NOTE: As soon as you mix it becomes like a thick, gooey paste. Then within 2-3 minutes, it becomes loose and runny. Once roasted it will be runnier.
  • Add roasted sooji back to the pan. Mix and cook for 2 minutes. You’ll find the mixture is super liquidy.
  • Now add milk. Mix and within a minute it starts bubbling and becomes frothy.
  • Keep stirring and cooking for 2-3 minutes or until it comes together like a thick mixture. Turn off the stove and remove the pan from the stove.
  • Add powdered sugar. Mix everything together. Let the mixture cool down to touch (lukewarm) and then shape.
  • Take around 1 ½ tablespoon of portion in your palm. Pinch it together tightly and start rolling it into a smooth ball.
  • Place it on a plate and repeat the same for the remaining mixture. Place them on a plate in a single layer and let the ladoo set for around 2-3 hours.

Notes

  • MEDIUM-LOW HEAT: It is important to roast the besan and sooji on low-medium heat.
  • STIR CONSTANTLY: While roasting besan and rava, you must keep stirring to avoid burning and uneven browning.
  • Cooking time may vary. Please take the given cook time as a guideline. It may vary depending on the type of pan, flame intensity and quantity you’re making.
  • You can double or triple the recipe. But keep in mind that as you increase the amount, the roasting time also increases slightly.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 209kcal (10%) | Carbohydrates: 19.8g (7%) | Protein: 3.4g (7%) | Fat: 13.3g (20%) | Saturated Fat: 7.7g (39%) | Cholesterol: 33mg (11%) | Sodium: 7mg | Potassium: 97mg (3%) | Fiber: 1.3g (5%) | Sugar: 7.3g (8%)
4.63 from 8 votes (3 ratings without comment)

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28 Comments

  1. Hi Kanan,
    I tried the recipe… First Time it came out perfect… But second time… The besan was not pasty but powdery… At the end the mixture was powdery… Couldn’t bind it to make ladoos… Don’t know why this happened.. Have I roasted for more time… Can u guess wat could be the reason

  2. Made Rava besan ladoo .. they taste yummy.
    Instead of milk and sugar i used milk maid .(left over from another dish ).
    They taste yummy.
    Thanks .

    1. My laddoos turned out to be soggy, I was unable to bind them into globes they would just spread out. So I roasted nearly about 3/4th cup besan in little ghee and mixed it and it worked.4 stars