Kala Jamun Recipe, How To Make Kala Jamun Recipe

Kala Jamun recipe with step by step photos – easy kala jamuns made with khoya and paneer.

Traditionally khoya or mawa is used to gulab jamuns or kala jamuns. khoya is basically dried evaporated milk solids. these milk solids are obtained by continuously cooking the milk on a low flame till most of the moisture evaporates. if you want to make the khoya at home, you can check this traditional method of making khoya.

Gulab Jamun, kala jamun and jalebi are a few desserts that my folks are too much fond of. while i have added two gulab jamun recipes, i still have to post jalebi. hopefully before diwali, i will try to add jalebi recipe.

The difference between gulab jamun and kala jamun is the color and texture. while gulab jamuns are golden colored balls, kala jamuns have a dark color with just some shades away from black. hence the word ‘kala’ which means black. this color is achieved by frying the jamuns at a low flame for some time to get the dark color.

Here the kala jamun recipe is adapted from my gulab jamun recipe with khoya. this recipe will yield about 35 to 37 jamuns. i made them in an oval oblong shape. you can even make round shaped kala jamuns. i used half of the dough to make kala jamuns and the remaining half for dry jamuns. you can also have a look at this gulab jamun recipe made with milk powder.

INGREDIENTS (measuring cup used, 1 cup = 250 ml)

for the jamun balls:

• 250 grams soft khoya or 1 cup tightly packed khoya/mawa/dried evaporated milk solids
• 100 grams paneer or ½ cup tightly packed grated paneer/cottage cheese
• 3 tbsp all purpose flour/maida
• 1 tbsp milk

for sugar syrup:

• 300 grams sugar or 2 cups sugar
• 1.5 cups water
• ¼ tsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp rose water
• ½ tsp cardamom powder
• 12 to 15 strands of saffron/kesar

INSTRUCTIONS

preparing jamun balls:

1. take 250 grams of khoya in a plate or bowl. the khoya used for gulab jamuns is the soft khoya also known as hariyali khoya or chikna khoya. this is a soft khoya, so it mashes and kneads very well.
2. mash the khoya very well with your hands. keep aside. there should be no lumps or small bits or pieces in the khoya. you can also grate and then mash the khoya.
3. grate 100 grams paneer and keep aside. 100 grams paneer yields about ½ cup grated paneer.
4. now add the grated paneer and 3 tbsp all purpose flour (maida) to the khoya.
5. add 1 tbsp milk.
6. gently mix everything very well.
7. bring together this mixture and form into a dough. do not knead the dough. just mix and gather to a dough. if the mixture looks dry and does not cling together to a dough, you can add 1 tbsp more of the milk.
8. now pinch small marble sized balls from the dough and roll them in a round shape between your palms. roll lightly and not heavily.
9. now roll the ball again between your palms to give a oblong cylindrical shape.
10. roll all the jamuns this way and keep them covered with a cotton kitchen towel.

preparing sugar syrup:

1. take 2 cups sugar in a pan and add 1.5 cups water.
2. keep this pan on stove top on a low to medium flame and stir so that the sugar begins to dissolve.
3. when all the sugar is dissolved, add ¼ tsp lemon juice. the lemon juice does not allow the sugar syrup to crystallize.
4. cook the sugar syrup on a low to medium flame till you get ½ string consistency or the syrup becomes sticky.
5. when the sugar syrup is cooking, you can begin frying the jamuns. as when you add the jamuns, the sugar syrup has to be hot. heat oil for deep frying in a kadai or deep pan on a low to medium flame.
6. switch off the flame and add ½ tsp cardamom powder and 12 to 15 strands of saffron, crushed. also add 1 tbsp rose water.

frying jamuns:

1. for testing, slid a tiny dough ball in the hot oil.
2. the ball should come up slowly and not quickly. this is the temperature at which we will fry the jamuns.
3. keep the flame to a low and fry this small jamun till it becomes golden.
4. now gently slid the kala jamuns. do not crowd and add the jamuns as per the size of the pan.
5. when you see faint golden spots, turn over the jamuns gently.
6. keep on turning them in the oil, like a gentle swirling with the slotted spoon, so that they brown evenly. when frying the jamuns have to feel light and not heavy.
7. fry till they turn a shade or two darker than the golden fried color.
8. place them on paper towels.
9. whilst they are hot, quickly add them to the sugar syrup.
10. fry all the jamuns in the same way and add them to the sugar syrup.
11. cover and allow the jamuns to soak in the sugar syrup. once the sugar syrup cools down, keep the bowl covered in the fridge.
12. serve kala jamuns at room temperature or chilled as a dessert or sweet.

Step by step kala jamun recipe:

• Take 250 grams of khoya in a plate or bowl. the khoya used for gulab jamuns is the soft khoya also known as daap ka khoya or chikna khoya. this is a soft khoya, so it mashes and kneads very well.
• Mash the khoya very well with your hands. keep aside. there should be no lumps or small bits or pieces in the khoya. you can also grate and then mash the khoya.
• Grate 100 grams paneer and keep aside. 100 grams paneer yields about ½ cup grated paneer. use a fine grater to grate the paneer.
• Now add the grated paneer and 3 tbsp all purpose flour (maida) to the khoya.
• Add 1 tbsp milk.
• Gently mix everything very well.
• Bring together this mixture and form into a dough. do not knead the dough. just mix and gather to a dough. if the mixture looks dry and does not cling together to a dough, you can add 1 tbsp more of the milk
• now pinch small marble sized balls from the dough and roll them in a round shape between your palms. roll lightly and not heavily.
• now roll the ball again between your palms to give a oblong cylindrical shape.
• roll all the jamuns this way and keep them covered with a cotton kitchen towel. please note that i used half of the dough to make these kala jamuns.
• take 2 cups sugar in a pan.
• add 1.5 cups water.
• keep this pan on stove top on a low to medium flame and stir so that the sugar begins to dissolve.
• when all the sugar is dissolved, add ¼ tsp lemon juice. the lemon juice does not allow the sugar syrup to crystallize.
• cook the sugar syrup on a low to medium flame till you get ½ string consistency or the syrup becomes sticky.
• Switch off the flame and add ½ tsp cardamom powder and 12 to 15 strands of saffron, crushed. also add 1 tbsp rose water.
• When the sugar syrup is cooking, you can begin frying the jamuns. as when you add the fried jamuns, the sugar syrup has to be hot. heat oil for deep frying in a kadai or deep pan on a low to medium flame.
• for testing, slid a tiny dough ball in the hot oil. the ball should come up slowly and not quickly. this is the temperature at which we will fry the jamuns.
• keep the flame to a low and fry this tiny jamun ball.
• fry this small jamun till it becomes golden. if this jamun ball breaks, then add a few tsp of flour to the dough and mix well again. before you begin shaping the jamuns, you can do this test.
• now gently slid the kala jamuns. the flame should be low. do not crowd and add the jamuns as per the size of the pan. when you see light golden spots, turn over the jamuns gently. here i was handling the camera too, so the jamuns got browned more. the jamuns fry very quickly, so do be attentive.
• keep on turning them in the oil, like a gentle swirling with the slotted spoon, so that they brown evenly. when frying the jamuns have to feel light and not heavy. the lightness is similar to the lightness of thermocol balls, while frying them.
• fry till they turn a shade or two darker than the golden color.
• place them on paper towels to remove excess oil.
• whilst they are hot, quickly add them to the sugar syrup. fry all the jamuns in the same way and add them to the sugar syrup. note that the sugar syrup has to be hot. to maintain the hot temperature, you can keep the sugar syrup bowl or pan on a hot water bath. cover and allow the jamuns to soak in the sugar syrup for 3 to 4 hours before serving. once the sugar syrup cools down, keep the bowl covered in the fridge.
• serve kala jamuns at room temperature or chilled as a dessert or sweet. you can garnish with some sliced or chopped pistachios or blanched almonds while serving.