Homemade Gulab Jamun

• Boil milk in a heavy base/non-stick pan. Cook the milk over a low flame, stirring occasionally until it turns very thick and there is no liquid left. This may take approximately 1 hour. It will yield around 1 cup solid mass of khoya.
• Grate khoya using a grater. Sift baking soda and maida together using a sieve and add to the khoya in a large mixing bowl. Mix well.
• Knead the khoya mixture until a smooth and soft dough is prepared. If the dough is hard, add a few teaspoons of milk to the dough. Add milk one spoonful at a time.
• Fill a pan with water and add sugar. Heat on a medium flame.
• Keep cooking on a low flame till the sugar syrup becomes thick and is of one-string consistency. This means that when you put a drop of sugar syrup between your thumb and finger, and pull the finger away, a thread is formed.
• Add saffron strands and cardamom powder to the sugar syrup. Remove from the flame.
• Take a small ball sized portion of khoya dough and shape into a smooth ball. There should be no cracks on the ball, otherwise the gulab jamun might break while frying.
• Shape 15-16 balls from the dough. Pour ghee in a pan and heat on a medium flame.
• Drop the gulab jamun balls one after the other in the pan, stirring the ghee in between. Keep heating on a medium flame.
• Remove the gulab jamun balls from ghee when they turn golden brown in color.
• Cool the gulab jamun balls for 4 minutes and add them to the warm sugar syrup slowly. Keep them soaked for 2 hours.

Trivia

Gulab jamun was introduced in India by the Persian invaders. The word ‘gulab’ is derived from the Persian words which mean rosewater-scented syrup. Jamun refers to an Indian fruit;which is a purple colored berry.