Badam halwa recipe (almond halwa)

Badam halwa recipe with video & step by step photos. Badam halwa is a classic Indian sweet made with ground almonds, sugar, ghee, cardamoms & saffron. It is extremely rich, delicious & colorful. Badam halwa is quite popular in South Indian tiffin centers and sweet stalls. It is considered to be a very special dessert & is prepared during special occasions. It is also given as a return gift during wedding & religious ceremonies.

About badam halwa

The word ‘badam’ means ‘almond’ in Indian languages and ‘halwa’ is a ‘traditional Indian pudding’. Hence the name badam halwa. In Indian cuisine, we make many different kinds of halwas, with many different kinds of ingredients like semolina, lentil flour, grain flour, nut meal and even with fruits and vegetables like carrots and pineapple.

You will find a delicious halwa for every season and every occasion. Carrot halwa, moong dal halwa, suji halwa and lauki halwa are some of the delicious kinds. Badam halwa is classic but not made often in the households because it is not as easy as the other kinds of halwas.

Traditionally to make badam halwa, almonds are soaked in water or milk, peeled and ground to a paste. This paste is cooked with ghee and sugar until a silky smooth texture is achieved. Lastly it is flavoured with ground cardamoms and saffron.

Making badam halwa following the traditional method needs a lot of patience as soaked almonds need to be peeled before grinding to a paste.

So an easier way you can use store bought blanched almonds or almond flour/meal. I have shown 2 methods in this post with soaked almonds and with almond flour.

Pure ghee, cardamoms and saffron are the key ingredients that make this dessert the best. In sweet stalls & tiffin centers saffron is replaced with food color. Some places also use edible camphor to flavor the dessert.

More Indian recipes using almonds
Badam burfi
Indian Badam milk
Badam kheer

Related recipes: Diwali Sweets Recipes and Diwali Snacks

How to make badam halwa (stepwise photos)

Preparation

1. Soak almonds for about 3 to 4 hours. To quicken the process, you can also boil 2 cups of water. Then add almonds to it. Leave for 2 mins and drain the water. Then soak in fresh water for 30 to 40 mins.

2. Peel off the skin and rinse them. Its easy to peel the skin if they are soaked well.But do not over soak them, the halwa turns sticky if soaked for very long.

3. Add almonds, water or milk, skinned cardamoms and saffron to the blender jar. I also added sugar at this stage as it helps to blend the almonds easily and prevents the badam halwa from turning lumpy.

4. Make a slightly coarse paste like rava. Badam halwa is usually of a fine rava texture.

Making badam halwa

5. Heat a heavy bottom pan or preferably nonstick pan. Add ghee.

6. Pour the ground almond paste.

7. Constantly stir and cook.

8. Very soon the badam will begin to leave the sides. Add the sugar at this stage if you have not added while blending.

9. If you have used saffron, you will begin to see the halwa getting better color as it is cooking and blending well with sugar.It got a better color now after cooking for about 8 minutes. When it thickens, add little more ghee and stir. Add ghee in intervals twice or thrice. You should not stop stirring to prevent burning.

10. Keep cooking until badam halwa leaves the sides of the pan. Then turn off the stove. The halwa thickens when it cools down.

Badam halwa is ready. Garnish with sliced cashews.

Badam halwa with almond flour

1. I have used instant pot here. You can use a regular heavy bottom pot. Add 2 to 4 tablespoons ghee to the pot and heat it.

2. When the ghee melts add 1 cup almond flour.

3. Saute this for 2 minutes stirring often. If using instant pot, press cancel.

4. Add half cup sugar.

5. Pour 1 cup water if making in pot. If making in instant pot, add 1¼ water. Add 1 pinch saffron (kesar), this is optional.

6. Give a good mix until the sugar dissolves. Cook on a low heat, covering the pot partially as it begins to splatter a bit.

7. If cooking in instant pot, secure the lid and pressure cook for 0 minutes.

8. When the Ip beeps, press cancel and release the pressure manually.

9. Stir and continue to cook until the badam halwa leaves the sides of the pot. Add more another 2 to 4 tbsps ghee and ¼ teaspoon cardamom powder and mix well. If you prefer you can add a pinch of edible camphor or rose water too.

Pro Tips

Almonds: This recipe can be made with either whole almonds or with almond flour. For years I have made badam halwa by soaking, peeling and then blending the almonds. In the recent times I have been making this with store bought blanched almond flour.

Follow my step wise photo guide if using whole almonds. Check the video if you are using almond flour. This time I made it in an Instant pot using store bought flour but you can also make it on stovetop using a regular pot.

Ghee: Usually badam halwa is made to a thick pouring consistency which is possible only with the use of lots of ghee. Traditional recipe mostly uses ghee and almonds in 1:1 ratio which is the key to get that consistency. But I haven’t used so much here. More details in the recipe notes.

To make the recipe vegan replace the ghee with coconut oil.

Saffron: You can skip the saffron and add a large pinch of turmeric or organic food color. Do not add a lot for a deep color as it may change the flavor.

Cardamoms: Most Indian desserts are flavored with cardamom powder. However you can also use a tsp of edible rose water or kewra water for the fragrance.

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