carrot halwa also known as gajar halwa served in a bowl

Carrot Halwa Recipe | Gajar Ka Halwa

By Swasthi on November 28, 2022, Comments, Jump to Recipe

Carrot Halwa also known as Gajar ka Halwa or “Gajrela” is a traditional North Indian dessert made by simmering fresh grated carrots with full fat milk, sugar and ghee. This delicious dessert is delicately scented with cardamom powder and garnished with chopped nuts. Make this carrot halwa, the old-fashioned way from scratch using whole milk or follow the shortcut ways using condensed milk, khoya or milk powder. In this post I share the recipes for all these 4 methods along with Instant pot instructions.

carrot halwa also known as gajar halwa served in a bowl with nuts

Gajar Halwa is immensely popular in India & is most often made in the households during winters when fresh carrots are in season. You will find this served even in buffets, Thali and almost at every feast because it is the Ultimate winner and is the best!

Gulab Jamun, Jalebi, Rasgulla & Kaju katli are some of the other popular Sweets from Indian cuisine.

About Carrot Halwa

This classic dessert gets its name “Gajar Halwa” since carrots are known as “Gajar” in Hindi and Halwa is a pudding like dessert from the Indian Sub-Continent. So gajar halwa is nothing but Indian carrot pudding.

But it’s not the pudding you are probably thinking of ! This neither has an egg nor a thickening agent/ ingredient. Slow cooking the carrots with milk until all of the liquid evaporates, imparts a magical flavor and lovely pudding like texture to the dish.

In India, a special kind of carrots known as Delhi gajar is widely available during the winters. A lot of people especially in the North make carrot halwa with Delhi carrots since these have a sweeter flavor and are much more juicer than the other kinds. However, you can use the regular carrots the same way in my recipe.

4 Methods of Making Carrot Halwa

Traditional carrot halwa is made by slow cooking fine grated carrots with full fat milk which is easy to make but takes some time as all of the moisture and liquid from carrots, milk and sugar has to evaporate and then thicken the halwa.

The traditional method does not use processed ingredients like condensed milk, evaporated milk, khoya/mawa or milk powder. However using one of these ingredients will help you save some time as you don’t need to cook down the ingredients longer.

Depending on the availability of ingredients and the time you can afford, choose one of these methods:

  • Traditional method with milk.
  • Carrot halwa with condensed milk under 15 mins.
  • Gajar halwa with khoya – Make this during festive season when you have surplus khoya/ mawa to use up.
  • Gajar ka halwa with milk powder – Make this when you are short of milk or want to use up surplus milk powder.

More Halwa recipes
Rava kesari
Moong dal halwa
Badam halwa
Lauki ka halwa

Traditional method

How to Make Carrot Halwa (Stepwise Photos)

Preparation

1. Wash 500 grams carrots (half kg or 1.1 lbs) thoroughly under running water. A little more or less is fine to use, not a lot. Peel and fine grate them. A food processor quickens the process of grating. So if you own one, you can use it.

Make sure you use a heavy bottom large pot or pan for this recipe as it helps to prevent the halwa from sticking to the bottom and burning. However a pressure cooker too works well.

If you do not have cardamom powder, crush 4 green cardamoms in a mortar pestle or a spice jar.

2. On a low heat, roast 10 pistachios, 5 to 6 almonds and 5 cashew nuts until crunchy. Remove them to a chopping board, cool and chop them. OR Alternately chop the nuts first or carefully pulse them in a grinder (only twice or thrice). Fry them in one tablespoon ghee until golden and crunchy. Set aside. If you prefer to use raisins, you may fry about 15 raisins in ghee until plump. Set aside.

dry roasting nuts for carrot halwa

3. Next to the same pan, pour 2 cups milk and begin to heat it.

boiling milk in a pan

Simmer Carrots with Milk

4. Add grated carrots. (Optional – If using regular carrots and not (Delhi gajar) red carrots then you can saute the carrots in 1 tablespoon ghee until a nice aroma comes out then pour milk. This step helps to get rid of the earthy and strong flavor of some kinds of carrots.)(check video for details).

addition of grated gajar for carrot halwa

5. Stir and cook on a medium flame. Keep stirring to prevent burning at the bottom. Since I used a heavy bottom pan, I didn’t have to stir very often. But I suggest consistently keep checking otherwise the halwa will stick at the bottom.

simmer carrot in milk for gajar halwa

6. You will have be cautious always towards the end. Especially when the milk has almost evaporated.

stir while cooking completely

7. Cook until the milk completely evaporates.

cook till milk evaporates for carrot halwa recipe

8. Next add half cup + 2 tablespoons sugar and stir.

addition of sugar for carrot halwa

9. Sugar melts and carrot halwa turns gooey once again. Stir and cook. When the moisture is half evaporated, add 1 tablespoon ghee and stir well.

gooey gajar ka halwa mixture

10. Stir and cook until the halwa thickens. Just before you finish off, add half teaspoon cardamom powder.

addition of cardamom for gajar ka halwa

Finally garnish carrot halwa with nuts & raisins. Serve chilled or warm.

carrot halwa made with delhi gajar sugar and milk
carrot halwa

Gajar Ka Halwa with Condensed Milk

This method comes handy when you want to make this dessert for an occasion as it is quick to make. Using condensed milk cuts down half the cooking time and the resulting halwa is much richer, flavorful and delicious.
To make this, you can use Delhi gajar or the regular carrots. When I made this I used the regular carrots as Delhi gajar is seasonal and is not available in Singapore throughout the year.

Ingredients
500 grams carrots (tender, young)
½ tin condensed milk (½ cup + 2 tablespoons)
¼ teaspoon cardamom powder or 1 teaspoon rose water
1½ tablespoon ghee (divided – ½ tablespoon + 1)
¼ cup chopped nuts (cashews, pistas,almonds)
2 tablespoons raisins

Instructions:

1.Wash and peel young 500 grams carrots well. Grate them either using a food processor or hand grater. Use the fine grater if you have a food processer.

2. Add ½ tablespoon ghee and heat the pan. This prevents the halwa from sticking to the pan & burning. If you want to you can add the ¼ cup chopped nuts. Fry them until lightly golden. Then add 2 tablespoons raisins. When they become plump, remove to a plate.

heat ghee in a pan

3. Add grated carrots & saute for 2 to 3 mins.

add grated gajar to make halwa

4. Pour ½ tin condensed milk (½ cup + 2 tablespoons).

add condensed milk

5. Mix well and continue to cook on a medium heat. You will see the carrots begin to release moisture.

cook till carrots release moisture

6. Cover and cook until gajar turns soft and tender.

cook gajar ka halwa covered

7. Add cardamom powder.

add cardamom powder to the simmering gajar

8. Adding 1 to 2 tablespoons of ghee enhances the aroma and taste. You can also add more if you like.

add ghee to the halwa

9. Mix and saute until a nice aroma comes out.

saute gajar ka halwa in ghee

10. When the milk evaporates turn off. Garnish with chopped cashews, pistachios and almonds.

garnish with nuts

Serve Gajar ka halwa warm or chilled.

carrot halwa with condensed milk

Gajar Halwa With Khoya

This method also takes much less time than the traditional version since the amount of milk used is lesser.

½ kg carrots
½ cup khoya (unsweetened)
1 cup milk
½ cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon cardamom powder

Ensure gajar is grated with a medium fine grater. In the method, carrot is not cooked for long time so if the gratings are larger they won’t soft cook quickly.

If you want you can fry the nuts & raisins in 1 tbsps ghee. Then add carrots and milk. Cook on a low heat stirring well until carrot turns tender. If the milk evaporates and the carrot are not soft then cover and cook on a lowest heat for few minutes.

Then add khoya and sugar. Mix and continue to cook. The entire mixture turns gooey. Let it cook until gajar ka halwa thickens.

Add 1 tablespoon ghee and saute for 2 mins. Turn off and garnish with nuts and raisins.

Gajar ka Halwa with Milk Powder

Milk powder is also known as dry milk and is sold in the grocery stores. I use Nestle everyday for this. Depending on the kind you use, adjust the quantity of sugar and milk powder to suit your taste.

Ingredients

½ kg carrots – grated or fine processed
1/3 cup milk
¾ to 1 cup milk powder (dry milk, I use nestle everyday)
2 to 3 tbsps ghee
¼ teaspoon cardamom powder (adjust to taste)
4 to 8 tablespoons sugar (adjust to taste depending on the milk powder)
Chopped nuts as required

Instructions

  • Add grated carrots to a heavy bottom pot or pressure cooker and pour milk. Cook on a medium to low heat until carrots become tender. If using a pressure cooker, pressure cook for 1 whistle on a medium heat. Let the pressure drop naturally.
  • Stir the carrots as they cook until tender. Then add sugar and continue to cook on a low heat. Sugar melts and carrot halwa becomes slightly gooey. At stage sprinkle milk powder all over and mix well to incorporate the milk powder.
  • Stir and continue to cook until most of the moisture if evaporated. Taste test and add more milk powder or sugar to adjust the sweetness levels.
  • Add cardamom powder and turn off the heat. Serve with chopped nuts.

Instant pot Carrot Halwa

I have been using instant pot for quite some time for all my cooking. Making carrot halwa in an instant pot is a breeze as you don’t need to stir the pudding like we do for the traditional method.

Instant pot needs lesser liquids to cook the foods so I use only a cup of milk for 500 grams of carrot. I have included the instructions below in the recipe card for IP.

Pro Tips

Choosing carrots: Always use fresh, tender and young carrots that are less fibrous. If needed taste them before cooking. Carrots that are too old or mature are more fibrous & have a different flavour & texture which do not go well for the halwa. Young carrots are sweeter in flavour & yield a mouth melting carrot halwa.

Milk: Use full fat a.k.a whole milk to get a tasty carrot halwa. For a low fat version just reduce the amount of milk in the recipe or use low fat milk. You can also skip or reduce the amount of ghee. If you are a vegan you can make this halwa with coconut or almond milk. You can also use homemade almond milk following my faq section below.

Grating carrots: Grate the carrots with a hand held grater or food processor. I always use a food processor. You can grate to thick or thin shreds depending on how you like your carrot halwa to be. My kids like them to be very fine as the halwa just melts off in the mouth. But for this post I have used larger gratings.

Sautéing carrots: My mom makes this by first sautéing the grated carrot in ghee for 5 mins. Then pours the milk. However I do not do this just to save time. Adding ghee at a later time, once the halwa is cooked gives a more intense flavour. So you can do either ways.

Cooking: Be cautious & do not leave the carrot halwa on the stove unattended as the milk will get scorched and burnt. You will need to constantly stir the gajar halwa as it cooks through.

Faqs

How to make vegan halwa?

Soak 20 to 25 almonds or cashews overnight. Peel them and blend to a super smooth paste with ½ cup water. Pour 1 ½ cups more water and blend. Use this in place of regular milk in the recipe. Also skip ghee or replace it with flavourless virgin coconut oil.

How long can you store carrot halwa?

Carrot halwa made with traditional way can be refrigerated for upto 3 to 4 days after which the taste begins to deteriorate. So to store it longer for about 3 to 4 weeks freeze it.

What is the way to best store carrot halwa?

Cool it immediately after cooking and transfer to an air tight glass container. Either refrigerate or freeze it. Make sure you use freezer safe container if freezing.

What is the best way to reheat halwa?

Reheat it directly on the stovetop on a low heat stirring often or in the microwave stirring every 30 seconds. You can also reheat it in the Instant pot on a high pressure for 0 to 2 mins depending on the quantity of halwa.

Related Recipes

Recipe Card

carrto halwa made with gajar sugar milk

Carrot Halwa Recipe | Gajar ka Halwa

Gajar Ka Halwa is a classic sweet dish from Indian cuisine made with Carrots (Gajar), sugar, cardamom powder and milk. This recipe post shares 3 methods of making carrot halwa. Instructions for Instant pot included.
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For best results follow the step-by-step photos above the recipe card

Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time40 minutes
Servings4 people
AuthorSwasthi

Ingredients (US cup = 240ml )

  • ½ kg carrot (gajar)(500 grams) (prefer young carrots)
  • 2 cups milk (1 cup for Instant pot)
  • ½ cup sugar (+ 2 tbsp optional) (prefer organic)
  • ½ teaspoon cardamom powder (or 4 pods skinned & powdered)
  • 2 tablespoons ghee (clarified butter)

optional ingredients

  • 20 mixed nuts 10 pista, 5 cashew & 5 almonds
  • 2 tablespoons raisins optional


Instructions

Preparation

  • Wash carrots under running water & peel them. 
  • Grate them in a food processor or with a hand grater. 
  • Dry roast nuts on a low heat until crunchy, cool & chop them.  OR Alternately chop the nuts first & fry them in 1 tbsp ghee until slightly golden. Then add raisins & fry until they plump up. Remove to a plate.

How to Make Carrot Halwa

  • Next bring milk to a boil in a heavy bottom pot or deep pan. 
  • Add grated carrots and cook on a medium heat stirring often. Do not leave the pot unattended as the milk will get scorched. 
  • When the milk has completely evaporated add sugar and stir well. Sugar will release lot of moisture & will make the entire carrot halwa gooey.
  • Cook until half of the moisture evaporates, then stir in the ghee.
  • Saute the carrot halwa well in ghee until the moisture evaporates completely. 
  • When it is done gajar halwa turns aromatic & thickens. It will still be moist. If you overcook your halwa turns dry. Sprinkle cardamom powder.
  • Garnish carrot halwa with nuts. Serve warm or chilled with Ice cream.

Instant Pot Gajar ka Halwa

  • Press the saute button and add 1 tbsp ghee to the steel insert of the IP.
  • When it is hot fry the nuts until light golden. Then add in raisins if using. When they plump up remove to a plate.
  • Then add in the carrots & saute for 2 to 3 mins stirring well.
  • Pour 1 cup milk and mix well. Deglaze by scrubbing the bottom of the pot with a spatula.
  • Secure the instant pot & position the steam release handle to sealing. Press the pressure cook (manual) button & set the timing to 3 mins.
  • When the instant pot beeps and finishes, do a manual pressure release carefully.
  • Stir in the sugar, ghee & cardamom powder. Press the saute button & saute until the milk evaporates completely.
  • Garnish gajar halwa with chopped nuts & raisins.


Notes

  1. Choose Carrots that are young, tender and freshly harvested. Avoid using carrots that are fibrous as this kind taste more woody.
  2. Chopped Nuts and raisins can be fried in ghee and set aside for garnishing.
  3.  Grated carrot can also be sautéed in ghee for 2 to 3 mins before cooking it with milk. But avoid this if using Delhi Carrots.
  4. To add protein to the recipe & fasten the cooking, you may add 4 tablespoons of almond flour right at the beginning. This helps to thicken your halwa faster. Also this makes the dish much more delicious.

Alternative quantities provided in the recipe card are for 1x only, original recipe.

For best results follow my detailed step-by-step photo instructions and tips above the recipe card.

Video

NUTRITION INFO (estimation only)

Nutrition Facts
Carrot Halwa Recipe | Gajar ka Halwa
Amount Per Serving
Calories 319 Calories from Fat 126
% Daily Value*
Fat 14g22%
Saturated Fat 7g44%
Cholesterol 31mg10%
Sodium 141mg6%
Potassium 594mg17%
Carbohydrates 44g15%
Fiber 3g13%
Sugar 37g41%
Protein 5g10%
Vitamin A 21085IU422%
Vitamin C 7.3mg9%
Calcium 186mg19%
Iron 0.6mg3%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Tried this recipe?Mention @SwasthisRecipes or tag #swasthisrecipes!

© Swasthi’s Recipes

Carrot Halwa Recipe aka Gajar Halwa Recipe, first published in June 2013, Republished in Oct 2022.

Carrot Halwa Recipe | Gajar Ka Halwa

About Swasthi

I’m Swasthi Shreekanth, the recipe developer, food photographer & food writer behind Swasthi’s Recipes. My aim is to help you cook great Indian food with my time-tested recipes. After 2 decades of experience in practical Indian cooking I started this blog to help people cook better & more often at home. Whether you are a novice or an experienced cook I am sure Swasthi’s Recipes will assist you to enhance your cooking skills. More about me

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5 stars
Omg, sooo yummy. This is my favorite dessert ever, but I’ve never made it myself until today. It tastes just like it’s from a restaurant! I also added a pinch of saffron while cooking. Had to use orange carrots since that’s what is available here, I bet it’d be even better with red carrots!

Thanks 🙂

5 stars
I always follow your recipes.. I think they are simple and and not too heavy

Thank u

Hi, what is the conversion of 2 cups in ml? Thank you!

5 stars
Hi Swasti, can I replace sugar with jaggery?

5 stars
I love all your recipies. They are simple, practical and really high in taste.

5 stars
I made it with regular carrots and sautéed it with ghee first then after it semi softened, I added it in to milk with saffron and cardamom and simmered till no milk was left then added sugar and let it caramelize. Honestly such a good recipe! Loved it!!

5 stars
Tried gajar halwa for the first time. Turned out beautiful. Thank you so much Swasthi.

5 stars
Very nice and detailed recipe with various options as per convenience. Thanks!

While using condensed milk does it become vary stickier?

5 stars
Turned so good. Perfect for chilly winter days!

5 stars
It’s really helpful thanks 😊

5 stars
Thanks for this halwa, really awesome

Can I use oat milk instead?

5 stars
very testy! i love it

5 stars
How to maintain colour of halwa and it will turn out pale orange once cooked …how to get that restaurant style carrot halwa texture and colour

5 stars
I just love the detailing you mention in every step that helps a lot …I want to learn how to prepare mug cake in oven i I always end up either too hard or it’s burnt any tips

5 stars
I’ll soon make this dessert. About one of your tips: exactly when should almond flour be added?

Hi my halwa tastes delicious but it turned blackish is that normal? My mom says if I cooked in water it would have stayed orange

4 stars
my first time attempting an Indian dessert recipe, I enjoy carrot halwa so I thought to try this one. this came out so delicious! I cooked in pressure cooker and halved the milk (I think that’s what the recipe card says to do) but it burned a little and stuck on the bottom. next time I will add extra 1/2 cup milk to try and avoid that.

5 stars
I’ve made this multiple times in the insta pot. My family loves it. The only changes are that I double it and use half the sugar.

5 stars
Hi Swasthi. I love your carrot Halwa recipe and I tried yours without onion and garlic paneer recipes . It’s turned out so well. I am big fan of your recipes. I made bookmark of your web. Thank you so much for your Amazing recipes.