Kaju katli recipe or kaju barfi with video & photos. Easy & quick recipe to make perfect kaju katli like the ones we get in sweet shops. These kaju katli have a smooth & melt-in-the mouth texture with mild flavors of cardamom powder or rose water. Kaju katli is usually made for festivals & celebrations. It is often shared with friends and relatives to spread the joy of festive occasions.
Traditionally kaju katli is made by boiling the sugar syrup to a 1 string consistency and then the powdered cashews are added to it. This method yields great results as the mixture doesn’t get overcooked and the burfi turns right.
The method I have shown in this post is without making a string consistency which I adapted from my Badam burfi recipe. This method also gives very nice kaju katli just like the ones in the sweet shops.
This kaju katli recipe is very easy and can be tried even by beginners as you don’t need to check the string consistency.
Tips to make good kaju katli
1. Make sure cashews are powdered as fine as possible without making the powder lumpy. Pulse the cashews in intervals and avoid running the blender for long time.
2. Do not over cook the mixture as it dries out the kaju katli.
3. Kneading the mixture well is the key to get smooth and mouth melting kaju katli.
4. Do not over blend the cashews to the extent they release oils. If the cashew powder turn oily, then it is not suitable to make kaju katli.
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Easy kaju katli or kaju barfi
Kaju katli recipe | Kaju barfi | How to make kaju katli
Kaju katli recipe or kaju barfi is a simple fudge made of cashews and sugar. Kaju katli is one of the popular desserts made during festivals like diwali & navratri.
Ingredients (240 ml cup used)
Ingredients for kaju katli
- 1½ cups cashew nuts or kaju - 200 grams
- 90 ml water or 6 tbsp (refer notes)
- ¾ cup sugar (+ 2 tbsp optional) - 150 to 180 grams
- 1 tsp rose water or 1/8 tsp. cardamom powder or both
- 2 tsp ghee for cooking
- 1 tsp ghee for greasing
How to make the recipe
Preparation for kaju katli
Add cashews to a blender jar and pulse a few times until it turns to powder. Do not run the blender for long time as the cashews begin to release oil and turn lumpy.
To ensure the powder is not very grainy sieve it and blend the coarse particles again. The cashew powder will be slightly grainy.
How to make kaju katli
Add sugar and water to a non stick pan. Heat & dissolve it well.
When the sugar melts off completely and begins to boil rapidly, add the cashew powder. Lower the heat.
Mix well to blend the sugar syrup and powder. The mixture must be smooth without any lumps.
Keep stirring and cook until slightly thick. Then pour rosewater and ghee. You can also add cardamom powder.
Cook till the kaju katli mixture turns thick and begins to leave the sides of the pan. If it doesn't then drizzle few drops of ghee and mix. At this stage the mixture should not look dry but has to be moist and sticky.
Check if mixture is ready
To check if the mixture is ready. Turn off the stove and set the pan aside. Take ¼ tsp of this mixture and cool down a bit. Roll it to a ball with greased fingers. You must get a ball that isn't sticky. Upon cooling completely this has to get the texture of the katli or fudge.
Next Transfer the cooked mixture immediately to a greased plate or butter paper. Let the temperature come down to warm or slightly hot.
While the mixture is still slightly hot or warm, grease your palms and knead it for 2 to 3 mins to a smooth crack free dough. ( To fix ) If your mixture tends to stick a lot, it means it is still underdone, so add little milk powder and knead. if your mixture looks dry, sprinkle some boiled and cooled milk and knead.
Place the ball on a greased aluminum foil or a butter paper and cover it.
With the help of a rolling pin, roll it evenly to ¼ inch thickness. Cool completely and cut to desired shapes.
Store kaju katli in an airtight box. If you have used milk while kneading refrigerate and use.
Recipe Video
Watch video to make kaju katli
Recipe Notes
Notes on water: Please stick on to the quantity of water mentioned in the recipe. If you add even little more water than mentioned in the recipe, you will have to cook the mixture for longer. This will alter the taste of kaju katli.
You can also boil the sugar syrup until it reaches 1 string consistency. Then add the cashew powder. Mix well and add ghee. Cook until the mixture leaves the sides of the pan. When it cools down a bit. Knead it well and follow as mentioned above.
Milk powder is not needed unless, the mixture is under cooked. To help the burfi set, use it
Before adding the cashew powder, make sure sugar has melted completely and has begin to boil well.
Preparation for kaju katli
1. Add cashews to a blender jar. I had used cashews from fridge. I split open the cashews and then dry roasted on a low flame until crunchy. I used 1 & 1/2 cups split cashews which weighed 200 grams.
2. Pulse or blend to make a powder. Do not blend at a stretch for long time as they begin to release oil and turn lumpy.
3. To make sure the powder is not too coarse I sieved it. You will need to use a spoon to pass it through the sieve.
4. I added back the coarse grains and blended again.
5. The cashew powder will be slightly grainy but not fine like flour.
Making sugar syrup for kaju katli
6. Add sugar to a non stick pan. I used 3/4 cup + 2 tbsps. The sweetness was right for us. If you prefer less sweetness then you can reduce 2 tbsp.
7. I poured 6 tbsp water.
8. Stir gently and dissolve the sugar completely on a medium heat. Sugar can scratch up the nonstick pan so be gentle. Bring it to a rapid boil.
How to make kaju katli
9. Lower the flame and add cashew powder. I added in 2 batches.
10. Mix very well to ensure there are no lumps. Scrape the sides and the spoon if the powder is stuck.
11. Keep stirring consistently and cook on a low to medium heat until the mixture begins to thicken.
12. Add 2 tsps ghee and 1 tsp rose water or cardamom powder.
13. Continue to cook stirring. As the mixture thickens it must leave the sides if not then add a few drops of ghee again.
14. With in few mins the mixture comes together and leaves the pan.
Check if the mixture is done
When the mixture is done, set the pan aside. Take 1/4 tsp of the mixture and cool down a bit. Grease your fingers and make a ball out of it. You must get a non sticky dry ball. This means the mixture is ready.
15. Quickly pour prepared mixture to a greased plate or butter paper. If using unbleached parchment paper then grease it first and use.
16. When the temperature comes down to slightly hot or warm, then grease your hands and knead it well.
17. With in 2 to 3 mins the mixture turns smooth.
18. Cover the kaju barfi mixture.
19. Roll it to a oval shape of 1/4 inch thickness.
20. Cool completely and cut to square or diamond shapes. I cut them to the size of Haldiram’s Kaju katli. You can cut them slightly bigger if you like.
Store kaju katli in a air tight jar.
Rajni Andavarapu says
Helo mam, i done today for pongal,my son loves it,he says diamond is super yummy thanx a lot
swasthi says
Hi Rajni,
Happy pongal!
So glad to know your kid liked the kaju katli.
🙂