... as a young girl living in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania. After hours at the dining table with my dad hand-grating long, orange carrots, my hands would be stained slightly orange for days. But it didn't matter. As long as we got our share of Gajar ka Halwa. It felt like a real delicacy that I would never be able to perfect, but then I realized, after having my own family, that I should at least give it a try.
It's easier than you may think, but it does require a degree of patience to wait for the carrots, ghee, sugar, and milk to bubble together just so. That's why making it in the Instant Pot is so easy and simple. The carrots cook up in a quarter of the time, and then you can finish the dish off in the exact same pot!
You will find the recipe below and in my latest cookbook, Instant Pot Indian, on page 163. You can also find the stovetop version on the blog and in my cookbook, Indian For Everyone, on pages 268-269, and the slow cooker version in The Indian Slow Cooker on page 160.
xoxo Anupy
The word Halwa is derived from the Arabic word Hulw, which means sweet, and is thought to have come from Turkey. There, it was originally a confection made from ground sesame seeds and honey. In India, the sweet took on a life of its own, and now we have halwa made from grain (cream of wheat, whole wheat flour, and legumes), from vegetables (carrots and gourd), and even meat in some areas of India. Confectioners in India to this day are called Halwais. And, this dessert has come to symbolize not only a sweet treat to mark the end of a meal, but an essential addition to commemorate a special event or prayers. As children, we always looked forward to the weekends when mom would take the time to make us a special halwa, as it symbolized the time and love she would take to make such a wonderful treat for us.
Green cardamom seeds are ground down into a powder and added to this dessert to elevate the taste profile and give it that special touch that screams Indian dessert. Cardamom is known as the 'Queen of Spices' (black pepper is the King), and has always been one of the world's most expensive spices. You can purchase the green pods, take out the seeds and grind them, or buy just the seeds in packets from an Indian grocery store. The husks are edible, but not everyone likes them in their food or dessert (um, my dad!). The volatile oils in cardamom can improve digestion, and chewing on a pod or two helps with bad breath. Cardamom has also been shown to stop ulcers and prevent colon cancer, among other things. My aunts in India would often travel to the markets with little bags of cardamom pods tucked into their purses to chew on after a meal as a natural breath mint. Give it a try.
Pressure Cooker Size: 3-quart or larger
Warm Up: 6 minutes
Cook: 8 minutes + 27 minutes Sauté
Cool Down: 4 minutes natural release + manual release time
Total: 45 minutes + manual release time
Makes: 2 cups
This recipe can easily be made plant-based by subbing plant-based butter for ghee and using soy, almond, oat, or cashew milk for the dairy milk. There are many dried non-dairy milk options available as well.
This recipe is in my cookbook, Instant Pot Indian, on page 163. You can also find the stovetop version on the blog and in my cookbook, Indian For Everyone, on pages 268-269, and the slow cooker version in The Indian Slow Cooker on page 160.
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[[ recipeID=recipe-2mql2k64y, title=Instant Pot: Gajar ka Halwa (Gajrela), Carrot Halwa ]]
Watch me release the steam from my Instant Pot. In the recipe above, I recommend a natural release of 4 minutes. This means that you will not touch your Instant Pot once it finishes cooking and let the steam release by itself — with no help from you — for 4 minutes. This allows the steam in the pot to finish off the dish.
Now, we could do this for more than 4 minutes until all of the steam releases and the valve drops to indicate it's safe to open the lid. But the issue is that the extra time further cooks the dish. Some dishes are okay and even better with this extra cook time — but some become mushy. The dish above may overcook, so that's why we want to manually release the remaining pressure. This is what I show you how to do in the video below. Very critical — do NOT put your hand over the steam release button. Steam is extremely hot. Just use your fingertips or the handle of a spatula to move the valve into pressure release mode.
I would also recommend keeping your pressure cooker/Instant Pot away from cabinets — I never like the released steam touching cabinets or dishes. If you are worried about the steam discoloring anything around your appliance, just place a dishcloth that you don't mind staining loosely over it as you release the steam. This can be more of an issue when cooking a thin dal or making something with turmeric and other spices in it.
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by Anupy Singla, Indian As Apple Pie
Servings: 2 cups
Keywords: Indian Recipes, Instant Pot, Dessert, Gluten Free, Vegetarian, Gluten Free desserts, Indian desserts, Instant Pot desserts
This recipe can easily be made plant-based by subbing plant-based butter for ghee and using soy, almond, oat, or cashew milk for the dairy milk. There are many dried non-dairy milk options available as well.
This recipe is in my cookbook, Instant Pot Indian, on page 163. You can also find the stovetop version on the blog and in my cookbook, Indian For Everyone, on pages 268-269, and the slow cooker version in The Indian Slow Cooker on page 160.
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