Gulab Jamun Recipe with Milk Powder {Easy, Juicy, and Tender}

Quick and Simple Homemade Gulab Jamun using Milk Powder served in a glass bowl.

5 from 33 votes

Gulab Jamun Recipe with Milk Powder {Easy, Juicy, and Tender}

Gulab Jamun is a very popular, soft and melt-in-mouth milk-based Indian sweet recipe that consists of deep-fried dumplings or doughnuts that are prepared using khoya or milk powder and soaked in saffron cardamom flavored sugar syrup. One of the best desserts or mithai served during Indian festivals like Diwali, Navratri, Holi, Ramzan and Christmas or during any special occasions and parties. Each jamun is under 130 calories, and can be prepared in about 40 minutes.

Prep Time10

Cook Time30

Total Time40

Course: Desserts, sweets

Cuisine: Indian, north indian, South Indian

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings:

Calories: 131kcal

Author: Kushi

Ingredients

To make jamuns

2 cups Milk powder
3 tablespoon Vegetable shortening or Vanaspati dalda
2 tablespoon All purpose flour or Maida
2 tablespoon Semolina or Sooji rava
3 tablespoon Warm whole milk
½ teaspoon Baking powder
½ cup Warm water for the dough

To prepare saffron or rose cardamom flavored sugar syrup

1 ½ cup Sugar
5 strands Saffron or Kesar or 1 teaspoon rose water
2 cups Water
⅛ teaspoon Lemon juice
⅛ teaspoon Cardamom powder

Other Ingredient

Vegetable oil for frying

Instructions

Step I - Prepare Jamuns from scratch

Soak semolina or sooji in milk for 5 minutes.
2 tablespoon Semolina, 3 tablespoon Warm whole milk
In a bowl, add milk powder and vegetable shortening and mix well. Then add the all purpose flour and baking powder and mix well.
2 cups Milk powder, 3 tablespoon Vegetable shortening, 2 tablespoon All purpose flour, ½ teaspoon Baking powder
Now add the soaked sooji to this mixture and mix again. Finally, add ½ cup of water little by little to form a dough and keep this aside for 10 to 15 minutes.
½ cup Warm water
Now make small balls out of this dough. See that there are no cracks, else it might break while frying.

Step II - Frying gulab jamuns

Heat oil in a pan on medium flame. Once the oil is hot, on medium-low flame, fry the jamuns till they become golden brown on all the sides.
Vegetable oil
Transfer it to a paper towel to absorb any excess oil. Keep this aside till the sugar syrup is ready.

Step III - Prepare Cardamom saffron or rose-flavored sugar syrup

In a bowl add sugar, saffron strands, water, and lemon juice and bring it to a nice boil on a medium flame for about 8 minutes, stirring it occasionally.
1 ½ cup Sugar, 5 strands Saffron, 2 cups Water, ⅛ teaspoon Lemon juice
Now add the cardamom powder and mix well.
⅛ teaspoon Cardamom powder

Step IV

Add the fried jamuns to the sugar syrup. Make sure that the syrup is hot while adding the jamuns. Let this soak for at least one hour before serving. You can also make gulab jamuns ahead and refrigerate them.
Gulab Jamun is now ready. Serve chilled or warm, and enjoy!

Notes

Expert Chef Tips

You can fry the jamuns in ghee or brown butter to make them rich and traditional.
You can use saffron or rose water, or both in the recipe.
While serving, you can also garnish it with some pistachios, almonds, or cashews if desired.
While frying, make sure the oil is hot. If the oil is not hot, the jamuns can absorb oil and turn soggy. Adding them to very hot oil will lead them to develop brown color on the surface quickly and will remain uncooked on the inside.
Regulate the flame. When dough balls are dropped into the oil, ensure the oil is hot and the flame is medium. As soon as the dough balls develop some color, reduce the flame to low (or medium-low) and continue frying until the whole jamun is golden brown in color.
Add fried gulab jamuns to the warm sugar syrup (not boiling). Adding the jamuns to boiling syrup can make them extra soft and break. On the other hand, adding these to cold syrup will not allow the jamuns to absorb the syrup.

Make-Ahead and Storage Instructions

You can make gulab jamuns ahead of time and store them in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 days making them a perfect dessert for parties or other festivals. Warm it on the stovetop for a few minutes when ready to serve. If you (or your guests) love to have chilled gulab jamuns, serve them immediately!

Nutrition