Gulab jamun is a classic dessert that most Indians love. The fried balls made of milk powder soaked in sugar syrup and flavoured with cardamom and rose are a delight for your taste buds. However, due to the deep frying involved in the recipe, if you are calorie-conscious, you may hesitate to enjoy gulab jamuns.
While the traditional gulab jamun recipe involves deep-frying the balls, many recipes can help you make this heavenly dish without frying them. One such recipe is the baked gulab jamun recipe.
Now the question arises: which one is better: baked or fried gulab jamun?
Ingredients Required for Making Gulab Jamun
Although the process of making fried and baked gulab jamuns is different, the ingredients required are the same. You can get all the required ingredients from an online delivery app.
For Gulab Jamun Balls
- Unsweetened milk powder
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Ghee
- Milk
For Sugar Syrup
- Sugar
- Water
- Cardamom pods
- Saffron strands
- Rose water
Prepare the Sugar Syrup and Gulab Jamun Dough
- In a pot, add 1.5 cups of sugar, 4 cardamom pods and 1.5 cups of water. Heat the mixture until the sugar dissolves in the water. When the mixture comes to a boil, turn off the heat. Set the sugar syrup aside.
- In a bowl, mix 1 cup milk powder and ¼ cup all-purpose flour. Add a large pinch of baking powder. Mix the dry ingredients and sieve them to avoid lumps.
- Add 1 tsp ghee to the dry ingredients. Add 1.5 tbsp yoghurt to the milk powder. Mix the yoghurt and flour to form a dough. Do not knead it. If necessary, add milk.
- Make small balls of equal size from the dough.
For Fried Gulab Jamun Recipe
Heat oil or ghee in a pan. Once the oil is hot, add jamuns and fry them until crisp on the outside. Ensure they are cooked well.
Put the golden brown jamuns in the sugar syrup. The gulab jamuns can be enjoyed after soaking them in the syrup for a minimum of 2 hours.
For the Baked Gulab Jamun Recipe
Once you are ready with the gulab jamun balls, preheat the oven to 300F. Grease a baking tray, place the balls on it and bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Turn the balls constantly to cook them uniformly.
Once they are cooked well, add them to the sugar syrup and let them soak for at least 2 hours.
Baked vs. Fried Gulab Jamun
Baked and fried gulab jamuns require the same amount of effort. The only key difference in the recipes lies in the last cooking step. The balls are either fried or baked. Other differences include –
- The outside of fried gulab jamuns is crispier and has a melt-in-the-mouth texture, whereas baked gulab jamuns are not that crispy.
- The fried gulab jamuns are golden brown, while the baked ones are slightly light in colour.
- Fried gulab jamuns have a richer flavour due to the ghee or oil used.
- Baked gulab jamuns are lower in calorie content than fried ones.
Conclusion
Gulab jamuns are delectable, and no one can resist them. Due to the rich flavours of ghee and cardamom, the fried gulab jamuns recipe tastes better. However, you can have baked gulab jamuns without the guilt of consuming extra calories. The choice between the two majorly depends on personal preference.
To cook this flavourful sweet dish with either of the recipes, you can order the required ingredients online through an online delivery service like Swiggy Instamart.
