Kala Jamun | Kala Jam Recipe
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 12
Ingredients
  • Fresh Khoya - 125 gm (from cow’s milk if possible )
  • Full cream milk - ½ litter
  • Vinegar - 2 tbsp / Citric acid - 2 pinch
  • Barik Sooji / Rava - 2 tbsp
  • Milk - 1 tbsp or more
  • Maida - 2 tsp
  • Powdered sugar - 1 tsp
  • Cooking soda - a pinch
  • Ghee OR Oil + 2 tbsp ghee for frying
  • Sugar - 1 ½ cup
  • Water - ¾ cup
  • Cardamom powder - ¼ tsp
  • Saffron - few strands
  • Rosewater - 1 tbsp
Instructions ( 1 cup = 250 ml, 1 tbsp = 15 ml, 1 tsp = 5 ml)
  1. In a saucepan, boil milk.
  2. When the first boil comes, turn off the flame.
  3. Add one pinch of citric acid and stir continuously.
  4. After a min again adds another pinch and mix well.
  5. Immediately milk will curdle.
  6. Place a wet muslin cloth on the colander.
  7. Strain the paneer.
  8. Wash it properly.
  9. Squeeze all excess water.
  10. Hang the paneer for 3 - 4 hrs.
  11. After that crumble it and store it in the refrigerator for further use.
  12. In another bowl add sooji. Add 1 tbsp of milk. We just need to wet sooji.
  13. It will look like dough. It should not look like a batter.
  14. On a plate add fresh khoya.
  15. Kneed it properly for 5 - 7 minutes.
  16. Same way knead the paneer for 5 - 7 minutes.
  17. Now mix them and knead again for 3 - 4 minutes until u get a nice smooth texture.
  18. Add soaked sooji and knead for 3 - 4 minutes.
  19. For the kneading technique please refer to the video recipe.
  20. Add maida, soda, and powdered sugar.
  21. Again knead for 3 - 4 minutes.
  22. Knead until everything is uniformly mixed and get a nice smooth dough.
  23. Divide dough into 12 equal parts.
  24. Apply ghee on your palm and roll them into smooth balls.
  25. There should not be any cracks on the surface.
  26. In a saucepan add sugar and water for sugar syrup.
  27. Cook until sugar is dissolved.
  28. When the syrup starts to boil, boil it for a min and turn off the flame.
  29. Add cardamom powder, saffron strands, and rosewater.
  30. Keep it aside.
  31. In a Kadai, add ghee or oil for frying.
  32. When ghee is medium hot, add one Kala Jamun.
  33. Fry it on constant medium-low flame.
  34. Move the spatula in a circular motion so Kala Jamun will move and will cook from all the sides equally.
  35. Fry it until it gets a nice dark brown color on the crust.
  36. Remove on a plate.
  37. After 1 - 2 minutes, add them to hot syrup.
  38. Same way fry all the balls and dip them in sugar syrup.
  39. Let them inside the syrup at least for 5-6 hrs.
  40. Later on, remove them and place them on a slanted surface to drain all excess syrup.
  41. Roll them in desiccated coconut, arrange them in a paper liner.
  42. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for a couple of days.
  43. For longer shelf life, refrigerate them.
Notes
I prefer making it with Fresh khoya rather than milk powder or instant pack/ready mix because it gives softness and tastes best.

Make a soft and smooth dough. If it is hard, add little milk to it.

While making balls, roll it gently until smooth and crack-free.

Fry them in ghee to enhance taste and flavor.

A flavorless oil also works. In this case add 2 tbsp of ghee in oil.

Fry the kala jamun balls in medium-low heat,
continuously stir and flip them to cook them
evenly until even dark red-brown color.

While making sugar syrup, make thin and sticky syrup.

Keep the sugar syrup hot or on sim mode while adding the kala jamun. If the syrup is boiling, kala jamun will break or lose its shape, and if the sugar syrup is cold, then kala jamun will not absorb syrup dry from the center).
Recipe by Zeel's Kitchen at https://www.zeelskitchen.com/recipe/kala-jamun-kala-jam-recipe/