Besan Ladoo are creamy, golden-hued, melt-in-your-mouth dessert balls often made during festivals and special occasions. One of the easiest dessert recipes, besan laddoo or laddu is made with besan/gram flour, ghee, and sugar laced with aromatic cardamom, nutmeg, and saffron.
As a child, I recall waiting earnestly for the time when our heirloom copper pans would be brought out for roasting the besan for ladoos. As my mother patiently slow-roasted the besan, adding ghee by spoonfuls, the entire house would fill with heavenly aromas, and we couldn't wait to lay our hands on the finished dish!
The soft and creamy besan laddoo is rich in texture and nutrition, making it a perfect snack to quell that sweet craving. Recently my friend shared homemade besan ladoos with her friend from the Philippines that the entire family devoured. These delicious ladoos are so simple to make that they soon tried out a batch of their own!
Today, I’m sharing with you our family recipe to make perfectly soft and delicious Marathi besan ladoos that are finger-licking good and super easy to make. I promise they will fly off your pantry shelf as soon as you have made them and your kids will love you for packing this treat into their lunch boxes. So go on, give them a try!
What is Besan?
Besan also known as gram flour is flour made from the yellow split Bengal gram or chana daal. It is also sometimes called chickpea flour, However, there is a slight difference between the two. Chickpea flour is made from whole white chickpeas or garbanzo beans.
Besan is available as coarse and finely ground in Indian grocery stores. Traditional Maharashtrian Besan Ladoo that I grew up eating is made with superfine gram flour. I use Swad superfine gram flour and the package also refers to it as chickpea flour. So if you end up buying besan from Indian groceries, it most likely will be labeled as gram flour/chickpea flour. Besan is also sold as coarse flour and the ladoos made with it also taste equally delicious.
Tips
Ministry Of Curry’s Pro tips for making besan laddu:
- Use fresh, good-quality besan/gram flour. I usually buy fine besan from Indian grocery stores.
- Sift the flour and then measure it for the perfect proportion of besan, ghee, and sugar.
- I like using homemade ghee for this recipe with its nutty taste and aroma.
- Use a thick bottom pan or a heavy nonstick pan for roasting the gram flour.
- Make sure to sift the gram flour and powdered sugar to remove any lumps.
- Use low to medium heat to fry the besan or gram flour to ensure the flour gets uniformly roasted.
- Allow the hot flour and ghee mixture to cool down before adding the sugar.
- You can grease your palms with ghee before shaping the balls so that the mixture does not stick to your hand.
- If the mixture is too soft and sticky, add some more dry roasted besan to the mixture amd then shape the laddoo.
Notes
Here are some special notes from Mom:
The besan and ghee must be slow-roasted over low heat stirring constantly until it gets light and fluffy, golden brown, and aromatic. The timings in the recipe are for 1 cup of besan flour. It takes 25 minutes to roast 1 cup of besan, 35 minutes for 2 cups, and 45 minutes for 3 cups of besan. The more the quantity, the roasting time will increase.
Ingredients
- Besan/gram flour
- Ghee
- Powdered sugar
- Ground nutmeg
- Ground Cardamom
- Saffron (optional)
- Almonds or Pistachios (optional)
Steps
Step 1 - Add ghee and besan to a medium-sized heavy-bottomed pan. Keeping the heat low, slow roast the besan flour, while stirring constantly with a spatula. Continue to stir evenly and break the lumps that will form initially (photos 1 - 4).
Step 2 - After about 10 minutes, the flour will start to loosen up and become light and fluffy. Continue roasting for another 10 to 15 minutes or until the flour turns light golden brown. At this stage the ghee will start to separate, filling the kitchen with a delightful aroma (photos 5 - 8).
Step 3 - Turn the heat off and take out the mixture into a bowl. This will avoid the besan from being overcooked. Allow it to cool for about 15 minutes or until it is lukewarm to touch. Add saffron, cardamom, nutmeg, and pistachios (photos 9 - 12).
Step 4 - Add powdered sugar and mix well. Next, massage the mixture with the palm of your hands, and as you do so the ghee starts to release, allowing the mixture to bind together. Take 2 to 3 tablespoons of the mix at a time and start pressing and shaping to form round balls (photos 13 - 16). Repeat with the remaining mix.
Storing
Store in an airtight container. These laddus will stay good at room temperature for 8 to 10 days. For longer shelf life keep them in the refrigerator and optionally heat them in the microwave for about 10 seconds before enjoying them.
FAQs
There are many different varieties of laddu made in India. My favorite ones are Rava laddo, Motichoor ladoo and these easy, no-fail Besan Ladoo. The main ingredient for Besan laddu and Motichoor ladoo is gram flour while rava ladoo is made with fine semolina.
Besan ladoo has refined sugar but can be reduced as per your taste. They are not deep-fried, so I would call them relatively healthy and the best part is that they are gluten-free. You can also skip the nuts in case of allergies and they will still be equally delicious.
Diwali is the most prominent and widely celebrated festival in India. Falling around the Autumn season, Diwali signifies the triumph of good over evil and is also popularly known as the festival of lights. Friends and family members dress up in finery and get together over 4-5 days of festivities to exchanges sweets, gifts, and good wishes.
Did you enjoy this delicious recipe? Here are some more of my family recipes made during the Diwali festival:
- Layered Karanji / Gujiya with rose-flavored coconut filling
- Shankarpali
- Rava Laddu with fresh coconut
- Saranachi Puri or Satori
- Savory Chakli with homemade rice and lentil flour
Love Indian desserts? Here are some of my go-to desserts when I am hosting a party:
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Recipe
Traditional Besan Laddu (ladoo) recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup fine besan / gram flour sift before measuring
- ¼ cup ghee
- ½ cup powdered sugar sifted
- 1 tablespoon pistachios thinly sliced, optional
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon saffron
Instructions
- Add ghee and besan to a medium sized heavy bottomed pan. Keeping the heat low, slow roast the besan flour, while stirring constantly with a spatula. Continue to stir evenly and break the lumps that will form initially.
- After about 10 minutes, the flour will start to loosen up and become light and fluffy. Continue roasting for another 10 to 15 minutes or until the flour turns light golden brown. At this stage the ghee will start to separate, filling the kitchen with a delightful aroma.
- Turn the heat off and take out the mixture into a bowl. This will avoid the besan from being overcooked. Allow it to cool for about 15 minutes or until it is luke warm to touch.
- Add powdered sugar, cardamom, nutmeg, saffron and pistachios. Massage the mixture with the palm of your hands, and as you do so the ghee starts to release, allowing the mixture to bind together.
- Take 2 to 3 tablespoons of mix at a time and start pressing and shaping to form round balls. Repeat with the remaining mix. Makes 8 ladoo.
- Store in an airtight container in a cool dry place. The laddus will stay good at room temperature for 8 to 10 days. For longer shelf-life keep them in the refrigerator and remember to heat in the microwave for about 10 seconds before enjoying them.
Video
Notes
- Use fresh, good quality besan/gram flour. I usually buy the fine besan from Indian grocery stores.
- Sift the flour and then measure it for the perfect proportion of besan, ghee, and sugar.
- I like using homemade ghee for this recipe with its nutty taste and aroma.
- Use a thick bottom pan or a heavy nonstick pan for roasting the gram flour.
- Make sure to sift the gram flour and powdered sugar to remove any lumps.
- Use low to medium heat to fry the besan or gram flour to ensure the flour gets uniformly roasted.
- Allow the hot flour and ghee mixture to cool down before adding the sugar.
- You can grease your palms with ghee before shaping the balls so that the mixture does not stick to your hand.
- If the mixture is too soft and sticky, add some more dry roasted besan to the mixture and then shape the laddoo.
Mom's Notes:
The besan and ghee must be slow-roasted over low heat stirring constantly until it gets light and fluffy, golden brown, and aromatic. The timings in the recipe are for 1 cup of besan flour. It takes 25 minutes to roast 1 cup of besan, 35 minutes for 2 cups, and 45 minutes for 3 cups of besan. The more the quantity, the roasting time will increase.Nutrition
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Mansi says
recipe did not work for me. i chnaged it for 12 ladoos and used .5 cup ghee, even after 40 minutes no ghee separated. i improvised and put some more ghee, still no where close to the pics above.
Archana says
Mansi if you double the recipe, it should be roasted for atelast 45 mins as mentioned in my notes. Also teh ghee does not really separte but the flour become liquidy, light and fluffy.
Ratna Wynn says
I love your recipes but this one did not work. I doubled the recipe but 1 hour later still no separation. A shame
Archana says
I am so sorry that this did not work out. Were you using fine besan?
Ashwini says
Its yum!! Inspired
BESAN LADOO
Nea says
These ladoos are so perfect brings back childhood memories of my aaji making them!! The addition of saffron gives it such a special touch. Thanks so much Archana to you and your mom for sharing this recipe!!
Aparna says
Can you use confectionary sugar instead of powdered? If yes, what amount would you use?
Archana says
Yes, start with same quantity, taste a bit and add more by spoonfuls if needed.
VT Mukundan says
It was brilliant, the photos were a great guide to know how well I'd cooked the besan. The end product (I used minimum ghee and sugar) was delightfully tasty with a slight roasted crunch!
Nita says
When you say 6 servings, how many laddoos can I make with this recipe? How many laddies in each serving?
Archana says
This recipe makes 12 to 15 ladoo
SR says
How many ladoos do you usually get with this recipe? I'm looking forward to making these for Diwali gift boxes so trying to figure out if I need to double the recipe.
Archana says
You can make 12 to 15 with the recipe.
Aboli says
Nice and simple recipe, but is 1/4 ghee proportion correct for 1 cup besan? I started with it but eventually needed to add more ghee for the required consistency.
Archana says
Yes I always use 1/4 cup but you can use upto 1/2 cup 🙂
SR says
The recipe says to use 1/4 cup, but you noted above you use 1/2 cup. Which should we use? I made two batches using both measurements and in one, it was too soft to stay in the ball shape (roasted more besan and added it) and in the other one, all I had was roasted powder and had to add more ghee to get it stick together. Both ways, the end result tasted good but required some modifications.
Archana says
I would suggested adding 1 to 2 tablespoons more ghee as needed. Depending on the fineness of the besan you may need more. I always use the amount noted in the recipe.
Radhika Sawant says
Best besan ladoo recipe!!!!
Dhanya says
Hi Archana, Can we use regular cane sugar instead of powdered sugar?
Archana says
I would recommend powdered sugar
Pallavi Shirke says
Made these and came out soo good ! Love your recipes . Doubled the quantity and it did take 45 mins . I used coarse besan ( ladoo beaan) . That might be the reason i needed little more ghee than mentioned in recipe!