Lauki ka halwa also known as ghiye ka halwa or doodhi ka halwa is a delicious vegetarian and gluten-free dessert from India which is made by cooking bottle guard with milk, ghee, sugar, and dry fruits.
Generally, most of the dishes you make are those you grew up eating or were shared by friends & relatives, something you tried in a restaurant, searched online, or noted from a cookery show/recipe book. Some recipes are your own creation.
However, sometimes you discover a dish in a very interesting way.
My recipe of the day – Lauki ka halwa, is one such recipe which I discovered from a unique source- an episode of Big Boss. Big boss is a very popular Indian television series inspired by the show Big brother.
In one of the initial seasons of this show, a contestant prepared Lauki ka halwa for all the housemates on her birthday and they loved it.
Before that, I had never imagined that a vegetable like lauki (bottle gourd) can be used to make a dessert too. I had only seen bottle gourd in savory dishes like lauki ke kofte, lauki ki sabzi and, lauki chana dal.
The very next day of watching that episode of Big boss, while coming back from the office, I bought one bottle gourd. I didn’t search for its recipe and simply followed the Gajar ka halwa (carrot halwa) recipe of my mother (she makes the best gajar ka halwa in this world) and it turned out really well.
The recipe is very simple and needs only a few basic ingredients.
Now I make it quite regularly especially during Indian festivals like Navratri and Shivratri.
Tips to make lauki ka halwa
- Before making the halwa, taste a small piece of the bottle gourd. If it's bitter throw it away. It will not only ruin your dish but could be poisonous too.
- Always select a tender, fresh, and seedless bottle gourd to make halwa. If there are a few thick seeds, discard them.
- You can add mawa (whole dried milk) or condensed milk to make it more rich and delicious.
- Don't get impatient in sauteing the bottle gourd. Patient cooking with ghee on a slow flame will give the best results. To fasten the process, do the initial cooking using a pressure cooker.
More easy Indian dessert recipes
If you have a sweet tooth and want to try simple Indian desserts in your kitchen then don't miss to check the following recipes:
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How to make Lauki ka halwa/ Doodhi ka halwa?
Recipe
Lauki ka halwa
Ingredients
- 5 cups grated bottle gourd lauki
- ½ cup full cream milk
- ⅔ cup sugar adjust as per taste
- ½ teaspoon green cardamom powder
- 2 tbsp chopped dry fruits like almonds, cashew nuts, and raisins
- 3 tbsp ghee
Instructions
- Put the grated bottle gourd and milk in a pressure cooker and cook till 1 whistle on medium flame. You can also use a normal pot to cook it but then it will take around 30 minutes to cook it properly.
- Heat ghee in a pan. Add the cooked bottle gourd and cardamom powder to the pan. Cook it for around 10 minutes.
- Add sugar and dry fruits. Cook for another 15 minutes. Keep on stirring in between.
- Take out in a bowl, garnish with chopped roasted dry fruits and serve hot.
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