Gulab Jamun

[Suvir Saran]

Amul also makes very good gulab jamuns for tin varieties.

My best thus far have been the ones from Barakhamba road in New Delhi.

But Amul and Haldiram suffice if I am too lazy to make them at home.

My own recipe is almost identical to BBhasin. My grandmother who lived in SF till her dying day, had shared the recipe BBhasin shared above. It worked well for me.

The amount of liquid used in the recipe is tricky. It changes depending on the humidity and environs of the locale. Too much liquid and the gulab jamun balls will break as you deep fry them. Too little and they will be dry and not very soft.

Gulab Jamuns with vanilla ice cream has become a staple dessert in many of my caucasian friends homes. Amul and Haldiram are what they use.

[Guest nimki]

A few tips on things tht go wrong with gulab jamuns -

1) The centre of the jamun remains an untouched hard pellet even after being soaked in syrup

2) The jamuns fall apart while being fried or when put in syrup

The hard pellet happens when you knead the dough.

And they fall apart if you dont mix the dough well enough i.e. it is not well bound.

Do NOT knead the GJ mixture. just mix it and keep adding liquid till it clings together.

This is how we made them at home anyway. Hope it helps!

[Suvir Saran]

A few tips on things tht go wrong with gulab jamuns -

1) The centre of the jamun remains an untouched hard pellet even after being soaked in syrup

2) The jamuns fall apart while being fried or when put in syrup

The hard pellet happens when you knead the dough.

And they fall apart if you dont mix the dough well enough i.e. it is not well bound.

Do NOT knead the GJ mixture. just mix it and keep adding liquid till it clings together.

This is how we made them at home anyway. Hope it helps!

Welcome to eGullet Nimki.

Many thanks for these tips. Look forward to reading more from you.

[megaira]

I was only introduced to Indian Cuisine a couple years ago, and that being Denver, the west side of town...I would not know the difference between good and "bad," authentic and inauthentic Indian food beyond what my tastebuds like...and recently, as more restaurants within a reasonable drive close, I've been trying to make dishes on my own without anything to compare them against to see if I'm close.

So that disclaimer given...

I've been using the recipe from a book called Curried Favors: Family Recipes from South India - the recipe consists of dried milk, flour, baking powder and heavy cream to hold it together. I haven't yet had any problems with them breaking apart during the frying phase or any hard center in the ball after syrup soaking.

I'm not sure what the rules here are on emailing a recipe -I know it's a no-no to post one from a book, so if you want it to try and it's "ok," PM me and I'll copy it for you.

I usually hoard the leftover syrup and pour it over vanilla ice cream... didn't occur to me to try the ice cream together with the gulab jamun but sounds wonderful.

[rajsuman]

Hi all,

I'm planning to make GJs for Diwali (recipe from Neelam Batra's cookbook). She uses non-fat milk powder and butter. I have full-fat milk powder (Nido) at home. Will it make a difference? Need I modify the recipe to accomodate this change?

Thanks

Suman

[Monica Bhide]

Not sure it will affect the recipe in a negative way.. Nido is really great. I love making yogurt with it.. comes out nice and creamy. It used to be hard to get here but now I can usually find it.

Let us know how they turn out

[rajsuman]

Edited to add in a bit more:

Actually I just tried them, they broke up in the syrup. I was pretty convinced too that it shouldn't matter. Now I have to be creative and come up with ways of convincing my son they're meant to be that way.

Suman

Edited October 18, 2003 by rajsuman (log)

[Episure]

All Gulab Jamun lovers, if you have someone coming form India, then please ask them to get you 'Chitale's' Gulab Jamun Mix. Made by a relatively unknown company in Pune near Bombay, it makes the most delicious GJs I have ever tasted and if you follow the easy instructions accurately, you cant go wrong.

For Diwali we will be making them with a roasted almond in the center of each GJ.

[mongo_jones]

thanks for the tip episure. i'm going to be in india this winter, i'll make sure to pick up a stack of the stuff, of course, while there i'm not going to eat any gulab jamuns made from packet mixes; no sir, anyone who wants to find me will be able to do so at nathu's in bengali market.

[jschyun]

my favorite gulab jamun comes from ambala sweets and spices in Artesia, CA. I also usually buy their jelabi (sp?), but it's not my favorite. They also have a lot of snacks and a pretty good masala dosa, esp for the price (I think $2).