Moong dal ladoo. Take humble green gram or moong dal to the next level with this delicious blend of roasted dal, sugar and ghee. A touch of ground cardamom makes it taste heavenly. Simple, quick and melt-in-your-mouth sweet made in minutes!
Recently, I have been making these ladoos on a regular basis, at least once a week, so I thought I’d share it with you today. I love them for two reasons. One, these are jam packed with a super healthy ingredient - moong dal or split green peas. Two, it’s one of the simplest snack (or dessert) you could ever make. Nothing fancy but incredibly delicious.
As the name suggests, moong dal ladoo is basically a delectable combo of split green gram, sugar and ghee. Clearly, it’s a simplified version of the traditional Indian ladoos.
Alright, let’s make this simple, quick, melt-in-your-mouth ladoo. First, you’ll need to dry roast moong dal (split green gram). Make sure you brown them evenly, and don’t forget to stir constantly to prevent them from burning. Oh, and the heat must be really low to ensure even browning and prevent burning.
When ready, you’ll notice that that the legumes have slightly browned. Perfect! You’ll need to allow them to cool down slightly before you grind them to a fine powder. The keyword here is “superfine” powder. The real secret behind the melt-in-mouth texture of moong dal ladoo is this superfine dal powder. Coarse powder will give the ladoo a grainy texture.
Second, sugar. You have a couple of options here. You can either choose the traditional white sugar powdered to perfection, or go with coconut sugar for healthier option. Again, make sure sugar also has a superfine texture which is imperative to make the perfect moong dal ladoo.
Now, to make the ladoos, you’ll need to heat up a little ghee and coat the dal-sugar mixture in it. The mixture also gets flavored with ground cardamom.
When the mixture is warm to touch and not too hot, roll out ladoos. If the mixture doesn’t come together, you can always add more warm melted ghee. Ghee is the one and only binding agent in this recipe.
Done! Simple as that! Trust me, these ladoos are so good.
Moong Dal Ladoo | Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup moong dal split green peas
- ¾ cup white sugar or coconut sugar or cane sugar
- ¼ cup ghee clarified butter
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom cardamom powder
- 2 tablespoon dried fruits or nuts chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Heat a thick bottomed pan over low heat. Add dal. Fry, stirring constantly, for 4-5 minutes or until dal turns golden. Remove from heat. Leave to cool slightly. Transfer to a food processor. Process to a fine powder. Sift the powder into a bowl. Set aside.
- Place sugar in the food processor, and process to a fine powder. Sift into the bowl with powdered moong dal. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, heat ghee in a large thick bottomed frying pan over low heat. Add fruits and nuts, (if using) and fry for 1-2 minutes or until browned.
- Add dal-sugar mixture. Fry for a minute or until combined. Remove from heat. Leave to cool slightly. When warm, knead the dough a few seconds, and roll out ladoos. If the mixture doesn’t hold together, add in more warm melted ghee.
- Garnish with saffron strands or sliced nuts (almonds, pistachios and cashew nuts).
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Pat @ Wholesome Kitchen says
Wow, It looks delicious. Thanks for sharing such an awesome recipe!