• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
The Magic Saucepan logo
  • About
  • Recipe
  • Work with me
  • Contact Us
menu icon
go to homepage
  • About
  • Recipe
  • Work with me
  • Contact Us
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • About
    • Recipe
    • Work with me
    • Contact Us
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×

    Home » Desserts » Milk based Indian sweets

    Gulab Jamuns | Kala Jamuns | Dry Jamuns - Edible Gift

    Published: Apr 27, 2013 · by Nisha

    Yet another edible gift mainly for Indian occasions. Jamuns. I know you are licking your lips with a big Hmmmm! Who does not like this melt-in-mouth soft spongy balls soaked in sugar syrup ?  Well the regular jamuns can be served for guests that come to your house whereas the dried ones are suitable to be gift to anyone on any occasion. 
    Jamuns, sweets,
    Baking cups have a multi purpose use. Not only for cupcakes and muffins, it can also be used to hold bite sizzed sweets like jamuns or truffles or chocolates etc... They are also available in different colours, sizes and in different designs. You have a plenty of choice to pick from. After individually placing them in each paper cup you can put them in a box and gift wrap. Now is the best time to go and rummage your kitchen cupboard for those sweet boxes and gift boxes that you have previously received. Mind before using these boxes make sure they are clean and suitable for reusing. Wash them if you can or at least clean them with the cloth as soon as you receive them  transfer the things in it. So that when required they can be fit to reuse. 
    I used the boxes that contained dates. These dates boxes come in different packaging. Use the ones that are sturdy and appealing to reuse. Even those chocolate boxes from Godiva or Bliss will be suitable for this. To cover my box, I wound a brown colour shiny ribbon.  
    1. Stick the starting end of the ribbon to the box with glue so that it stays tight. Now start winding it until it is covered and gets a desired thickness, cut the remaining ans stick this end too. 
    2. Then you can cover them with the same lid or also use a cellophane plastic cover to cover on top.
    3. Place the tag and tie with a ribbon.  
    Steps to Prepare the Jamuns:
    • Prepare the sugar syrup and keep it warm. 

    •  Knead the dough and make around 25 small balls. 

    •  Deep fry them in Oil+ghee Mixture, soak them in sugar syrup for about 3 hours. Remove them from syrup and dust it in granulated sugar. 

    Jamuns, Sweets GULAB JAMUNS | DRY JAMUNS | EDIBLE GIFTS
    Melt-in-mouth spongy balls soaked in sugar syrup.
    Recipe source Tarla Dalal


    Prep time: 15 mins | Cook time: 30 Mins | Total time: ~ 1 Hr | Serves: 20-25 no's
    Ingredients

    • 2 Cup Khova
    • ½ Cup Maida / All purpose flour
    • ⅛ tsp Baking Soda
    • Granulated sugar for dusting
    • Oil + Ghee for deep frying
    For the Sugar Syrup
    • 2 Cups Sugar
    • 2 Cups Water
    • ¼ tsp Cardamom Powder
    • Pinch of saffron strands (Optional)
    Instructions

    1. Simmer sugar and water until it dissolves completely and the syrup slightly thickens. Add cardamom powder and saffron strands if using. Keep the syrup warm. 
    2. In a mixing bowl add khova, maida and baking soda. Sprinkle little water as needed and knead it into a soft dough. Do not knead hardly like you do for chappathi. 
    3. Roll them into small smooth balls (amla sized) without any cracks. Do not apply pressure between your palms while rolling them. It has to be very light otherwise you will end up with very hard jamuns. 
    4. Heat Oil in a medium low flame. Heat oil until if you drop a small piece of dough it will slowly rise to the top in few seconds. 
    5. Now add 5-6 balls at a time and fry them until they turn golden brown evenly on all sides. Drain excess oil and immediately drop them into the sugar syrup. Let them soak in the syrup for a minimum of 3 hours. 
    For the regular Jamuns
    1. For the regular jamuns, transfer the jamuns with syrup into a closed bowl and it keeps good for one week at room temperature. While serving, serve them along with syrup. 
    For the Dry/Kala Jamuns
    1. If you are making dry jamuns, remove them from the syrup and dust it with granulated sugar and keep aside. Allow the sugar to stick to the jamuns and then transfer  it to an air tight container or bowl.

    Notes

    1. Do not overheat the sugar syrup. Otherwise as it cools, it will form sugar lumps and the jamuns will not soak in properly. Simmer them until they become sticky and sugar gets dissolved completely. 
    2. Kneading the dough properly is also important to get soft intact balls. Do not apply pressure and over knead the dough. Also while rolling them into balls, do it gently and very smoothly. If you apply pressure the balls become hard once they are fried and also if they are not smooth it might break while frying. While rolling them into small balls, apply some ghee on your palms. This helps in rolling it smoothly. 
    3. The size of the rolled balls should be lesser than the size you want the final jamuns to be. They will become big partially while frying and as they soak in the syrup. 
    4. The next important factor is the heat of the oil. It should always be on medium and never high. You need to cook through inside. If it is very high, the outer will become browned but the inside will remain uncooked. Heat oil until if you drop a small piece of dough it should slowly rise to the top in few seconds. It approximately took 6-7 minutes per batch to get cooked. 
    5. The amount of sugar syrup should be enough to cover the jamuns completely. It will take about 3-4 hours for the jamuns to absorb the sugar syrup completely. 

    This is for the third day of BM under Misc/Crafts theme. Check out the other Blog Marathoners here.

    April13_BM

    View other "Desserts" recipes

    • Parangikai (pumpkin) Payasam
    • Ashoka Halwa - Thiruvaiyaru special delicacy
    • Beetroot Halwa - Ode to my Granny
    • Akkaravadisal | Indian Rice Pudding

    Did you try this recipe ?

    Then share your experience (and photo) with us on Facebook or Instagram or email us or leave a comment below. We look forward to hearing from you!

    Monthly Digest

    Do not forget to subscribe to our monthly newsletter!

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Archana Potdar says

      May 08, 2013 at 11:02 am

      How I wish I can taste some of these jamuns. I love your gifting idea and of course the jamuns

      Reply
    2. Rajani S says

      May 02, 2013 at 3:16 pm

      I loved your edible gift series..you have done a great job nisha 🙂

      Reply
    3. veena krishnakumar says

      May 02, 2013 at 1:26 pm

      wow!!I wish someone gifts me these...love to have them

      Reply
    4. Preeti Garg says

      May 02, 2013 at 12:11 pm

      look tasty

      Reply
    5. Pavani N says

      April 29, 2013 at 1:29 pm

      Dry jamuns as edible gifts is a great idea. Love your recycled boxes.

      Reply
    6. The Pumpkin Farm says

      April 27, 2013 at 5:15 pm

      yes, indeed they are very nice for gifting and loved by all

      Reply
    7. Harini-Jaya Rupanagudi says

      April 27, 2013 at 4:07 pm

      Addictive Jamuns.. I never tried the dry jamuns rolled in sugar, though I eat gulab jamuns dry 🙂 ..beautiful gift wrapping!

      Reply
    8. vaishali sabnani says

      April 27, 2013 at 1:23 pm

      Bookmarked, love those jamuns and wonderful packing.

      Reply
    9. Srivalli says

      April 27, 2013 at 11:00 am

      Wow I would surely not mind this gift..:)..looks very cute..I am sure the jamuns tasted great as well.

      Reply
    10. Priya Suresh says

      April 27, 2013 at 8:02 am

      Beautiful jamuns, very addictive dry jamuns, also love the way u wrapped them, elegant and neat.

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    About Nisha

    Nisha freelances as a food & product photographer/recipe developer & content creator in the F&B space.

    She loves everything about food and their stories! You can find her mostly in the kitchen trying to whip up something or reading culinary anecdotes.

    Learn more about me →

    First time visiting? Start Here ->

    If this is your first time, start by browsing the tabs at the top of the page or you can go through the index to find recipes categorically.

    Get to know the basics of Indian cooking

    Indian Basics 101 - Start here

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    Copyright © 2022 Nisha Ramesh @ The Magic Saucepan

    Copyright

    Contact Us

    Privacy Policy