Sooji Halwa
Indian dessert made with semolina, ghee and sugar. Sooji halwa is one of the most common Indian desserts made in every household.
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Traditional Indian dessert, Sooji Halwa is a pudding made from semolina (sooji).
Ghee, sugar and sooji are the three main ingredients required to make this easy dessert!
I have realized that I haven’t shared some very basic Indian recipes on the blog.
Like so far, I had not shared the recipe for Sooji Halwa (Suji Halwa)! I mean can there be any simpler (and easier) Indian dessert?
Growing up, there were 2 desserts that mom made on a regular basis- one was halwa and the other was kheer.
While halwa is a broad term used for pudding like desserts in India, the most common halwa that mom made were sooji halwa and aate ka halwa (made from wheat flour).
Sooji ka halwa was made in home whenever we wanted to have something sweet. It was an easy dessert which mom could whip up in 15 minutes and hence it was her go to dessert for sweet cravings.
The halwa was also made as prasad (offering) for various festivals. I remember eating bowls of sooji halwa during Navratri!
What is Sooji Halwa
It’s a pudding made with sooji (semolina), ghee (clarified butter) , sugar and water.
Everything else is optional.
Like, I have added some milk but you can very well use 100% water.
Milk makes the halwa more creamy and so I prefer using 50% milk and 50% water.
I have slightly flavored the halwa with cardamom and nuts.
Again you can skip both if you want, totally optional.
My mom’s everyday sooji halwa (or suji halwa) never had nuts in it. She didn’t even add cardamom powder.
How to Make Best Sooji Halwa
It’s just a simple dessert but here are few things you need to keep in mind while making sooji halwa.
Getting the ratio right: back home, I have often heard this from people that for making the best sooji halwa, use same amount of ghee, sugar and sooji and double the water.
Now that might seem like a lot of ghee but it does really make the best halwa.
For this recipe, I do use same amount (1/2 cup) of ghee and sooji. I slightly cut down on the sugar and use 1/3 cup.
You can very well 1/2 cup so then it will be 1/2 cup of each ingredient.
I use 3 times the water since I like my halwa more on the softer side. And I don’t do 100% water but rather 50% milk and 50% water for a creamier halwa.
Roast the sooji until fragrant: the most important step! If you don’t roast the sooji properly, the halwa will have raw taste.
I don’t like to brown my sooji for the halwa. So I roast it on low heat, stirring continuously until it’s nice and fragrant.
It takes around 8 to 9 minutes for it to roast on low heat.
Be careful while adding the liquid: when you add hot liquid (water and milk in this case) to the hot pan of roasted sooji, it bubbles up like crazy. So be very careful!
Add slowly and carefully else you will burn yourself.
It’s also a good idea to use a pan with a long handle to heat up the milk, sugar and water mixture.
That makes it easier to pour the hot liquids into the sooji.
Stir constantly to avoid forming lumps: to make sure your halwa is smooth, stir continuously as you add the liquids.
If you don’t do that, it will form lumps and won’t have the creamy texture.
This sooji halwa is lightly sweetened. Increase the quantity of sugar for a sweeter halwa.
Method
1- To a pan, add sugar, water and milk. Stir and let it heat up on medium heat. You don’t want to boil it but mixture should be heated through and sugar should be dissolved.
2- While the milk-water heats up, put a pan on medium heat and add ghee to it. Let the ghee melt.
3- Then add sooji to the pan and stir.
4- Add in the broken cashews and stir.
5 – Stirring continuously, roast the sooji on low-medium heat
6- Add cardamom powder and continue to stir.
7- Stir for around 8 to 9 minutes on low-medium heat. As soon as sooji is fragrant and beginning to change color, that it the time to add the liquid.
I don’t like to brown my sooji, if you want darker color halwa, roast couple more minutes.
8- Add the heated milk-water-sugar-mixture into the pan. It will bubble a lot as you add the liquids into the pan so be careful and add slowly.
9- Whisk the sooji continuously as you add the liquids.
10- Add the liquids in 2-3 parts, whisking continuously with one hand.
11- Keep stirring, sooji will begin to absorb the liquid and thicken up.
12- Stir for 2 minutes more until the halwa thickens and leaves the sides of the pan.
Garnish with more cashews and serve sooji halwa warm!
If you’ve tried this Sooji Halwa Recipe then don’t forget to rate the recipe! You can also follow me on Facebook and Instagram to see what’s latest in my kitchen!
Sooji Halwa
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup sugar 75 grams, or use 1/2 cup (100 grams) for a sweeter halwa
- 3/4 cup water 6 oz/180 ml
- 3/4 cup milk 6 oz/ 180 ml
- 1/3 cup ghee 75 grams, in semi-solid state, use 1/4 cup ghee if you prefer less ghee in your halwa
- 1/2 cup sooji (semolina) 90 grams, use fine sooji
- 10 whole cashew nuts broken into small pieces
- 1/8 teaspoon cardamom powder
Instructions
- To a pan, add sugar, water and milk. Stir and let it heat up on medium heat. You don't want to boil it but mixture should be heated through and sugar should be dissolved.
- While the milk-water heats up, put a pan on medium heat and add ghee to it. Let the ghee melt. Then add sooji to the pan and stir. Add in the broken cashews and stir.
- Stirring continuously, roast the sooji on low-medium heat. Add cardamom powder and continue to stir.
- Stir for around 8 to 9 minutes on low-medium heat. As soon as sooji is fragrant and beginning to change color, that it the time to add the liquid.I don't like to brown my sooji, if you want darker color halwa, roast couple more minutes.
- Add the heated milk-water-sugar-mixture into the pan. It will bubble a lot as you add the liquids into the pan so be careful and add slowly.
- Whisk the sooji continuously as you add the liquids. Add the liquids in 2-3 parts, whisking continuously with one hand.
- Keep stirring, sooji will begin to absorb the liquid and thicken up.Stir for 2 minutes more until the halwa thickens and leaves the sides of the pan.
- Garnish with more cashews and serve sooji halwa warm!
Notes
- You can add raisins and almonds to the halwa.
- If you think that's a lot of ghee, you can cut it down to 1/3 cup. I would not recommend going below that.
- This halwa is lightly sweetened. For a sweeter halwa, use 1/2 cup sugar.
- You can add saffron for color and flavor. Add it to the liquids while heating them up.
- If you prefer a more roasted halwa, simply roast the sooji for additional 1 to 2 minutes for darker color halwa.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Good morning,
I had written to you a week ago enquiring whether I could substitute soy milk for regular milk. However, I am disappointed that you have not responded to my queston.
I have another question: if I add some raisins to the Halva, can I add them at the time of the almond pieces?
Thank you for your response to my enquiry.
Bernard
I apologize for the delay in response, I was on a break for the holidays. You can add raisins, I would first fry them in ghee so that that plump up .
Good afternoon Manali,
Writing from Toronto, Canada. Sooji Halwa has long been a favourite of mine and when I came across your recipe it seems very basic, simple and doable. I too like my Suji Halwa on the soft side and I was wondering if in the 50/50 split with water and milk, I could substitute soy milk for regular milk.
I have always used soy milk as a substitute for regular milk in all my baking with no appreciable difference in the end product.
Thank you for your time in responding to my enquiry.
Kind regards
Bernard
Hi Bernard, apologies for the late reply. Yes you can replace the regular milk with soy milk, should not be a problem!
This recipe is spot on and absolutely delicious. I love the addition of the milk to make it creamier. My kids never really enjoyed sooji halwa until I made this recipe. Definitely a keeper. I am glad this showed up in my google search. I look forward to checking out more recipes on your site.
Thanks Shalini, glad you enjoyed it!
Yummy! So close to my mom’s. I will roast the sooji a bit more next time. I’m used to a tad more color to my halwa.
glad you liked it Ruchika
Excellent
Best quantity of ingredients prepared perfect delicious food.
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed the recipe
Simple ratios and instructions, came out great. Thank you
fantastic! turned out really well – I made this vegan using oat milk and vegan butter; not sure any of my dinner guests noticed! lovely, thank you!
Hi I’m from Fiji Islands. I love Sooji Halwa and have been trying to get an easy recipe to try making it myself. Thank you so much for this recipe. I loved it.
VERY TESTY HALWA MY MOUTH IS WATERING
THANKS
I tried your Sooji Halwa recipe and liked it very much! I left out the milk, nuts and cardamom powder, but added the raisins and it was still delicious! Thank you very much!
How many people will it serve as Parsad if I make with 1cup suji please
probably 8-10 as prasad
Been wanting to try! Finally made it! Used half the sugar with brown sugar (: used bruised ardamom pods as didn’t really want an overwhelming flavor (:
I had this pudding for the first time the other day and had the chef tell me what was in it-your recipe matches perfectly. My son and I both love Indian cuisine!
Do you have a recipe for mango pudding? I have had it with apples and bananas and yesterday I had it with fruit cocktail added.
I don’t sorry. Was it an Indian mango pudding?
Hi, can I use evaporated milk instead of normal milk?
yes you can!
Hi! Can I use corn semolina r it has to be weath?
Thank you 🙂
don’t think corn semolina will work for this recipe
Hi Manali,
Absolutely love this recipe! I have made this a few times, it’s foolproof and super delicious.
How long can you store this in the fridge for?
it will be best if you consume it within 48 hours, reheat in microwave!
Thank you for the recipe. I finally know how to make it. The last time I had this was when I was in the orphanage in Kolkata. Thanks to the internet and people like you I am learning to cook Indian food. Thank you again
welcome, I am glad to hear that 🙂
This recipe is wonderful!! I add just a bit more sugar and cardamom to my taste and it comes out great each time! I have used this recipe often and have a question, can I use regular unsalted butter instead of the ghee ? Thanks so much for all your great recipes !
yes butter can be used! 🙂
Absolutely loved the recipe. Thanks so much for sharing!
welcome!
Maybe this is a cultural thing, but i founx this recipe to be quite bland – texture was pleasant, but not particularly flavourful I found
Hi Ben, yeah this is how we make in India. Usual sooji halwa is just ghee, sugar and sooji. Rest of the things like nuts, and spices like cardamom, saffron etc. are optional. My mom actually never added any of these when she made them at home. Thanks for trying
Really lovely texture. I flavored mine with orange blossom. Easy and quick, thank you!!
hello everybody,
i think 75g of ghee is too much
Hello Anatole, you can reduce ghee to your preference. This is what works for me!
Very delicious.. thanks
Love how easy this is. Made it for myself after coming out of surgery and feeling absolutely miserable. I can only say it tastes just like a warm hug feels.
Hope you feel better soon Stacey, take care!
Made for my mom. Your recipe provides appropriate measures. It turned out to be great. Thanks
welcome 🙂
Hi Manali
Loved the recipe. Simply perfect. So easy, quick and delish.
Love Samantha Duerschinger
Thank you Manali, this recipe produces a wonderfully addictive Halva – I just add a bit more Cardamom – Yum!
However, I do have friends who are totally vegan and I thought to substitute Coconut milk for this recipe, any advice… whether 100% or just use 505/50 % ?
Yeah go with coconut milk or cashew milk! Coconut milk makes everything very coconut-y which I am personally not a fan. But if your friends love it then sure add 100% coconut milk! Else cashew or oat milk are also good options.
Hi Petals ! I too add a bit more cardamom because I love the flavor so much. Your idea of using coconut milk sounds delicious, did you ever try it that way? I think I will make an attempt at that myself. I always make rice pudding using coconut milk and I love it. I’ll see if it’s a good addition here to Manali’s excellent recipe😊 Thanks