Sooji Halwa (Easy, 20 Minute Recipe)

4.93 from 71 votes

Indian dessert made with semolina, ghee and sugar, sooji halwa is one of the most common Indian desserts made in every household.

Prep Time5

Cook Time15

Total Time20

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Indian

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings:

⅓ cup sugar 75 grams , or use ½ cup (100 grams) for a sweeter halwa
¾ cup water 180 ml
¾ cup milk 180 ml
½ cup ghee in semi-solid state, use ⅓ cup ghee if you prefer less ghee in your halwa
½ cup sooji (semolina) 90 grams , use fine sooji
10 whole cashew nuts broken into small pieces, optional
⅛ teaspoon cardamom powder

To a heavy bottom pan, add ⅓ cup sugar (or ½ cup for a sweeter halwa), ¾ cup water and ¾ cup whole 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 ½ cup ghee to it (or use ⅓ cup if you prefer less ghee). Let the ghee melt. Then add ½ cup sooji to the pan and stir. Add 10 cashews , broken (optional) and stir. Stirring continuously, roast the sooji on low-medium heat. Add ⅛ teaspoon cardamom powder and continue to stir.
Stir for around 8 to 9 minutes on low-medium heat. As soon as sooji is fragrant and begins 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 to 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!

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.