Gulab Jamun

1Preparation

1. Mix the milk powder, flour and baking soda in a bowl.
2. Add the melted ghee and rub it in with your fingertips until the mixture looks like crumbs.
3. Add the warm milk a spoonful at a time and bring the mixture together gently, without kneading, into a soft, slightly sticky dough.
4. Cover the dough and let it rest for 10 minutes.
5. Grease your hands with a little ghee and shape the dough into 18 small balls about 2.5 cm across, completely smooth with no cracks.

2Cooking

1. Put the sugar, water and cardamom in a pot, stir until the sugar dissolves, then simmer until the syrup feels slightly sticky between your fingers but does not form a thread.

   🔥 medium heat⏱ 8 min timer
2. Add the saffron, lemon juice and rose water, then turn off the heat and keep the syrup warm.

   🔥 low heat⏱ 1 min timer
3. Heat the oil in a deep pot to 150 °C; a small piece of dough should rise slowly with small bubbles.

   🔥 medium heat⏱ 8 min timer
4. Fry the balls in three batches over low heat, gently swirling the oil around them all the time, until evenly deep golden brown.

   🔥 low heat⏱ 20 min timer
5. Lift each batch out with a slotted spoon and put it straight into the warm syrup.

3Serving

1. Leave the balls in the syrup for at least 2 hours, until they swell and the syrup reaches the centre.
2. Serve warm or at room temperature in a bowl with a little syrup, sprinkled with pistachios.

💡 Tips & common mistakes

• Common mistake: oil that is too hot — the balls darken fast, stay raw in the middle and crack. Slow frying is the secret.
• Do not knead the dough hard; kneading makes the balls tough instead of spongy.
• Any crack in a ball widens in the oil, so roll each one until completely smooth.
• The syrup should be warm, not boiling, when the balls go in, so they soak it up without falling apart.

🔁 Substitutions

• Melted butter can replace the ghee.
• Kewra water can replace the rose water.