A delicious Indian sweet; Rava Ladoo is an easy 30 minute treat made with semolina and sugar.
Studded with nuts, these ladoos are amazing for any event, occasion, festival or celebration.
Indian festivals are the perfect reason to make sweets. From the simplest ones to the most complex ones, they all work really well for all kinds of celebrations.
From Diwali and Holi to Rakhi and Navratri, all the festivals call for delicious treats and Indian sweets are definitely a big part of it.
I love making sweets like Rose Kalakand, Gajar Halwa, Chocolate Peda or Coconut Cranberry Truffles to celebrate. Along with these, there is a popular Indian treat that works for any occasion; Rava Ladoo.
Made with a handful of ingredients like rava (semolina), sugar and spices; these are my go-to for quick and easy treats.
Jump to:
What is Rava Ladoo
Rava Ladoo; as the name suggests is a round ball shaped sweet (ladoo) made using semolina (rava). And thus the name. It is sweetened with sugar and has some fried nuts to them. Together these are great as a sweet or prasad.
Like most sweets we use a base i.e. rava along with a fat (ghee) and sweetener (sugar) for this recipe. All other add-ins are optional.
These are popular in Northern and Southern India. Plus a variation is popular in Maharashtra too. The variation is the inclusion of shredded coconut along with rava.
Why this recipe works
- It is really easy to put together, even for a newbie in the kitchen.
- We only need three primary ingredients; all other add-ins are optional.
- These can easy to make ahead of time.
- With under 30 minutes of time, these are definitely great as a last minute treat.
- The recipe does not need a specific sugar string consistency, making it easy to make.
- Kids and adults can enjoy this for any occasion.
- This recipe works for any celebration, event or festival.
- The same recipe can be made into cubes and served as rava chakki too.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Rava: Rava is the prime ingredient for the recipe. Fine rava works well for the recipe, however we can make these using coarse rava too. If using coarse rava, simply blend well to a fine consistency before using. We need raw rava and not the roasted kind.
- Sugar: Any kind of cane or brown sugar works well for the recipe. However, condensed milk works for the recipe too.
- Ghee: I like to use ghee for the recipe like most Indian sweets. Ghee gives the ladoo a signature nutty taste and flavor.
- Add-ins: The add-ins include raw cashews, raisins and cardamom powder. However, walnuts, pecans, cashews or any other seed works well too. And so does saffron and shredded coconut.
See the recipe card for detailed ingredient information, measurements and nutrition.
How to make this recipe
1- In a pan add rava. Dry roast on medium flame
2- Keep roasting till it is fragrant but does not change color. It took me about 8-10 minutes to roast the rava. Turn down flame and set aside.
3- In a blender jar add sugar.
4- Blend till it is a fine powder. Keep the lid on for a couple minutes to let the sugar dust settle down. Then open the blender.
5- Add in slightly cooled rava.
6- Blend again till the mix is smooth. Open the jar and set aside.
7- In a pan add ghee and heat it up.
8- Add chopped cashews and let them brown.
9- Then add raisins and cook till they are plumped.
10- Add in the sugar rava mix and cardamom powder.
11- Mix well so the ghee coats everything well.
12- Let the mixture cool down a little. Then take a small part of the mix and start rolling.
13- Make a smooth rava ladoo and set aside.
14- Repeat for the rest of the mix and keep ladoo in an airtight container. Enjoy!
Expert Tips and Notes
- Fine Rava: The recipe tastes best with fine rava. As we blend it with the sugar it tends to turn into a powder. However, coarse rava can be used too. Simply blend to a fine consistency before starting the recipe.
- Rolling the ladoos: Roll these ladoos while it is still warm. If it completely cools, the ghee will solidify and the ladoos will be crumbly. Moreover, if the ladoos cannot be rolled, simply add some melted ghee or warm milk and try binding them together.
- Ladoo texture: The final texture of the ladoos will depend on the coarseness or fineness of rava. Grind to a fine powder for even soft ladoos and grind less for crunchy ones.
- Using a thick pan: Use a wide and thick pan for roasting the rava. A thin pan tends to burn the rava quickly. Even if it does not burn, there will be specs of black or brown with some part of the rava burning. Moreover, roast on medium flame to cook the rava yet not burn it.
- Sugar: As we blend the sugar in a blender, coarse or fine pure sugar works. However, I avoid buying confectioners' sugar as it tends to have corn starch mixed in it. Moreover, replacing sugar with powdered jaggery is an option but the taste varies.
- Adding Milk: We can add some milk to bind the ladoos together. However, these have to be refrigerated after a couple of hours. Instead, add ghee to bind them and the ladoos are great even at room temperature.
To use Condensed Milk
The same recipe can be made using condensed milk instead of sugar. To do so, simply dry roast and blend the rava and add to a large plate or bowl. Also fry the cashews and raisins and add into the bowl. Then add in ¾ cup of condensed milk and bring everything together.
Roll into ladoos and let them set for a few minutes. Then serve or transfer to an airtight container.
Recipe FAQs
The ladoos will not bind if the binding agent is less. Add some more warm ghee or warm milk to bind them well. However, remember that ghee is preferred over milk for longer shelf life.
Yes certainly. All kinds of nuts can be either fried in ghee and added or dry roasted before adding. Cashews, pecans, dates, walnuts or even pumpkin seeds work. Moreover, adding shredded coconut and saffron works too.
If the sugar and rava mix is not ground to a fine powder, the ladoos will be crunchy. They taste great but will have the crunchy texture. Finely ground mix results in smooth, soft ladoos.
Oil does not bind everything well in the ladoos. Adding some warm milk along with oil works. However, the earthy and nutty aroma of the ghee will be missing.
Store rava ladoos at room temperature for 3-4 days. To keep after that, refrigerate the ladoos. Simply bring back to room temperature before serving.
More Recipes using Rava
More Delicious Indian Sweet Recipes
Love this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the recipe card below & if you REALLY like it, consider a review in the comments whilst you are there, thanks!
Rava Ladoo
Ingredients
Instructions
- In a pan add rava. Dry roast on medium flame
- Keep roasting till it is fragrant but does not change color. It took me about 8-10 minutes to roast the rava. Turn down flame and set aside.
- In a blender jar add sugar.
- Blend till it is a fine powder. Keep the lid on for a couple minutes to let the sugar dust settle down. Then openthe blender.
- Add in slightly cooled rava.
- Blend again till the mix is smooth. Open the jar and set aside.
- In a pan add ghee and heat it up.
- Add chopped cashews and let them brown.
- Then add raisins and cook till they are plumped.
- Add in the sugar rava mix and cardamom powder.
- Mix well so the ghee coats everything well.
- Let the mixture cool down a little. Then take a small part of the mix and start rolling.
- Make a smooth rava ladoo and set aside.
- Repeat for the rest of the mix and keep ladoo in an airtight container. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Fine Rava: The recipe tastes best with fine rava. As we blend it with the sugar it tends to turn into a powder. However, coarse rava can be used too. Simply blend to a fine consistency before starting the recipe.
- Rolling the ladoos: Roll these ladoos while it is still warm. If it completely cools, the ghee will solidify and the ladoos will be crumbly. Moreover, if the ladoos cannot be rolled, simply add some melted ghee or warm milk and try binding them together.
- Ladoo texture: The final texture of the ladoos will depend on the coarseness or fineness of rava. Grind to a fine powder for even soft ladoos and grind less for crunchy ones.
- Using a thick pan: Use a wide and thick pan for roasting the rava. A thin pan tends to burn the rava quickly. Even if it does not burn, there will be specs of black or brown with some part of the rava burning. Moreover, roast on medium flame to cook the rava yet not burn it.
- Sugar: As we blend the sugar in a blender, coarse or fine pure sugar works. However, I avoid buying confectioners' sugar as it tends to have corn starch mixed in it. Moreover, replacing sugar with powdered jaggery is an option but the taste varies.
- Adding Milk: We can add some milk to bind the ladoos together. However, these have to be refrigerated after a couple of hours. Instead, add ghee to bind them and the ladoos are great even at room temperature.
Leave a Reply