Rava Sheera | Sooji Halwa

An easy to make yet addictive Indian dessert; Rava Sheera or Sooji Halwa is a must-have sweet for festivals and celebrations!

Super quick, only a handful of ingredients including semolina, sugar and ghee; this is delicious and super addictive.

Sweets are one of the loved treats in Indian families. We make all kinds of easy and complex sweets to celebrate any occasion, festival or celebration. While some are customary, the others are just for taste and flavor. Everyone loves classics like Gajar Halwa, Kesar Malai Peda and Kheer and fusions like Kaju Paan, Gulab Jamun Cheesecake Tarts.

Over the years the sweets scene in the country and among Indians across the globe has changed greatly. A lot of classics are coming to an end and fusion treats are becoming more popular; especially the ones like stuffed dates which have zero or minimal added sugar.

And yet when there is a religious event like Satyanarayan or Kanjak puja, housewarming, baby shower, wedding or engagement we turn to the classics. For these events the two most popular recipes includes Rava Sheera or Sooji Halwa and Panchamrit.

Jump to:

• What is Rava Sheera
• Why this recipe works
• Ingredients and Substitutions
• How to make this recipe
• Expert Tips and Notes
• Variations to traditional Rava Sheera
• Making the Sheera in one pan
• Storing and Serving
• Recipe FAQs
• More Recipes to make with Semolina
• Indian Sweets to try
• Rava Sheera | Sooji Halwa

What is Rava Sheera

Rava Sheera is a popular Indian classic sweet or dessert. Made using rava a.k.a. semolina or sooji, this needs sugar, milk, ghee and water to come together.

It is semolina pudding with a lot of nuts and flavoring spices like cardamom and saffron. This floral fragrant, delicious and creamy pudding is popular to make for religious gatherings, pujas, Diwali or to simply enjoy an easy sweet.

We call the same recipe by different names; Sooji Halwa up North, Rava Sheera or Rava no Sheero in the Western India and Rava Kesari down South. While these are similar in principle, they do have slight variations depending on their origin. Nevertheless, all of these are definitely addictive!

Not just every region, every family tends to have their signature sheera recipe that they use for generations. And so this definitely comes into the category of heirlooms. This recipe here is what my grandmother taught me and I have enjoyed for years. And if you are a halwa fan like me, you got to try these popular halwa recipes: Corn Flour Halwa, Gajar Halwa and Mumbai special Ice Halwa.

Why this recipe works

• The recipe has a preparation time of only 5 minutes and active time of 15 minutes.
• Sooji Halwa is great as a dessert and doubles as a sweet.
• This recipe is perfect for gatherings as it is super easy to scale.
• The sheera has the perfect texture; grainy, fluffy and well sweetened.
• We can make the recipe before hand and moreover, it freezes well too.
• It is great warm or even at room temperature. 
• Sooji Halwa is popular to make for Satyanarayan puja and for Kanjak puja.
• We only need a handful of ingredients to make this.
• It is super versatile and we can add in fruits to this too.
• This is great for kids and adults alike.

Ingredients and Substitutions

• Rava/ Semolina: Coarse semolina is best to make the sheera grainy. Using fine semolina will result in a more sticky sheera than we want. Moreover, we can either roast raw semolina or use pre-roasted from the store. Some store bought roasted semolina tends to be darker and results in a darker color of sheera.
• Sugar: Sugar is the best sweetener in the recipe. I use organic sugar but white cane sugar works just fine. Brown sugar is the culprit in in turning sheera to a dark brown color. Jaggery powder should work too, but I have never used it.
• Ghee: We do need quite some ghee to make this. I like to use this instant pot ghee in the sheera. Any store bought ghee works for the recipe.
• Milk and Water: I use a combination of milk and water to make the sheera rich but not overly milky. However, only water works too. Simply substitute all the milk with water to do so.
• Nuts: Some slivered cashews and almonds along with whole raisins work for the recipe. I like to sliver them just before adding to retain freshness. Leave these out for a nut-free version.
• Spices: I also like to add some whole spices to sheera. They give the recipe a perfect warmth. Cloves, cardamom pods and cinnamon works best. Skip these if you do not like them.
• Saffron and Cardamom: A fat pinch of both helps impart a floral aroma and the saffron gives the sheera a bright color. Do not skip this in the recipe.
• Other toppings: After the sheera is made, simply top with some more nuts, dried rose petals and silver varakh. Though optional, these make the sheera look attractive and inviting.

See the recipe card for detailed ingredient information, measurements and nutrition.

How to make this recipe

1- In a pan add ¼ cup ghee and semolina.

2- Mix well and roast on medium flame for 8-10 minutes till golden brown and flavorful. Ensure that the sooji does not burn.

Pro Tip: An easy way to tell that the sooji is roasted is by the nutty aroma that fills the kitchen. Moreover, if you feel the roasted sooji it should feel just like sand.

3- Remove from flame and transfer to a plate.

4- In the same pan add the remaining ghee and heat.

5- Once hot add the cardamom pods, cinnamon stick and cloves (if using). Fry for a minute.

6- Then add the slivered almonds and cashews and whole raisins. 

7- Mix well and let them turn golden. The raisins will puff up indicating it is done. 

8- Add in the saffron and start pouring the milk. It will splutter so be careful while pouring.

9- Add in the sugar and water. Bring to a boil.

10- Then add in the roasted sooji.

11- Stir continuously while adding the sooji to avoid lumps. The mixture will start to thicken slowly.

12- Keep stirring till all the liquids are absorbed and the halwa becomes soft.

13- Turn down the heat.

14- Serve topped with more nuts, dried rose petals and silver varakh (if using).

Expert Tips and Notes

• Ratio of ingredients: The ideal ratio of sugar to semolina to ghee is 1:1:1. This ratio gives us the creamiest and perfectly sweet sheera. Moreover, this ratio is great when making rava sheera as prasad for Satyanarayan Pooja or other religious events. As we generally do not taste this before serving, maintaining the ratio is easy. However, reduce the ghee or sugar if you like.
• Picking the right semolina: We can make this rava sheera with both coarse and fine semolina. Coarse semolina makes it fluffy and grainy. However, fine semolina yields a smooth floury sheera. I like to use coarse rava for my sheera.
• Roasting Semolina: Carefully roast the semolina on medium heat till it is roasted well. Roasting it on high flame will burn the rava and not make it appetizing.
• Swapping Milk: Ideally use both milk and water in the sheera. This makes it creamy yet not super milky. However, if you want, either swap dairy based milk for any nut milk or use all water. The result will vary but it is still yummy.
• Edible Camphor: A lot of times when we make this rava sheera for Satyanarayan katha or other celebrations, we add some dible camphor to the bhog. It is also common to add it for Kanjak Pooja; which is celebrated on the 8th day of Navratri.
• Stirring the sheera: Once we add all the ingredients to the pan and start cooking it, keep stirring well. Else the sheera will form lumps and they are pretty difficult to work with.
• Adjusting the liquids: The amount of liquids the rava will absorb depends on the type, brand and how old it is. In case the sheera starts to turn too lumpy and dry, add hot water or hot milk to it.

Variations to traditional Rava Sheera

While traditional rava sheera is super amazing, there are some variations that we can make. Here are some popular versions.

• Rava Kesari: We make this with the same ingredients except milk. Replace all the milk with water and add a pinch of orange or yellow color to the sheera. This is a South Indian version thats is super popular.
• Mango Halwa: A popular variation of Sooji Halwa is adding mango purée. Simply add this after the sheera is cooked so the mango does not harden when cooked too long.
• Pineapple Halwa: Another South Indian sweet; we add some pineapple juice and canned or fresh pineapple to the sooji halwa. This does taste super amazing.
• Semiya Kesari: This version is made with wheat vermicelli instead of rava. The recipe is exactly the same except this one variation. Use roasted vermicelli in the recipe or roast raw vermicelli to make this.
• Protein rich halwa: For a protein rich version replace quarter of the sooji with almond flour. Only roast the semolina and add the almond flour when adding sooji to the rest of the ingredients.

Making the Sheera in one pan

While I like to make this sheera using a two step recipe of roasting semolina and combining with other ingredients; my grandmother always made it using just one pan.

To do so, simply heat half the ghee and roast the semolina. Add in the whole spices too. Once the semolina is roasted, add in the remainder ghee along with slivered nuts and sugar. Follow this up with hot water and milk and stir continuously to combine everything well.

Simply ensure the ghee, water and milk are hot when added. Cold ingredients will result in a lumpy sheera.

Storing and Serving

Once the sheera is made, enjoy it warm topped with slivered nuts and saffron.

To store, cool the sheera completely and transfer to an airtight container. This sheera stays well through the day at room temperature. To store longer, refrigerate the container.

Remove from the refrigerator and warm it up or enjoy cold. This sheera freezes beautifully too. Freeze in small portions in lidded containers and thaw before serving.

When serving this sheera for prasad, it is perfect to serve topped with tulsi leaves. The prasad often includes nuts, chopped fruits and panchamrit on the side.

Recipe FAQs

More Recipes to make with Semolina

Semolina or rava is great to make a lot of sweet and savory recipes. It is a super versatile ingredient in the pantry. Here are some easy yet delicious recipes to make using this as the prime ingredient.

Indian Sweets to try