Gulab Jamuns Made from Scratch!

Yes, you read the title right, its not from a mix, and no you do not need Khoya!

Jamuns with slivered Almonds

I learnt to make these from Santosh, a good friend of mine. She ran a successful catering business  and is a great cook. I really enjoyed learning the recipe from her. Also equally enjoyed the Punjabi Kadhi with ghee on top and the Baingan Bharta that I had (while learning) for lunch at her place :)

By far, these are the best Jamuns I have ever had in my life. That's saying something because I don't have a sweet tooth.

Well, here it is
You will need
a Food Scale
a Deep fryer (optional) for best results.

For Jamuns: (to make 30 small round jamuns or 20 oblong ones)

3oz of Bisquick Pancake Mix
4 oz of Milk Powder
5 oz of Heavy Cream.

For Sugar Syrup. (for above measurement)

2 Cups Sugar
2 Cups Water
Saffron - a pinch

In a heavy bottomed pan, add both sugar and water, Mix and let boil on a medium flame. Once the sugar is melted add the saffron, switch the stove off and let cool. Please note the syrup will be thin. Not thread consistency. Should easily flow from the spoon.

If you are making it in summer, start with placing the Heavy Cream in the freezer before measuring your ingredients. (For about few minutes so it will be extra cold)
 Measure the above ingredients to a tee.
Mix the dry ingredients (Bisquick, Milk Powder) well.
Then slowly add the Heavy cream to it, and make in to a nice soft dough. It should be soft to touch and not be sticky.
This usually takes 5 to 10 minutes of kneading.
Now just divide the dough in two and then make small balls out of them. Make sure they are almost the same size, so they will all get cooked evenly.
You can make oblong ones or round ones.
The oblong ones are trickier, if not made well, they might break in oil.

If you have a fryer, add enough oil and keep it a temperature of 350 deg. Otherwise, in a kadai, make sure the oil is hot but not too hot. Santosh says to keep extra oil on the side, so if the oil in kadai gets hot, add some to cool it down.
I made it once in a kadai and the next time in a fryer. I felt the fryer jamuns turned out better, because the temperature was maintained through out and also it was not oily. I also added a bit of ghee in the oil the second time around.

When you fry them, move the oil around with the ladle, but try not to touch the jamuns.
In the fryer it takes a good 1 to 2 minutes for them to become completely golden brown.

Once the jamuns are fried, just drop it in the sugar syrup immediately. They absorb the sugar water and double in size :)

The variation to this is Kala Jamun. With the same measurement, to the dough add, a tablespoon of sugar. This caramelizes and the jamuns become dark.

Decorative ideas,

- You could make oblong or round ones, and place them in cupcake liners.
- Cut the Jamuns in Half, get the pastry decoration from a store, and make designs on them

- you can sprinkle almonds or any other kinds of nuts.

When the jamuns are cool and have absorbed the syrup. You store them in the fridge for up to a week. 

When making it for a party, these can be made a day ahead. Will taste much better too.