Bisquick Gulab Jamun

Bisquick Gulab Jamun
There are a few Indian desserts that can make me go weak in the knees.  These little sinful, round fluffy milk balls swimming in warm cardamom and saffron scented sugar syrup/chashni, are my all-time top five desserts/I will fight you for the last one/that’s where you will find me at the Indian wedding.  

Gulab Jamun is an irreplaceable part of India's culinary heritage; it is the dessert that is the life of all parties or celebrations, from birthdays to weddings and is ubiquitous over the world— nearly every mithai store and restaurant in the US serves some version of them. I have passed on my love for these to my kids, and they have a right giggle when Indo/Pak restaurants list them as “Julab Jamun”, you truly have to be Indian to get that.

I grew up eating the ones my Grannies and Mum made with “mawo”/khoya or milk solids. That sweet, milky flavor laced with a touch of cardamom defined my childhood. The homemade “mawo” was kneaded with flour; the dough was shaped into small balls and fried until a golden brown then infused in a rosewater and saffron sugar syrup/chashni.

As time evolved, Mum learnt how to make “instant” Gulab Jamuns, one using sooji/semolina and milk powder which produces a soft and airy jamun with a slight grainy texture, and the other one using a pancake mix from some aunty, which is truly instant.

At that time the pancake mix came from Missionaries who came with containers full of supplies that they would sell to the church members.  I remember her calling me at home at 10:00am in the morning, telling me she has invited some friends who had come into town for a day from the farms, and she would give me the menu for lunch ending with “mithash ma Gulab jambu banavi naak” – for dessert make Gulab jamun.

These are also ones I make all the time as they are that quick to pull together, and am I even American if I don’t have a box of Bisquick in my pantry?


Ingredients for Gulab Jamun:
1 cup Bisquick
3 cups milk powder ( Nido)
3 tbsp. melted ghee or unsalted butter
3/4 cup  warm or room temp. whole milk + a little more depending on how your milk powder absorbs milk.
1/4 tsp. cardamom powder

3 cups sugar
5 cups water
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
1/2 tsp saffron pistils
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. Rose water (optional)

Oil for deep frying.


Let the mixture rest for 20 minutes, uncovered, while you prepare the syrup/chashni. This resting period gives the pancake mix and milk powder time to fully develop.

Grease your palms with ghee/melted butter, break off small pieces of the dough about a tablespoon/20gms and roll it into a ball between greased palms, making sure there are no cracks.

Set the balls onto a baking sheet and repeat with the rest of the dough.

Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat until a candy thermometer inserted in the oil reads 300°F.

Gently add several balls into the oil, but do not overcrowd as they need space to puff up and double in size. Also do not agitate them with a skimmer, let them cook, and as they cook they will slowly rise up to the surface.

Fry until golden brown ~6-8 minutes, then remove with a skimmer and place in a baking sheet line with paper towels. Lower heat if they brown too quickly, then turn it back on to medium.

Once all of the jamuns have been fried, add them to the warm sugar syrup. If the syrup has gotten cold, warm it slightly before adding the jamuns. Soak for 2 hours, and from time to time gently shake the pan to move the jamun around the syrup, but do not use a spoon or fork.

Serve either at room temperature or warm.

Single thread Syrup/Chashni for Gulab Jamun
Place sugar and water in a pan, and stir until sugar dissolves.
Add the saffron and cardamom powder.  
Place the pan on the stove and bring to a rolling boil  for approximately 10 minutes, until the candy thermometer registers  approximately 220ºF - 222ºF/104º-105ºC  almost like a light, cordial-style syrup then add the lemon juice to prevent crystallization of the syrup.  

If the syrup is too thin, the jamun's will soak it up like a sponge and break apart, and if it's too thick it will coat the jamun from the outside, you need it just a little bit above the thin consistency so that it seeps to the core of the jamun.
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