Chana dal laddu

These laddus begin with a dry roast: split bengal gram roasted in a bare kadhai until golden, cooled and ground to flour. Jaggery powder and warm ghee do the binding, so there is no sugar syrup to boil or to test. The result is a soft, sandy laddu with the nutty taste of roasted chana dal, the dal whose names and nutrition are in our chana dal guide.

Roasting decides the taste. The dal must turn golden and smell nutty without darkening: pale grains taste raw, and burnt ones turn the laddu bitter. Cool it fully before grinding, or the steam makes the flour lumpy. Grind fine, the way besan is ground, so the laddu binds evenly.

For a no-jaggery version, swap the jaggery for the same weight of powdered sugar; it binds the same way. Roll the laddus while the mixture is warm, because it stiffens as it cools and the last few will not hold together. If a ball crumbles in your hand, warm the bowl for a minute and knead again. It is also called bengal gram laddu.