Learn how to make Vegan Gulab Jamun using my simple gulab jamun dry-mix as a starting point to make this festive Indian sweet consisting of soft cardamom-scented donut balls soaked in saffron/rose water syrup. Dairy-free and with a gluten-free option! Jump to Recipe
DIY Gulab Jamun Dry Mix for gifting to yourself and others
Get ready for one of my favorite Indian treats ever – Gulab Jamuns! The ultimate indulgence for special occasions. Small, bite-sized syrupy donut balls of bliss! And with this Gulab Jamun Dry Mix, you will be able to make them all.the.time.
If you are new to Indian food or Indian Diwali sweets, you might be wondering what I am talking about. Let me explain:
What are Gulab Jamuns?
Gulab jamuns are like a rich donut, flavored with cardamom and saffron and soaked in sugar syrup to make a soft and melt-in-your sweet syrupy Indian dessert. A favorite around the festival season, The traditional version uses milk powder or mawa (milk solids) or other forms of dairy.
Every few years I try to improve my vegan gulab jamuns. This version (also a slight variation in my indian kitchen book) makes amazing jamuns. But just getting all the ingredients together can add up to the cooking time. I made them simpler and tastier!
Just blend up the ingredients and store as a diy donut mix so that you can make quick vegan jamuns as needed. You can also gift this mix to people as it is shelf-stable for a couple of months!
This recipe uses some flour, cardamom, baking soda, sugar, and nuts such as almond and pistachios to add a “mawa” (milk solids or milk powder) effect. A little bit of breadcrumbs ensures that the mix has a bit of air. Just blend everything up. Add some nondairy milk, make dough and pan fry or deep fry, soak in warm sugar syrup and ready!
Let’s make this right now!
Indian Vegan Gulab Jamun Donuts Dry Mix
Ingredients
For the gulab jamun mix
- 1/4 cup (31.25 g) all purpose flour
- 3 tbsp almond flour
- 1.5 tbsp sugar
- 3 tbsp bread crumbs i use panko
- 1 tbsp raw pistachios 8 to 9 pistachios
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp baking soda
- seeds from 2 cardamom pods or use 1/4 tsp ground, I prefer seeds for best flavor
- 1.5 tbsp potato starch
To add later:
- 3.5 tbsp or more thick non dairy milk such as oat milk or cashew milk
For the sugar syrup:
- 1 1/4 cup (295.74 ml) of water
- 1 cup (200 g) of sugar
- seeds from 4 cardamom pods
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 6 saffron strands or 1 tsp rose water
Instructions
- To make the mix, add all the ingredients into a blender and blend till nuts are broken down and mixture is homogeneous
- Transfer the mix to container, if you want to store it should be air tight to store upto 2 months
- To make the gulab jamun, transfer all mix to a bowl. Add 3 tbsp of non dairy milk and mix well. press and mix with your hands and see if you need more non dairy milk and add it 1 tsp at a time.
- You can also use a tbsp of vegan cream cheese and 2 tbsp non dairy milk instead (I use kite hill plain and it adds that hint of mawa flavor in the Gulab jamuns)
- You want to stop as soon as dough is soft and not dry, let the dough sit for five minutes and then knead lightly to build the gluten which will help make even non cracked gulab jamuns.
- Because of the sugar in the mix, the dough will get slightly sticky, add in a sprinkle(1/2-1tsp) of all purpose flour while kneading if needed. Knead for a min and then make it into small balls (1/2 inch size if making in aebleskiver pan, slightly larger to fry)
- To make them in aeblskiver pan or appe pan - heat the pan over medium heat. Add at least 1 tsp of oil in each of the holes. Once the oil is hot, add your balls in each, and turn them around in 15 seconds and continue to cook so that they are evenly golden brown from all sides. Repeat for all the balls. Refill the oil as needed in between. Reduce heat to low medium if browning too quickly for either method
- To fry the balls, you can deep fry them over medium heat. You do not want the oil to be too hot and fry them until they are golden brown on all sides. Transfer to a paper lined plate.
- To make the sugar syrup. Add all the ingredients to a shallow pan. And bring to a boil over medium high heat. Once boiling, mix really well to make sure all the sugar has been dissolved and continue to cook for two more minutes and reduce the heat to medium. let it simmer for another 2 mins. Add in the balls, reduce heat to low and let them soak in the syrup. Move the balls around to coat from all sides after 10 minutes. Repeat after another 10 minutes and then switch off the heat and let the balls soak in the syrup for at least an hour before serving.
- Garnish with some chopped nuts if you wish and serve.
Notes
- While cooking the balls in aeblskiver pan, you want to move them around pretty frequently otherwise they will tend to crack open or burn.
- For even absorption of the sugar syrup, you do not want the syrup to be too thick and you want it to be warm when you add the balls to it. If it has thickened too much, add a tbsp or so water and mix when still warm.
- To ensure the balls soak the syrup completely, you can use a toothpick to poke a hole or two before adding to the syrup.
- Keep the balls small as they absorb the syrup quickly and have best texture.
Nutrition
Ingredients for making Gulab Jamun Dry Mix
- The donut dry mix is made using a mix of all-purpose flour and almond flour. We also add some bread crumbs for a better more airy texture. I included a gluten-free option for you as well in the notes section of the recipe card.
- We only add about 1.5 tbsp of sugar to the dry mix. With the soaking syrup, it will be sweet enough.
- raw pistachios and almond flour add the mawa effect that is typically achieved by adding milk powder to the mix
- 1/8 tsp baking soda makes these rise. Make sure you measure it out correctly. Adding too much baking soda can add an unpleasant aftertaste to your donuts.
- The diy gulab jamun donut mix gets a boost of flavor from the seeds from 2 cardamom pods. Fresh seeds give you the best flavor profile if you just cannot find a whole cardamom pods then use 1/4 tsp teaspoon ground Cardamon
- potato starch makes these extra tender and melt-in-your-mouth
- Once the dry mix is sorted, all you have to do is add non-dairy milk such as oat milk or cashew milk. It should be a thick milk substitute.
- The sugar syrup for dunking is made from water and sugar and is flavored with cardamom, lemon juice, and either saffron or rose water
Tips:
- While cooking the balls in aeblskiver pan (Danish specialty item), you want to move them around pretty frequently otherwise they will tend to crack open or burn.
- For even absorption of the sugar syrup, you do not want the syrup to be too thick and you want it to be warm when you add the balls to it. If it has thickened too much, add a tbsp or so water and mix when still warm.
- To ensure the balls soak up the syrup completely, you can use a toothpick to poke a hole or two before adding to the syrup.
- Keep the balls small as they absorb the syrup quickly and have the best texture.
- When shaping the balls, it helps to oil your hands a bit to avoid sticking.
How to make Dry Mix Gulab Jamuns:
To make the dry donut mix, add all the ingredients into a blender and blend till nuts are broken down and the mixture is homogeneous.
Transfer the DIY donut mix to a glass container, if you want to store it, the container should be airtight! That way you can store the mix for up to 2 months.
To make the gulab jamun, transfer all mix to a bowl. Add 3 tbsp of non-dairy milk and mix well. Press and mix the batter with your hands and see if you need more non-dairy milk and add it 1 tsp at a time.
Tip: You can also add a tbsp of vegan cream cheese and 2 tbsp nondairy milk. I use kite hill plain and it adds that hint of mawa flavor in the Gulab jamuns.
You want to stop as soon as the dough is soft and not dry, let the dough sit for five minutes, and then knead lightly to build the gluten which will help make even, uncracked gulab jamuns.
Because of the sugar in the mix, the dough will get slightly sticky, add in a sprinkle (1/2-1tsp) of all-purpose flour while kneading if needed. Knead for a min and then shape it into small balls (1/2 inch size if making in aebleskiver pan, slightly larger to fry)
To make the mini donuts in an aeblskiver pan or appe pan:
Heat the pan over medium heat. Add at least 1 tsp of oil in each of the holes. Once the oil is hot, add your balls in each, and turn them around in 15 seconds and continue to cook so that they are evenly golden brown from all sides. Repeat for all the balls. Refill the oil as needed in between.
To fry the balls, you can deep fry them over medium heat. You do not want the oil to be too hot and fry them until they are golden brown on all sides. Transfer to paper-lined plate.
To make the soaking syrup. Add all the ingredients to a shallow pan. And bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, mix really well to make sure all the sugar has been dissolved and continue to cook for two more minutes and reduce the heat to medium. let it simmer for another 2 mins. Add in the balls, reduce heat to low and let them soak in the syrup. Move the balls around to coat from all sides after 10 minutes. Repeat after another 10 minutes and then switch off the heat and let the balls soak in the syrup for at least an hour before serving.
Garnish with some chopped nuts if you wish and serve.
Why are my gulab jamuns cracking while frying?
Either the oil is too hot or the jamuns were not shaped to be smooth and even
why are my gulab jamuns breaking apart in the sugar syrup?
The sugar syrup is too watery, and too thin. Or the jamuns weren’t cooked long enough
Why are my jamuns not soaking up the syrup?
The sugar syrup is too thick (or cold and has thickened). Or the jamuns are overcooked causing them to be too hard on the outside.
My jamuns have a doughy or dry interior.
The jamun balls were either cooked too quickly in hot oil and not long enough or they were not soaked long enough
Can these vegan gulab jamuns be made gluten-free?
Yes, see the gluten-free blend in the recipe notes.
MORE VEGAN DIWALI RECIPES FROM THE BLOG:
- Vegan Rasmalai Cake
- Chickpea flour coconut Burfi – GF, Nutfree
- Almond Halwa, 2ways and Almond Ladoo GF
- Malai Burfi GF
- Basundi
- Malai Ladoo
- Brown Rice Kheer
- Gajar Halwa, skillet, Instant pot
- Easy Kaju Katli
Happy Diwali!
Oooh, I have to try these. I made the GF recipe in your cookbook about a month ago (and one more time) and absolutely LOVED it. I like them alone a lot, too, without the syrup.
Mmmmmm! Just made these in my cake pop baker and glazed them with icing sugar, lemon, saffron mix instead of the the sugar syrup (like a glazed donut), since I describe these to my friends as Indian donuts.
Delicious and perfect!
cake pop baker! cool
If trying these baked in a donut pan as previously suggested can you suggest a temperature and time. Thanks
Check them at 20 mins at 350*.
Another amazing recipe! I made them for Diwali and they were a huge hit with very demanding family. I subbed the corn starch. Thank you!
Awesome
The Gulab Jamuns came out very delicious!!
I forgot to add the potatoe starch🙄. Wanted to know what does the potatoe starch do in the dough? Thanx
Can’t wait to try the Rasmali
It adds a bit of smoothness and lightness. Good to know that it works without too!
Oh My God!! these look amazing, Richa!! Thank you for all your wonderful recipes. I have a couple of questions…. my daughter is allergic to pista, can I just use more almond flour instead? How many tsps would that be? Also, can I bake these?
Hi! I tried making these and they started falling apart and disintegrating in the oil when I tried to dry them. Do you know what could be going wrong? Thank you!
The oil got too hot or there’s too much moisture in the balls or they aren’t smooth. If they just cracked wide then the oil is too hot. If they broke into multiple pieces then lots of moisture
Ohh these look SO good – I LOVE the ingredients, sounds yummy!
Could these baked? Maybe in a traditional donut pan?
Yes, they won’t brown much though
Any substitute to the potato starch?? Its not readily available in my area
Any other starch will work. Tapioca, corn
Hi. Thank you for this recipe. Is there a substitute I can use instead of almond flou because of nut allergies, Thank you 😊
It’s hard to make a dairy free gulab jamun which is mostly just milk powder. It might work out with fatty neutral seeds like hemp + pumpkin but the flavor will be different. Pistachio adds that Special flavor. You can probably add more cardamon and try a small batch
Or try these semolina jamuns. Use vegan butter and oat milk or cashew milk
https://nishkitchen.com/2-ingredient-rava-gulab-jamun-video/
Hi Richa is the almond flour and potato starch necessary? If I don’t normally have these in my kitchen can I substitute with something else? Or can I make my own almond pulp/flour by blending almonds in it’s place?
Yes all the ingredients have a role. You can make your own almond flour. Blend dry peeled blanched almonds in a blender or use raw cashews. You can just put the cashews in with rest of the ingredients as they will get powdered just like the pistachios. Use same amount as almond flour
And use an alternate starch like arrowroot or cornstarch
Can I substitute coconut milk powder for the soy milk powder called for in the gluten-free recipe?
Thanks!
No, just omit the soy milk powder if you don’t have it