Gulab jamun

Gulab jamun(also spelledgulaab jamun;lit.'Rose water berry'or 'Rose berry') is a sweet confectionery or dessert, originating in theIndian subcontinent, and a type ofmithaipopular inIndia,Pakistan,Nepal, theMaldivesandBangladesh, as well asMyanmar. It is also common in nations with substantial populations of people with South Asian heritage, such asMauritius,Fiji,Gulf states, theMalay Peninsula,United Kingdom,United States,Canada,South Africa, and theCaribbean(Jamaica,Trinidad and Tobago,Guyana,Suriname).
It is made mainly from milk solids, traditionally fromkhoya, which is milk reduced to the consistency of a soft dough. Modern recipes call for dried or powdered milk instead ofkhoya. It is often garnished with dried nuts, such asalmondsandcashews, to enhance flavour.
In the Indian subcontinent, milk and cheese solids are prepared by heating milk over a low flame until the water content has evaporated and only the milk solids, known askhoya, remain. The solids are kneaded with flour (maida), and small balls of this dough are deep-fried in oil orghee(clarified butter) at a low temperature,then soaked in a lightsugar syrupflavored with greencardamomandrose water,kewraorsaffron.Hot gulab jamun is often served with vanilla ice cream, orkulfi.
According to culinary historian Michael Krondl, 12th centuryManasollasamentions a recipe for fried fritter balls made ofchennacheese and rice flour and was soaked in cardamom-scented syrup, but this recipe did not use rosewater (gulab) syrup.The 13th century Arab dessertluqmat al-qadiis similar in appearance to gulab jamun, although it is made of entirely different batter than gulab jamun but was soaked in rosewater-scented (gulab) syrup, the only Persian connection may be the common use of rosewater syrup.Gulab Jamun emerged in medieval India during theMughal Empire, blending Persianate influence with local influences that eventually became gulab jamun.The word "gulab" is derived from thePersianwordsgul(flower) andāb(water), referring to therose water-scented syrup, and "Jamun" or "jaman" is theHindiword forSyzygium jambolanum, an Indian fruit with a similar size and shape, commonly known as black plum.Jamun is also defined as a fried delicacy in sugar syrup.
Gulab jamunis often eaten at festivals, birthdays or major celebrations such as marriages, the Muslim celebrations ofEid ul-FitrandEid al-Adha, and the Hindu festivals ofDiwaliandGanesh Chaturthi. There are various types ofgulab jamun.
Gulab jamungets its brownish red colour because of the sugar content in the milk powder (khoya). In other types ofgulab jamun,sugaris added in the batter, and after frying, the sugarcaramelizationgives it its dark, almostblackcolour, which is then calledkala jamunor "black jamun". The sugar syrup may be replaced with (slightly) dilutedmaple syrupfor agulab jamun.
Homemadegulab jamunis usually made up of khoya, a pinch of all-purpose flour/refined wheat flour/ wheat flour (optional), baking powder and clarified butter (ghee); milk kneaded to form a dough, moulded into balls, deep fried and dropped into simmering sugar syrup.
In Bengali, Gulab Jamun is known as Kalo Jam orPantua, which is similar togulab jamun, and could be called a Bengali variant of that dish.Ledikeni, a variation of Pantua, is another variant ofgulab jamun.It is saidto have been invented by Bhim Chandra Nag on the occasion of a visit byLady Canning, the wife of Charles Canning, the Governor-General of India during 1856–62.
Katangi, a town near Jabalpur is famous for "Jhurre Ka Rasgulla", which has been made there for the past 100 years.It is several times the size of normal gulab jamuns and is prepared in local desi ghee.
InRajasthan, instead of soaking gulab jamun balls in sugar syrup, they are cooked in gravy made from spices, nuts and tomato to make popular Gulab Jamun ki Sabzi.
In Western Madhya Pradesh andMalwa, Mawa Bati is popular as local version of Gulab Jamun.
It is different from Gulab jamun by size, fillings and amount of sweetness, Mawa bati is usually not immersed in Sugar syrup and slightly larger than Gulab Jamun.
InBangladesh,Pantuais available almost everywhere throughout the country, which can be referred to aBengalivariation of Gulab jamun. Also there are two kinds of jamuns that are famous. They are Golap Jam (গোলাপ জাম) and Kalo Jam (কালো জাম).
The sweet is known as Lal Mohan (लालमोहन) in Nepali language and is available at almost every sweet shop. The sale of the sweet usually increases significantly during festivals such asTihar,Dashain, etc.