Healthy Vegan Gulab Jamun (No-fry, dairy-free)

Here’s how you can make this healthy vegan Gulab Jamun using simple plant-based ingredients that will make you fall in love with it instantly. Gulab Jamun (jamun = balls) is an Indian based dessert that is absolutely lip-smackingly delicious, except it is made using milk powder and what we Indians call – Khoya or reduction of milk or cream. But the recipe that I have for you has neither because we’ll be subbing the dairy products with easy vegan options that you are likely to have in your kitchen already. And the best part – it’s not fried in oil! Talk about guilt-free!

What is Gulab Jamun?

Traditionally this Indian sweet consists of deep-fried dough balls made out of milk solids or khoya (reduced milk) and boiled in spiced and rose water scented sugar syrup. But ever since I turned vegan, trying out vegan alternatives made me realise that dairy products are completely unnecessary in so many such dishes. This healthy vegan Gulab Jamun made out of bread and cashew paste are just as yummy as the milk-based ones and no one can actually tell the difference. So, when we have such healthy, animal cruelty-free options for our favourite desserts, then we can make a world of a difference by making the right choices.

Lactose intolerance in India:

Another reason that we can try these plant-based alternatives is that the number of lactose-intolerant people in India is essentially more than we realise. Because we as Indians are so used to eating dairy products daily that we pass the blame for lactose intolerant behaviour of our stomach on other dietary ingredients. Research conducted in India to determine the incidence of lactose intolerance in healthy volunteers showed more than 60% prevalence. That’s crazy, right? And knowing the love we have for milk-based sweets, there is no way you can ask someone to give up these dishes. Hence, I have found a way that you can consume dairy-free options and at the same time enjoy these sweets.

How to make healthy Vegan Gulab Jamun? (Tips and Tricks)

These gulab jamuns are super soft and spongy as it soaks up all the sugar syrup to give a cardamom-y flavour while its core remains gooey, sweet and delicious. You do have to get your hands messy for this recipe, but only to roll the dough into tiny balls. Other than that the hands-on work is no more than 5-10 minutes. The base of the jamuns only needs two ingredients – bread and cashews. While the sugar syrup consists of sugar (obviously), cardamom, lemon juice and saffron. You could add rose water to it if you like, but even if you don’t, it would turn out perfectly yummy. I’m going to divide the method into two parts – the base for the Gulab Jamun balls and the sugar syrup. Let’s start with the jamuns!

Making and Baking of the Jamuns

The basic ingredients are pretty similar to a dairy-based Gulab Jamun, except we’ll be using bread slices and cashew paste to get our base for the balls. (:D)

• Take 8 slices of bread and cut the crusts cut off. Don’t throw these crusts away, you can keep them aside for other purposes (process them, pop them in the air fryer and you have a fresh batch of bread crumbs. You can use these crumbs to coat some Aloo Tikkis and make healthy, crispy Baked Aloo Tikki.).

• In a blender, blend cashews with some water into a very smooth cream ( if you don’t have cashews at hand, you can use coconut cream as a substitute and just whip it up). Pour the cashew (or coconut) cream onto the crumbs, and mix until you have a smooth, pliable dough that’s a bit sticky. Divide into 18-20 equal-sized pieces and roll each into a ball (coat palms with oil to help roll the dough into ball shapes).

• Air fry (or oven-bake) the jamuns at 200 C for 25 minutes until the balls turn golden brown. Set them aside while you prepare the sugar syrup.

Air-fry or Oven bake?

I tried both methods and noticed that the air-fried version gave more of an even colour hand held its shape better, while the oven baked was less even and could, if not cooked fully, crumble a bit. They both taste equally good though, so ultimately, it’s fine!

Spiced sugar syrup

• Place the sugar, water, cardamom and saffron in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Then turn the heat down to a simmer, and add lemon juice. The lemon juice is an important step, so avoid skipping it.

• When you add lemon juice to the sugar and water mixture, it prevents the process of crystallization. Crystallization can’t take place while we make the syrup as we need a homogenous consistency for the jamuns to soak in.

• Let the syrup simmer for another five minutes then turn off the heat.

Turning the Jamuns into Gulab Jamuns

Pour the syrup over the Jamun balls when the syrup is still warm and let sit for at least 3 hours (or overnight, if you have the time), so they soak up the syrup. Do a taste test before serving. The Vegan Gulab Jamuns should be spongy to press and the core must be gooey on the inside when cut into halves. Your Vegan Gulab Jamuns are ready to be served (warm or cold) with a drizzle of syrup. If you are feeling adventurous, then add a dollop of dairy-free vanilla ice cream on top of the Gulab Jamuns and enjoy!

Store:

These healthy Vegan Gulab Jamuns can be stored for up to a week when refrigerated in an air tight container. They can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Make sure to freeze the balls without soaking and make the sugar syrup fresh the day before you want to serve it.

I hope you enjoy this healthy Vegan Gulab Jamun and do tag @beextravegant if you try this recipe. Check out how I made the Gulab Jamun and follow me on my Instagram. Bon appétit 🙂

If you like this recipe, check out other desserts from my page:

• Healthy Vegan Laddoo
• Vegan Ela Ada | The Best Healthy South Indian Dessert
• Dairy-Free Chocolate Pudding (Made With Oat Milk): Rich And Creamy