• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Raks Kitchen
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipe index
  • Lunch ideas
  • About Me
  • Amazon Store
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipe index
    • Lunch ideas
    • About Me
    • Amazon Store
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » Halwa Recipes

    Ashoka halwa recipe | Diwali Video recipes

    October 20, 2015 by Raks Anand 57 Comments / Jump to Recipe

    ashoka-halwa-recipe
    Ashoka halwa with step by step pictures and full video. Ashoka halwa is the south Indian sweet prepared with moong dal, paasi paruppu.

    I tasted ashoka halwa only in my marriage, before that, I have never tasted the sweet or know that such sweet exists. My FIL arranged and brought 2 chefs (thavisu pillais)  from our native side and they cooked awesome food for our marriage. This ashoka sweet for one it was red in colour as they had used red food colour.

    Other than that, I never knew about the recipe. It was yumm that what I knew. After I started blogging, I saw the recipe in a Laavanya’s blog, tried and posted the picture as well. It’s Vj’s favorite sweet, that’s why I tried. I added a lots of ghee in it, still it came out sticky.

    I was not sure why it became so sticky that time, but now when I made this yesterday, I realised I should have cooked the halwa more. Such a simple mistake, but that point of time I never understood.

    Points to note:

    Depending on the dal variety, the amount of cooked dal slightly varies, so the ghee could also vary, just 1 teaspoon - 1 tablespoon more or less. So just keep this post as guidance and add carefully towards end.

    Even the cooked dal texture could take more or less ghee accordingly.
    moong-dal-halwa
    After that I never got confidence to try. But last week during our usual chat with my friends, I again got this reminded. My friend Suji sent me a recipe as she have tried several times. Only thing I altered was ghee as I tried to be safe. Otherwise I followed the same. The texture was really smooth.
    This sweet is famous in Thiruvaiyaru as well as Tanjore. I have never tasted from these places, I hope someday I get a chance to taste 🙂. This is also called Asoka halwa.
    Full video for Ashoka halwa :

    ashoka halwa recipe
    Print Pin
    5 from 2 votes

    Ashoka halwa recipe

    Ashoka halwa with step by step pictures and full video. Ashoka halwa is the south Indian sweet prepared with moong dal, paasi paruppu.
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine Indian
    Prep Time 5 minutes
    Cook Time 20 minutes
    Total Time 25 minutes
    Servings 6
    Cup measurements

    Ingredients

    • ½ cup Moong dal paasi paruppu
    • 1 cup Sugar
    • ¼+ 2 tbsp cup Ghee
    • 1 tablespoon Wheat flour
    • ¼ teaspoon Cardamom  powder
    • 1 pinch Food colour
    • 8  Cashew nuts
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Pressure cook moong dal with 2 cups water and mash it really smooth.
    • I used my hand blender and gave a pulse, you can also do this using mixer.
    • If it's already mashed smooth you can skip grinding.
    • Meanwhile, In a pan, heat 2 tablespoon ghee, first fry cashew nuts until golden, keep aside.
    • Switch off the flame. Fry wheat flour in the same hot ghee it until fragrant, taking care not to burn it. Keep aside.
    • In a heavy bottomed pan or non stick pan, heat the cooked dal with sugar.
    • Add ghee 1 tablespoon at a time. Mix well until it gets incorporated with the moong dal sugar mixture and again add another tablespoon and repeat until done with the ghee.
    • The colour of the moong dal mixture turns transparent as you cook.
    • Once thick, add food colour and mix well.
    • Add cashew nut, cardamom and  lastly the fried wheat flour with ghee.
    • Once you add wheat flour, the mixture will thicken and keep cooking, it will start leaving the pan and ooze ghee.
    • Do in medium flame.Once halwa consistency reaches, that is the ghee oozes out and becomes glossy, switch off the stove.

    Video

    Notes

    • Try to use natural food colours or skip food colour if you are worried about it. 
    • Pressure cooking moong dal with 4 cups water ensures it is cooked soft. This makes easier while you mash the dal. If the dal is not mashed well, it will stay same in the halwa and won't be smooth. 
    • Also the dal's texture will affect how much ghee it takes.
    • Instead of wheat flour, you can also use maida (All purpose flour).
    • My friend told she adds only 2 tablespoon of ghee and still it comes out good. But I feel if you want non sticky texture, keep adding until the ghee oozes out.
    • You can anyway collect the ghee that oozes out, but it is important to add more if you want a non sticky halwa. 
    • After completely cooling down, the ghee gets frosted, and gives a grainy texture. So heat a bit before you serve to make it smoother.
    • You can add more wheat flour too but I like it minimum.
    YoutubeDo you like short videos? Subscribe now!
    InstagramMention @rakskitchen or tag #rakskitchen if you have tried this recipe.

    How to make ashoka halwa recipe method:

      1. Pressure cook moong dal with 2 cups water and mash it really smooth. I used my hand blender and gave a pulse, you can also do this using mixer. If it's already mashed smooth you can skip grinding.1-cook
      2. Meanwhile, In a pan, heat 2 tablespoon ghee, first fry cashew nuts until golden, keep aside and switch off the flame.2-fry-cashews
      3. Fry wheat flour in the same hot ghee it until fragrant, taking care not to burn it. Keep aside.3-fry-flour
      4. In a heavy bottomed pan or non stick pan, heat the cooked dal with sugar. Add ghee 1 tablespoon at a time. Mix well until it gets incorporated with the moong dal sugar mixture and again add another tablespoon and repeat until done with the ghee.4-sugar
      5. The colour of the moong dal mixture turns transparent as you cook. Once thick, add food colour and mix well.5-food-colour
      6. Add cashew nut, cardamom and  lastly the fried wheat flour with ghee. Once you add wheat flour, the mixture will thicken and keep cooking, it will start leaving the pan and ooze ghee. Do in medium flame.6-cashews
      7. Once halwa consistency reaches, that is the ghee oozes out and becomes glossy, switch off the stove.

    7-ready

    Flavorful and delicious moong dal halwa aka ashoka halwa. Special Diwali recipe 😉.
    ashoka-halwa

    Other Indian Halwa recipes

    • Sooji Ka Halwa Recipe
    • Moong dal halwa, Diwali sweets recipes
    • Lauki halwa recipe, bottle gourd halwa
    • Apple halwa recipe, Without milk | Glossy, tangy

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Uma Venkat

      October 20, 2015 at 9:42 am

      Awesome....very nice raji...u hv lots of patience....halwa looks tempting..

      Reply
    2. Uma Venkat

      October 20, 2015 at 9:45 am

      Awesome....very nice raji...u hv lots of patience....halwa looks tempting..

      Reply
    3. Divs

      October 20, 2015 at 10:46 am

      My Amma is from Tanjore she keeps raving about how she relished it during her childhood . I too wish to eat it there from there someday. This looks absolutely sinful and delicious. Awesome pics as always 🙂

      Reply
    4. Gayu

      October 20, 2015 at 11:40 am

      Love ur blog Raji akka... The colour of halwa makes my mouth watering... Beautiful pics
      ....

      Reply
    5. Veena Theagarajan

      October 20, 2015 at 12:25 pm

      Looks yum and lovely texture

      Reply
      • Vidhu

        September 30, 2021 at 9:27 pm

        Hey thanks for the recipe raks.. whatz the difference between this n moong dal halwa

        Reply
        • Raks Anand

          September 30, 2021 at 10:34 pm

          The procedure. Like difference between sheera and kesari. This is south Indian version moong dal halwa is north Indian version.

          Reply
    6. Ruhi Saxena

      October 20, 2015 at 1:13 pm

      What :O Please don't ruin such special recipe!! Its a specialty of North Indians. From where you got to know about food color?? we never use food color in this special recipe. The Technic behind this halwa is just roast roast and roast ..Tats it!! you may change measurements as per your taste buds...but you cannot play with authenticity of the dish. I know this critic comment will not be displayed but ti hardly matters to me. I just wanted to convey the exact thing to you. You usually do great work raks...keep it up. but since you are so famous now...don't try to manipulate some criteria which may affect the authenticity of the dish.

      Reply
    7. chetana

      October 20, 2015 at 1:38 pm

      Looks yummy!!! I'll try this

      Reply
    8. Aus

      October 20, 2015 at 3:02 pm

      Ruhi saxena- excuse me?? As Rak has mentioned its authentic and popular South Indian sweet and I have grown up eating this Ashoka halwa. She is not manipulating any North Indian recipes. And of course she is famous are you jealous? Can you cook like her? If you can't say something nice don't say anything and stay away!

      Reply
    9. Aus

      October 20, 2015 at 3:07 pm

      Ruhi saxena- excuse me?? As Rak has mentioned its authentic and popular South Indian sweet and I have grown up eating this Ashoka halwa. She is not manipulating any North Indian recipes. And of course she is famous are you jealous? Can you cook like her? If you can't say something nice don't say anything and stay away! Don't act too smart. First prove yourself that you can achieve something like her. Empty vessels make more noise!

      Reply
    10. Unknown

      October 20, 2015 at 3:07 pm

      Thanks for posting. i love the quantity of ghee. Will try ur version. Happy Diwali. This is Tanjore special. Not the North Indian Moong dal halwa.

      Reply
    11. Unknown

      October 20, 2015 at 3:44 pm

      I am from Tanjore. This halwa is famous thiruvaiyaru ashoka halwa...

      Reply
    12. Unknown

      October 20, 2015 at 3:44 pm

      I am from Tanjore. This halwa is famous thiruvaiyaru ashoka halwa...

      Reply
    13. Unknown

      October 20, 2015 at 3:44 pm

      I am from Tanjore. This halwa is famous thiruvaiyaru ashoka halwa...

      Reply
    14. Karunakaran M kalathi

      October 20, 2015 at 4:18 pm

      This comment has been removed by the author.

      Reply
    15. Karunakaran M kalathi

      October 20, 2015 at 4:27 pm

      Ruhi saxena- You are misled by your own preoccupied misconceptions. Moong dal halwa, a famous rajasthani delicacy, which is in your mind is entirely different from the ashoka halwa mentioned here.

      moong dal halwa u mean doesnt need pressure cooking of dal. I remember one has to soak it for a period and grind it as such. It drinks lots and lots of ghee. It takes much effort roasting it over long period of time. it has some granular consistency. No doubt its an delicacy.

      But , down south , in another ancient town , there is another sweet made with moong dal, but in different steps. one need to pressure cook dal for this recipe. you will be surprised, its taste is entirely different from the dish u mean.

      Just because, same besan flour transforms into besan ladoo, mothi chur ladoo, pakora....etc.... can u say all are same ????

      Reply
    16. Traditionally Modern Food

      October 20, 2015 at 8:58 pm

      My fav halwa.. I remember attending wedding to taste this halwa..looks perfect raks

      Reply
    17. Abhirami Lakshmanan

      October 21, 2015 at 1:36 am

      Ruhi - Please think twice before accusing someone. Without knowing the facts, please don't jump into conclusions!! Manipulate??? What the hell do you know about this sweet?? Please measure your words before you speak and its clear that you are jealous of Raji!! Please don't accuse anyone like this without knowing..

      Reply
    18. Abhirami Lakshmanan

      October 21, 2015 at 1:37 am

      Wow,looks soo yummy Raji 🙂 have to try it soooon...

      Reply
    19. Tamilselvi Saravanan

      October 21, 2015 at 3:35 am

      Why your pictures are like this. It's tempting me a lot to try now itself. Great Great work. Go ahead

      Reply
    20. Tamilselvi Saravanan

      October 21, 2015 at 3:36 am

      Why your pictures are like this. It's tempting me a lot to try now itself. Great Great work. Go ahead

      Reply
    21. Pushpa Raja

      October 21, 2015 at 7:20 am

      Wow... tasty halwa... I ate this 1 time from thiruvaiyaru... till I remebered that taste...

      Reply
    22. Vivekanandhan Rajasekar

      October 21, 2015 at 10:01 am

      Wow.. Looks yummy...

      Please post preparation of Bengali sweets, would like to try it....

      Reply
    23. priya darshini

      October 21, 2015 at 10:43 am

      Nice presentation raji. Thank u for your mouth watering pics and showing easy steps also..

      Reply
    24. priya darshini

      October 21, 2015 at 10:43 am

      Nice presentation raji. Thank u for your mouth watering pics and showing easy steps also..

      Reply
    25. suba

      October 21, 2015 at 10:43 am

      Perfect as usual. Do u hv recipes to make flavoured yogurt? Pls post it if any

      Reply
    26. suba

      October 21, 2015 at 10:44 am

      Perfect as usual. Do u hv recipes to make flavoured yogurt? Pls post it if any

      Reply
    27. padma ramesh

      October 21, 2015 at 11:09 am

      wow!........what a mouth watering receipe. Thanks

      Reply
    28. Nalini P

      October 21, 2015 at 3:22 pm

      Raji: thanks for this fantastic recipe. Brings back happy memories from childhood days, just hearing the ashoka halwa name!

      I have been following your blog for some time now. You rock girl!

      Reply
    29. Unknown

      October 21, 2015 at 4:04 pm

      Looks yummy 🙂 🙂 Gonna try it 🙂 🙂 Nice click Raks 🙂 🙂

      Reply
    30. Meena Mishty

      October 21, 2015 at 4:05 pm

      Looks yummy 🙂 🙂 Gonna try it 🙂 🙂 Nice click Raks 🙂 🙂

      Reply
    31. Prescilla

      October 21, 2015 at 6:17 pm

      Hi Rai, I admit that I visit your blog everyday but never turned to leave a comment. But this post , pics and your presentation made me to leave a word. Thanks for sharing this authentic dish. Gonna try this weekend. Keep rocking..

      Reply
    32. ranjeni thanagavel

      October 21, 2015 at 6:22 pm

      Hi raks.. I ve been trying ur recipe and they turn out sinfully tasty.. never thought of leaving a coment until I saw this halwa n brought down beautiful memories.. thanks for sharing. Just a small hint..

      Reply
    33. Durga Karthik.

      October 22, 2015 at 7:11 am

      Ashoka halwa has an unique texture .We can feel it in our tongue .

      Reply
    34. Radhashree Ramachandran

      October 22, 2015 at 7:48 am

      Please don't comment before knowing about any thing fully.this is entirely different from your moong dal halwa. Moreover she is not new to blogging .

      Reply
    35. Raks anand

      October 23, 2015 at 11:41 am

      Thank you all for your replies 🙂

      Reply
    36. Unknown

      October 23, 2015 at 3:21 pm

      Ruhi saxena.. its an authentic south indian recipe famously known as Thiruvaiyaaru Ashoka.. Better think before commenting whatever comes to you.. If you feel its similar..you can put it in a better way..This is not the way to comment..

      Reply
    37. Shreem

      October 26, 2015 at 12:41 am

      Thanks for the post...yummy

      Reply
    38. Thilak saravanan

      October 26, 2015 at 12:42 am

      So much support for you raks, good to see that so many fans for your cooking. More than comments for this halwa it's your fans support against single Comment. I am one among them, keep doing 🙂

      Reply
    39. gayathri radhakrishnan

      October 27, 2015 at 10:33 pm

      wow... Gonna try this recipe for diwali...

      Reply
    40. Babooty

      October 28, 2015 at 1:18 pm

      Hi,
      I am keralite and 10 years back visited Tanjavoor for a marriage function and had halwa named Asoka Halwa .My tamil friend told me its a moong dal based one. Raks, will try your recipe. Dont upset on silly comments. Awaiting more deewali recipes .Happy cooking

      Reply
    41. Rajee

      October 30, 2015 at 10:52 am

      This is my 3rd year since I started following your website. I was searching for Badam halwa for Diwali 2 yrs back and that is how I came across. I wish you a very Happy Diwali and many more years to go. Keep rocking. I will start my Diwali with Asoka Halwa.

      Reply
    42. Devi

      October 30, 2015 at 10:53 am

      @ critic commenter Ruhi saxena. Now you can see the author of this blog is honest and gutsy enough to publish your critic comment. What she has posted is the famous THIRUVAYARU ASOKA. Now if you have any decency apolgise to Ms. Raji.

      Reply
    43. Kiruthika Priya

      November 01, 2015 at 9:21 am

      Tried your halwa yesterday. It was excellent. But i did a mistake,since i was in a hurry i did my halwa in high flame so it became thick very soon.. even though it was gud..thank u raji 🙂

      Reply
    44. SWATI

      November 09, 2015 at 2:16 pm

      Hello raji, yummy yummy sweet. Instead of wheat flour shall I use cornflour ??

      Reply
    45. Raks anand

      November 09, 2015 at 2:22 pm

      You can try. But maida or wheat flour is recommended.

      Reply
    46. VIJAYASHREE

      November 11, 2015 at 9:57 am

      Hi Raks! Love your blog. Your sweets are just awesome. I've tried many of them. I was looking out for this recipe for a long time. I think it's better than the Moong dal halwa,which is ghee laden.
      The comment made by Ruhi is in bad taste.
      There are many north Indians living in south India, which in itself is proof of our (south Indian) tolerance and hospitality. When we are all becoming pan- Indian this comment about north and south is retrograde in nature.

      Reply
    47. Koushi

      November 26, 2015 at 4:26 am

      Awesome halwa. Can u pls tell me what kind of vessel is that. Is it ceramic? It comes so well just like nonstick

      Reply
    48. Brinda

      January 12, 2016 at 3:12 am

      hi Raks , pics are so tempting ...love this halwa ...im from thanjavur . going to try now ..

      Reply
    49. Vinayaki Marudai

      November 04, 2016 at 10:35 am

      Hi raks ur dishes r really rocking...I learnt cooking from u only and I like the way u present every dish. Pics are so tempting to eat and i want to know wat kind of pan using for doing this halwa

      Reply
    50. vishaa shalini

      July 18, 2017 at 9:42 am

      Hi raks i did this halwa today...but it kept adding more sugar like 2.25cup of sugar approx n 12 tspn of ghee..it was thick finally after 30min...am i doin it right??? I didnt find any transparency as u said..help me plz

      Reply
    51. Raks anand

      July 18, 2017 at 10:01 am

      Are you sure you added only 1/2 cup moong dal? You can follow the same sugar measure, just keep adding ghee and stir, it will turn glossy

      Reply
    52. bhuvanamukund

      October 19, 2017 at 10:17 am

      Hi raks would like to do for Diwali...how many days it will stay good?

      Reply
    53. Booma v halpeth

      September 02, 2019 at 1:36 am

      Hi just clarify whether I can use pasiparrupu flour instead of paruppu

      Reply
      • Raks Anand

        September 02, 2019 at 8:29 am

        You can, but I am not sure about the process.

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Raks anand

    Hi, I'm Rajeswari Vijayanand! I am the person behind Rakskitchen, sharing recipes with pictures & videos.

    More about me →

    Popular

    • Eggless doughnut recipe, Basic donut, soft & light
    • Medhu vadai, Ulundu vadai recipe - With video
    • ABC juice recipe, Apple Beetroot Carrot juice
    • Microwave hot chocolate recipe | Single serving

    Pongal Recipes

    • Sakkarai pongal recipe (Sweet pongal recipe)
    • Vellai pongal recipe, Creamy rich paal pongal
    • Ezhukari kootu recipe,  For Thiruvathirai, Pongal
    • Ven pongal | Ghee pongal recipe | How to make ven pongal

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    Links

    • Privacy Policy
    • FAQ

    Also from Rakskitchen

    • Rakskitchen Tamil

    Contact

    • [email protected]

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2023 Rakskitchen