Kesar Peda (Indian Milk Dessert)
Kesar Peda (Indian Milk Dessert)
kesar peda is a classic dessert made for festive occasions. They are delicious sweet snack and made with very few ingredients, milk and sugar, flavored with cardamom and saffron. This is a easy recipe to make.
Ingredients
- 2 cups dry milk powder
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed cardamom
- Few strands of saffron
- 1 tablespoon milk to soak the saffron
- 1 tablespoon sliced pistachios for garnishing
Instructions
- Soak the saffron strand in warm milk. Set aside.
- Heat the frying pan on low heat, I like to use heavy bottom nonstick pan. Add cream and milk powder. Mix it well. Mix will start getting soft consistency of thick batter as it gets warm.
- Cook mixture on low medium heat stirring continuously until mixture becomes lumpy like soft dough. This should take about 12-15 minutes. Add saffron and cardamom mix it well and cook for 2-3 more minutes until it is consistency of soft dough. Turn off the heat. Now this is known as khoya.
- Transfer the khoya into a bowl and let it cool off until khoya becomes lukewarm.
- Add the sugar into the khoya and knead it for about a minute until everything blends together and become soft dough. Note: if you mix the sugar while khoya is hot that will make khoya soft and will not able to make peda.
- Divide the mix into 20 equal parts or more, less depends the size you prefer. Make them into ball rolling between your palms. Make a dent into the peda.
- Garnish them with pistachios.
- Finish peda consistency should be little grainy.
Notes
Notes
- If peda mix is too dry add lukewarm cream as needed.
- If peda mix is too soft add little almond powder, now you can call this peda kesar almond peda. Do not try to cook again thinking it will become thick, peda will become chewy.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
60 Responses
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Absolutely delicious! thank you for this recipe
These look delicious! Looking forward to making it. Love your recipes and videos.
Enjoy!
Hello Manjula aunty
I have tried many of your receipies in the past and they have been a great hit in my family kind of my signature dishes now!!! So thank you very much. I made theses pedas for Ganapati for past 2 years n everyone loved them. So grateful to you. Thank you again.
Varsha, Thank you, I appreciate
Can you use single cream for this recipe
Dear Manjula Aunty,
I am so grateful for your recipes! Now I am master chef among my friends 😉
For all peda recipes calling for milk powder, is Non-fat milk powder ok to use? I do not find any other type of milk powder in the grocery stores here.
I am in Connecticut.
Thank you.
Komal, non fat milk powder works
Dear Aunty Manjula
Thank you for all your time and effort you put in to share youryummy recipes with us. Whatever I’ve tried was enjoyed by my family. Thank you and blessings to you.
Love Nerisha
Nerisha, thank you
Hi Manjula
Hope all is well. Iam planning on making the peda for Diwali, can you please let me know how to store and how long it will last.
P.S. really looking forward to making this and sharing.
Shikha, you can refrigerate this peda for about 2 months and outside it should stay good for a week.
Thank you very much! These are the best pedas I have made
Hello Manjula Aunty,
We moved to US within few months of my marriage and since then whenever I try to make a new dish your website is the very first I refer to and follow. Thank you for sharing recipes so easy to follow!!
Mili, Thank you, you made me very happy
HI Manjula
I love your recipe but I’m not sure what you mean by heavy whipping cream do you mean single cream that you whip up yourself?
From Hina leicester
Hina, just use heavy cream
Thank you for the recipe. To make pedas for the rainbow theme party , can I add different food color in it?
Nidhi, that should work beautifully
Hi Manjula,
I’ve just tried to make this but my khoya turned out like scrambled eggs instead of the smooth sponge like consistency you show in your video. What have i done wrong?
Alpa, you can not use fat free milk for this recipe or you squeeze the water too much.
After reading this blog of Kesar Peda recipe, now i am confused what to prepare for Diwali.
But really lots of thanks, as this blog gives all the necessary information about the recipe and the photography is so awesome that everybody desires for the dish
Khusi Talwar, thank you
Thanks Manjulaji. Which brand of milk powder do you us ? In the USA ? I would like to use exact same ingredients
Pari, I am forgetting the brand but I buy from walmart
I want to make n eat all your sweets. Here we hardly know the recipes to make sweets. We always buy n eat. So I will try to make it.
Hello Manjula,
I love watching your recipe videos. You make even the most complicated dishes so simple … and they are great tasting too. Now, regarding this recipe of Kesar Peda, can desi ghee be used instead of heavy cream, and will the pedas turn out good?
Vera, First let me say thank you, I love to hear these great compliments, make me happy. now using the ghee, ghee is not the replacement for heavy cream you can use just the cream that will work or take the plain milk and reduce to make it like a cream.
You’re a household name in my home, thanks for sharing your knowledge, I have made several of your dishes and it came out perfect. Not sure if you can share this recipe it is call Habsi Halwa, thanks. You are our cooking guru .
Pam Coomar, Thank you, I appreciate your comments. I will try to do the recipe for Habsi halwa.
Hello manjula aunty….
Can i use milk instead of milk powder??
Sumbul, yes you can you will have to cook much longer to dry the milk, milk powder makes it easy.
Dear Manjula,
Thank you for all your efforts to provide wonderful recipes! I was wondering if Mawa powder can be used in place of non-fat milk powder in this recipe?
Will. so far I did not have good result with mawa powder
Hello,
What kind of heavy cream is used, refrigerated or canned? Can carnation milk be used instead of cream?
Tks. Marie
I just discovered this site in my search for a recipe for something I tried in an “indian tea house” I visited in Sofia (Bulgaria).
There they have something they call “white balls”, which appears to be a white version of Kesar Peda. It looks similar in size and texture. It tastes a bit like it has vanilla in it instead of cardamom, and it has no saffron either. Also they use walnuts.
I just want to ask, does it sound like a different version of Kesar Peda to you, or do you think it’s based on something else?
Andreas, sound delicious, every one has own recipes< I am not sure
Hello Mrs. Manjula
I have a question, I don’t like the taste of Cardemom 🙁 (I’m so sory), Can I substitute this with any other flavor/spice…..Vanilla, Rosewater, Chocolate etc.
I love your recipes and they are so easy to make.
Best regards,
Marianella
Marianella, try rose water
Hello Manjula,
Your are really a great cook(chef). My mum told me to follow you. She also made heaps of dishes from your you tube channel. Your measurement of spices and best part of salt is great otherwise all I saw was salt to taste but someone who is new to cooking have no idea about it, I loved it( I can’t guess). There was a question in my mind that you use cup as measurement unit in your recipe. Could you please tell me that do you use the universal cup size(8 oz./250 ml) for your measurement. I am just asking out of curiosity.
Thanks.
Priyanka
Priyanka, Thank you for a nice compliment. I use standard measuring cup and spoons for measurement.
hello manjula aunty……am such a big fan of yours……as your all the recipes are delicious and without onion garlic ……and i also dont use onion garlic in my food ……your website is very useful to learn cooking without onion garlic ……thnank you so much for being there……
Neetu, Thank you I am happy if I am a help.
Manjula aunty, am a great fan of yours. Ur website is my most frequently visited site. All ur recipes are without onion and garlic which suits my taste. Thanks for the wonderful recipes.
Hello aunty can we use fresh cream instead of heavy cream
Shari, fresh cream will work
Hi aunty, Can we use cream which is not packaged? i.e. Cream that we get from full fat milk.. Its not pouring consistency though..
Hi Mam, Have you used non fat milk powder or full fat milk powder in this recipe?
SujanyaRancho, I have used non fat milk powder
Mam, should we add powdered sugar ??
Usha, I like to use fine sugar, that also gives little grainy texture to peda, but you can use powder sugar also
It looks good. I am going to try this one.
Thank you for the recipe
Can you use skimmed milk powder instead?
Mee, that will work
hello aunty,
can we replace milk powder with malted milk?
thanks,
Jyoti
Jyoti, I don’t know much about malted milk.
hello aunty,
Can we use “heavy whipping cream” instead of heavy cream,..
Parul, yes
I am a great fan of urs and before making anything new I make sure ti go thru ur recepies to get exact proportions thet come out delicious, tasty.
Nikita, Thank you