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Boondi Laddu: Recipe and Tips

Also known as boondi ladoo, laddoo, bundi laddu

Soft, golden boondi laddus, plus every mistake I made along the way and how you can avoid them.

Did you know? The world's largest laddu weighed 29,465 kg, about as much as 20 cars, and it was a boondi laddu, just like this one! (Guinness World Records, 2016) Read my story →
VegetarianVegIndian sweetDiwaliMakes 30 laddus▶ Subscribe on YouTube
Tick items off as you go30 laddus

Boondi batter

  • 2 cupsbesan (chickpea flour), sifted
  • 2¼ cupswater (a little over 2 cups; adjust to dosa-batter consistency)
  • for fryingoil

Sugar syrup

  • 2 cupssugar
  • ¾ cupwater

Flavour & binding

  • a handfulcashews, broken into small pieces
  • a handfulraisins
  • to tastecardamom & cloves
  • 1 tspsugar (for grinding the spices)
  • a littleghee (if the laddus won't hold shape)
  1. 1
    Make the batter. Sift 2 cups of besan to remove lumps. Gradually add a little over 2 cups of water, mixing until smooth and lump-free. It should be like dosa batter: not too thick, not too watery.
  2. 2
    Measure the syrup. Put 2 cups of sugar (equal to the flour) and ¾ cup of water in a pan. Keep it aside for now; it is best cooked after the boondis (see Hacks).
  3. 3
    Heat the oil and prep the nuts. While the oil heats, break the cashews into small pieces so you get a little crunch in every bite.
  4. 4
    Make the spice powder. Grind cardamom and cloves with 1 tsp of sugar. The sugar helps them grind into a fine, even powder.
  5. 5
    Set up a plate of water. You will use it to wipe the underside of the perforated ladle before every batch.
  6. 6
    Test the oil. Drop a tiny bit of batter into the oil. If it floats up immediately, the oil is ready. Check before every batch.
  7. 7
    Fry the boondis. Pour batter onto the perforated ladle over the oil so droplets fall through. Take them out as soon as they are cooked: soft and yellow, not crispy or brown. Wipe the ladle and repeat until the batter is used up.
  8. 8
    Add the flavourings. Transfer the boondis to a large pot. Add the cashews and raisins, sift in the spice powder, and mix well.
  9. 9
    Cook the syrup to one-string. Heat the syrup and watch closely, as it bubbles up quickly. Press a drop between thumb and finger and pull apart: a single thin thread means it is ready.
  10. 10
    Combine. Take the syrup off the heat, add all the boondis and mix really well.
  11. 11
    Shape the laddus. Once it is cool enough to handle, press into balls while still warm. If they won't hold, see the fixes in Hacks.

Mistakes I made, and how to avoid them

Clumpy boondis? The oil wasn't hot enough. Test with a drop of batter before every batch: it should float up straight away.
Boondis losing their round shape? Batter builds up around the ladle holes. Dip the ladle in a plate of water and wipe the underside before each use.
Brown, crispy boondis? They were fried too long. Pull them out while soft and yellow. Crispy ones aren't wasted: use them for mixture or other snacks.
Syrup cooking too fast? Don't make it while frying. Make it after the boondis are done. If making both together, add each batch of boondis straight into the ready syrup and stir gently. Too thick? Add a little water and reheat.
Laddus won't hold shape? First, grind a small portion of boondis into a powder and mix it back in as a binder. If that's not enough, add a little ghee. Mom's tip that saved the batch!
Mixture too cold to shape? Warm it gently and shape while it's comfortably warm.

💡 Extra tips, not in the video Bonus tips

Grease your palms with a little ghee before shaping, so the mixture doesn't stick to your hands.
A few drops of lemon juice in the syrup help stop the sugar crystallising if it sits for a while.
Storage: keep in an airtight container at room temperature and eat within about a week.
The story behind the dish

The one sweet all of India shares

Most food in India is regional. Something everyone loves in the north may hardly be known in the south. But if there is one food that's popular in the north, south, east and west, it must be the laddu :)

Ask any Indian and they'll have a happy memory with a laddu in it, because laddus are handed out at every celebration. New job? Here's a laddu. A baby born in the family? Laddu. Diwali? Laddu, of course :)

And there are so many kinds of laddus too.

One thing I still can't work out is the right spelling. Is it ladoo, laddu or laddoo? Whichever it is, we can all agree that it's impossible to take just one and not reach for the next, especially when they're made at home like in this video. (But what a struggle that was! Watch the video and see for yourself.)

Curry++ · 6 November 2026

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From the hacks library · added 6 Nov

Make your own chai masala

Toast whole spices for 5 minutes, blend to a powder, and add a pinch whenever you make tea. It's homemade masala chai in seconds. From Masala Chai →

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