Aval Laddu (Poha Ladoo)

Aval Laddu also known as poha ladoo are festive sweet balls made with flattened rice, jaggery and ghee. These are nutritious, delicious & make a great guilt-free snack. Poha is flattened rice and a staple in Indian cuisine. It is used to make various sweet and savory dishes. Poha is known as Aval in Tamil and atukulu in Telugu. So these are also known as Aval ladoo in Tamil and Atukula Ladoo in Telugu.

Poha ladoo are a popular sweet made during Krishna Jayanti, the Hindu God. It is said that Lord Krishna loved poha. So dishes made with it are prepared and offered to him especially on his birthday which is celebrated as Krishna Jayanthi.

Most South Indian homes make Sweet Poha, Aval Payasam, Butter Murukku & Thattai along with aval laddu. You can also offer these during the puja and share with your friends & relatives. These Aval laddu are quick to make and turn out delicious. Many years ago, I made this recipe for a health magazine & thought of sharing it here as well. I have been making this for many years now and these also go well in the kids’ school box.

To make these poha ladoo, you can use any kind of poha – thick, thin, white, red, all go well. But the taste of the red poha ladoo is different. They have a nuttier aroma and go well in these ladoos. For the binding I used ghee, but milk can also be used. Jaggery and ghee go well rather than jaggery and milk. If making aval ladoo using sugar, you may use milk

Just to keep them simple I have made these with only a few ingredients. You can also use roasted peanuts, fried gram, fresh coconut or almonds for variation.

More Ladoo Recipes
Coconut ladoo (traditional way)
Rava ladoo
Besan ladoo
Sesame ladoo
Condensed milk coconut ladoo

Photo Guide

How to make Aval Laddu (Stepwise Photos)

Preparation

1. Heat a heavy bottom pan and dry roast 1 cup aval / poha until they turn crunchy.

2. Add half cup desiccated coconut and Switch off the stove. Take care not to burn. If using fresh coconut, transfer aval to a plate first and then saute coconut in little ghee until you begin to smell good.

3. Cool and then powder it. If using whole cardamom, you can add them to poha and powder. A fine poha powder binds well, while making balls. If the powder is coarse ladoo breaks quickly.

4. Add ¾ cup jaggery and cardamom powder if not added earlier. Please note that store bought powdered jaggery is different from ball jaggery. So you may need more or less powdered jaggery. You may start with only half cup. If using sugar, powder the sugar first and then add the poha.

5. Blend well and transfer to a mixing bowl.

Make Poha Ladoo

6. Heat ¼ cup ghee and fry nuts and raisins. Add the ghee to the powdered poha. Take small portions and press down with your fingers to form balls. If your balls don’t bind, heat more ghee and add. If you want to use milk, just warm up and use it. Take small portions and roll them to balls. If using milk use up right away or at least on same day.

Poha ladoo keep good for 7 to 10 days at room temperature, if made using ghee.

Expert Tips

1. Aval is a very dry ingredient and is hard to bind the mixture into ladoos. So do not skimp on the ghee as it helps the mixture to bind well.
2. Press the prepared laddu mixture very well in your palm to bind it well. If the mixture breaks and falls it means it needs more binding ingredient like ghee or milk.
3. I have used ghee to bind the ladoos which give a very good aroma. You can alternately use milk but the taste will be totally different as the poha absorbs milk and turns soft.
4. Choose good quality jaggery that is free of debris or stones. Alternately you can also use palm jaggery or sugar.
5. If your jaggery is not clean then dissolve it in 3 to 4 tbsps water. Filter and then boil until the syrup thickens. Then use this as mentioned below. But the taste of aval ladoo made this way is different.
6. You can skip the desiccated coconut or replace it with fresh grated coconut. If using fresh coconut fry it well. Fresh coconut will reduce the shelf life so refrigerate them and use.

Aval ladoo make a good and healthy snack for kids and can also be packed in their school box.

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