Lauki ka Halwa
لوکی کا حلوہ
Bottle gourd, *lauki* or *kaddu*, isn't the first vegetable most people think of for dessert, but this halwa wins everyone over. It's made exactly like gajar ka halwa: the gourd is grated, cooked in milk until all the liquid is gone, and then fried in ghee with sugar until glossy. The result is pale green, soft, fragrant with cardamom and lighter than carrot halwa. It's a good summer halwa, when carrots are out of season.
- ⏱ Total: 1 hr 15 min
- Prep: 15 min
- Cook: 1 hr
- Easy
- Serves 6
Method
Tap a step when it is done.
Peel the gourd, cut it lengthwise and scoop out any hard seeds. Grate it finely and gently squeeze out about half of its water.
Put the grated gourd, milk and cardamom in a heavy and bring to a boil.
Lower the heat to medium and cook for 35–45 minutes, stirring every few minutes and more often towards the end, until the milk has completely evaporated and the gourd is soft and translucent.
Add the ghee and fry for 5 minutes, then add the sugar. It will turn wet again; keep stirring for 10–12 minutes until it dries, turns glossy and the ghee separates at the edges.
Stir in the khoya and half the nuts and cook for 2–3 minutes more on low heat.
Serve warm or chilled, topped with the remaining almonds and pistachios.
Kitchen notes
Choose a young, light green gourd with soft skin and small seeds. Old gourds are fibrous and can taste bitter; taste a small piece raw and discard it if it's bitter.
Don't squeeze the gourd dry. A little of its own water helps it cook soft in the milk.
Add the sugar only after the milk is gone. Sugar added earlier makes the gourd release more water and takes longer to dry.
A vegetable halwa for summer
Pakistani cooks have long turned vegetables into halwa: carrots in winter, and in summer, bottle gourd. Lauki is mild, almost neutral, and soaks up the flavour of milk, ghee and cardamom completely, so no one would guess there’s a vegetable in it.
The method
It follows the classic vegetable halwa steps:
- Cook the gourd in milk until every drop of milk has evaporated. This takes patience but builds the creamy flavour, like a quick .
- Fry in ghee. Once dry, the halwa is fried in ghee for a few minutes, which gives it richness and gloss.
- Add sugar and dry it again. Sugar melts and makes everything wet once more; keep stirring until the halwa pulls together and the ghee separates.
The khoya at the end is optional but makes the halwa richer and more like what you’d buy from a sweet shop.
Serving
Serve warm in winter or chilled in summer, topped with almonds and pistachios. It’s a good dessert for Eid and dawats alongside kheer or gulab jamun.
Questions people ask
Can I use condensed milk?
Yes. Replace the sugar and khoya with about ¾ cup of condensed milk, added after the milk has reduced. It's faster and richer.
Why is my halwa watery?
The milk wasn't fully reduced before the sugar went in. Keep cooking and stirring until it dries and the ghee shows.
How long does it keep?
Four to five days in the fridge. Warm it with a spoon of milk.
Nutrition (estimate, per serving)
- Calories
- 280
- Protein
- 7 g
- Fat
- 14 g
- Carbs
- 32 g
