You can now make badam halwa, a rich almond pudding, in minutes! Use store-bought almond flour and an Instant Pot to easily and quickly make this delicious dessert.
What is Badam Halwa?
Badam halwa is a rich halwa made with blanched almond flour, ghee, sugar, and spices. I’m sure you’ve figured it out by now, but if not, the word badam means almond.
This is a dessert that traditionally takes a loooong time to make – it’s mostly reserved for special occasions. But with this shortcut recipe, you can enjoy almond halwa any time you want.
Back in the day, in order to make an Indian dessert with almonds, my mom would first soak the nuts in a bowl of water overnight and then in the morning, painstakingly peel the skin off of them – one by one.
Sometimes I’d join her, but I’d end up eating all of the almonds I’d peel as well as some of the one’s mom peeled. I wasn’t very helpful, lol.
Thankfully these days, you can find blanched almond flour at nearly every grocery store. I buy it in bulk from Costco. Most of the time I don’t even go to the store anymore. I get groceries delivered right to my door. To go from peeling almonds one at a time to this… in my lifetime, well, that feels pretty incredible.
Almond flour alone is a huge shortcut when it comes to making badam halwa, but when you combine that with the capabilities of an instant pot, well, I’m not sure this dessert can get any easier to make.
“This came out Excellent! I have been making it the ‘long’ traditional way for years and am amazed how close this comes to the taste of the original with a fraction of the effort. Kudos Ashley for doing all the legwork and providing a fail safe awesome recipe! Thank you!”
Suguna V.
Shop
“Made this today. Such an easy recipe and so delicious. I had never made sugar syrup in instant pot before. This recipe takes away all the guesswork. I roasted almond flour on stovetop to add to the tasks that could be done in parallel because I was short on time. I was able to make it within 20 mins during my short lunch break.”
Komal
Turmeric in Halwa?
I’m using turmeric in my recipe for badam halwa.
You know what I find crazy? That so many stores/people still use yellow food coloring in badam halwa. WHY? We have turmeric!
It’s natural and stains everything yellow, mainly the things we don’t want to stain, at least in my house haha – clothes, carpets, countertops, fingernails.
The minimal amount of turmeric here is not going to make a difference in flavor, but it will make the halwa look more yellow. Like a little bowl of sunshine.
“Thank you for this recipe, Ashley! Absolutely foolproof! The halwa was super delicious! I’m making Diwali sweets and this was one of the easiest ones to check off the list 🙂 Love the addition of turmeric! I cut down a bit on the sugar (personal preference). Still delicious!”
Dalia
Here’s How to Make Badam Halwa:
Figuring out this recipe was humbling. You’d think that if I could figure out how to make Kaju Katli, Kalakand, and Besan Burfi in an Instant Pot, this halwa would be a piece of cake? But no. It took me so long to get the ratio of almond flour to sugar to ghee just right. While this recipe will work even if you adjust the ingredients a bit, the ratios I have listed in the recipe card below make for the best badam halwa.
Okay, here’s how we’re going to make it!
First, toast the almond flour. Then set it aside and make sugar syrup by combining sugar, water, turmeric, and saffron. Pressure cook.
Remove the lid and add ghee, cardamom, and the toasted almond flour you had set aside earlier. Mix it all up!
Enjoy it as is – or, let it cool, then pour the halwa into a small steel bowl, then flip it out onto a small plate. Garnish with sliced almonds, chopped green pistachios, and saffron.
Want More Almond Flour Recipes?
- Instant Pot Badam Katli (Almond Fudge)
- Healthy Pinni/Ladoo
- Murgh Badami (Almond Chicken Curry)
- Almond Flour “Naan” (a gluten-free naan)
- Almond Flour Gulab Jamun
Instant Pot Badam Halwa (Almond Flour Pudding)
Instant Pot Badam Halwa (Almond Flour Pudding)
Ingredients
- 2 cups almond flour approx. 185 grams
- ½ cup water 4 ounces
- ½ cup sugar approx. 100 g
- Big pinch of saffron plus extra for garnish
- ⅛ teaspoon turmeric helps with color
Add later:
- ½ cup ghee 4 ounces, room temp
- ¼ teaspoon cardamom powder
- sliced almonds, raw green pistachios, and saffron garnish
Instructions
- Press sauté and adjust the heat to the highest setting. Once the pot is hot (takes about 2 minutes – make sure to wait!), add the almond flour and dry roast for about 5-6 minutes or until the flour looks light gold (don't let it get brown) and no longer smells raw. Stir occasionally at first and more frequently as time goes on, making sure to break apart any lumps as you stir.
- Turn off the pot, remove the flour, and put it onto a plate. Set this aside for now.
- Wipe down the pot (with a paper towel) then in a clean and dry pot, add water, sugar, saffron, and turmeric to the pot and mix well.
- Secure the lid, close the pressure valve, and cook for 5 minutes at high pressure.
- Quick-release and remove the lid (making sure not to drop the condensation on the lid back inside).
- Press the sauté button, add the ghee, toasted almond flour, and cardamom and stir continuously for about 2 minutes to thicken and remove any remaining moisture (the halwa will bubble a bit as you stir).
- Remove the steel liner from the Instant Pot so that the halwa doesn’t burn. Let the halwa cool down for 15 minutes.
- Grease a small steel bowl with ghee, place the cooled halwa in the bowl, then flip it out onto a small plate. Garnish with sliced almonds, chopped green pistachios and saffron.
Kumud Rangroo says
Hi Ashley. Badam Halwa has become my family’s favourite. So easy to make. My question is do I double/triple the recipe if I want to cook for 12-15 persons ?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Kumud, I haven’t tried doubling this recipe – I’m not sure how it’ll go. If you experiment, please let me know!
Rekha Velani says
Recipe worked out perfectly. Family really enjoyed this halwa. Will definitely make it again.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
I’m so glad to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how much you like this recipe 🙂
Kumud Rangroo says
Hi Ashley.
I did try doubling this recipe but made adjustment in the sugar. Reduced it to ¾ cup so it wasn’t too sweet. Turned out perfect !
Sona says
Worked out perfect, roasted the almond flour on stovetop to save time, cooks super fast! And delicious! Not surprising if you consider the ingredients – almond flour, ghee, sugar, whats not to love:)). Annd .. the texture was marvellous – you made it super easy, thanks!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Sona, I’m so glad to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how the halwa turned out for you 🙂
Sucharita Iyer says
Hi Ashley, can substitute unsalted butter (Keri gold) for the ghee? If yes, is it a 1:1 substitution?
Thanks!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Sucharita, I think butter will work just fine here 🙂 And yes, I’d do 1:1.
Megha says
Hi Ashley,
So glad I found this recipe. My son is gluten free and has never had halwa as we make it from suji. If I wanted to swap honey for sugar, would you say 1/2 cup honey would do it or should I reduce the amount?
Thank you
Megha
Sucharita Iyer says
Ashley, can I use unsalted butter instead of ghee? And if yes, what quantity of butter?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Sucharita, I’m sure butter will work just fine – you just won’t have quite the same flavor that ghee adds but again, I’m sure it’ll still be good. I’d use the same amount of butter.
kumud Rangroo says
Hi Ashley. Lovely recipe and everyone loved it.
Can you double the recipe if more quantity is required for a bigger group ?
Many thanks.
Kumud
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Kumud, that’s so great to hear! I haven’t tried doubling this, and while I typically wouldn’t suggest doubling a recipe that calls for sugar syrup – I think this one may work. Let me know if you try!
Mohita says
Hi Ashley, I was craving badam halwa late last night and I decided to make this recipe….OMG! It was divine!!! And unbelievably quick!! Started at 11.45pm (yes, THAT late!!) and was done by 12.05!
Thank you for this website and for your recipes….I’m new to IP (just bought it over new years) and your recipes are making me fall in love with this gadget ❤ I have so far made chickpea curry, lobiya curry, chicken curry, goat curry….and LOVED them all! Will be trying moong dal halwa next 😊
Mohita says
Hi Ashley, I was badam halwa late last night and I decided to make this recipe….OMG! It was divine!!! And unbelievably quick!! Started at 11.45pm (yes, THAT late!!) and was done by 12.05!
Thank you for this website and for your recipes….I’m new to IP (just bought it over new years) and your recipes are making me fall in love with this gadget ❤ I have so far made chickpea curry, lobiya curry, chicken curry, goat curry….and LOVED them all! Will be trying moong dal halwa next 😊
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Mohita, wow that’s so great to hear! I’m glad you like my website and my recipes – thanks for letting me know about all of the recipes you’ve tried!! 🙂
Melissa says
Very simple to make, and the result was rich and delicious.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Melissa, glad you liked it! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
Suguna Vaidyanath says
This came out Excellent! I have been making it the ‘long’ traditional way for years and am amazed how close this comes to the taste of the original with a fraction of the effort. Kudos Ashley for doing all the legwork and providing a fail safe awesome recipe! Thank you!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Suguna, that’s so great to hear! Thank you for letting me know how this recipe turned out for you 🙂
Leena says
Thank you for this recipe, Ashley! Absolutely foolproof! Made it for Diwali & everyone loved it.
Was wondering if it could be made with monkfruit sweetener?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Leena, that’s awesome – so glad everyone loved it! I haven’t tried this with monkfruit – I’m not very familiar with it – hopefully another reader can chime in 🙂
Komal says
Made this today. Such an easy recipe and so delicious. I had never made sugar syrup in instant pot before. This recipe takes away all the guesswork. I roasted almond flour on stovetop to add to the tasks that could be done in parallel because I was short on time. I was able to make it within 20 mins during my short lunch break.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Komal, that’s awesome – so happy to hear that! Thank you for letting me know how the halwa turned out for you 🙂
Dalia says
Thank you for this recipe, Ashley! Absolutely foolproof!
The halwa was super delicious! I’m making Diwali sweets and this was one of the easiest ones to check off the list 🙂 Love the addition of turmeric! I cut down a bit on the sugar (personal preference). Still delicious!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Thank you, Dalia! I’m so happy to hear that you made it and liked it 🙂 Happy Diwali to you and yours!
Abbe Kemack says
Greetings Ashley,
It is fine to use coconut oil in place of the ghee, correct?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Abbe, I haven’t tried this one with coconut oil but think it’ll be fine – if you try, please let me/us know how it goes 🙂