Chocolate burfi is milky, chocolatey (of course), and spiced with cardamom. An Indian dessert with flavor that’s both sophisticated and classic, making it a hit with adults and kids too! The best part? This recipe is quick and easy to make and calls for only a handful of ingredients.
Chocolate Burfi
It’s the festive season, and Diwali is right around the corner! I recently shared a recipe for Mango Kalakand, and now I’m sharing a recipe that I’ve been working on for quite a few Diwali seasons. It was never quite right, until now. Introducing… the easiest and, dare I say, best… Chocolate Burfi!
This Indian chocolate fudge tastes nothing like… well, actual Fudge (for which I also have an excellent recipe). Fudge lovers please don’t come after me when I tell you I prefer chocolate burfi to fudge. I find traditional fudge to be a bit one-note whereas chocolate burfi has more depth in flavor: it’s chocolatey, milky, and has a hint of cardamom. It’s also a completely different texture than fudge – this chocolate burfi is more crumbly and dry in texture (as it should be) rather than moist and soft.
This is a twist on the more traditional chocolate burfi, which is typically made up of two layers – a white milky layer and then a chocolate layer on top. Rather than fussing around with layers – I’ve made an entirely chocolate burfi, not only is it easier to make but there’s more chocolatey flavor, which is really what you want when you’re eating choco burfi. You still get that milky flavor too – thanks to the milk powder.
Chocolate Burfi Ingredients:
- Dry Milk Powder
- Cocoa Powder
- Sugar
- Ghee: room temp, solid or liquid is fine
- Cardamom: freshly ground!
- Mini Chocolate Chips: or topping of choice.
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Is this a Traditional Recipe for Chocolate Burfi?
As I mentioned above, the chocolate burfi you’ll find in Mithai shops or Indian grocery stores is most likely going to be a two-toned layered burfi. The bottom is a milky white layer and the top is a chocolatey layer. You can technically make this if you want by first making my Milk Burfi recipe and then making this chocolate burfi and pouring it on top of the cooled milk burfi to set. I’ve tried this, and it’s good, but this simpler chocolate burfi is easier to make and has more of that desired chocolatey flavor. (If you decide to go with the two-toned option though then be sure to use a larger pan to set the burfi so it’s not too thick).
So yes, my preference is to keep things simple with a fully chocolate burfi. It’s more appealing to kids too. It’s a huge hit in our house – the most popular burfi and my little boys (excuse me, according to them “big boys”) can’t get enough. I once made this along with a batch of brownies for a get-together and my 3-year-old at the time only wanted the burfi. It has been a couple of years since I posted this recipe and it’s still their favorite dessert. I make it every year around Diwali and they take it to school to share with their friends. All the kiddos love it.
What Can I Add to Chocolate Burfi?
I love using mini chocolate chips! But I bet mini m&ms would be really cute too. I might try that for Christmas. Nuts are also a popular choice when it comes to burfi. Feel free to mix in your choice of toppings into the burfi batter if you’d like!
- Chocolate Chips
- M&Ms
- Nuts! Pistachios, Hazelnuts, Walnuts, Sliced Almonds
How Do I Store and Eat Chocolate Burfi?
I store the chocolate burfi in an air-tight container on the counter for a week. But you can store it in the fridge too. If I want to store it for a while, then I’ll put it in the freezer. Just be sure to bring it to room temp before eating.
Enjoy this burfi! Let me know what you think of it! 🙂
More Burfi Recipes:
Ingredients
- 200 grams sugar 1 cup
- 2.8 ounces water ⅓ cup
- 4 ounces ghee (room temp, solid or liquid is fine) ½ cup
- 200 grams dry milk powder 2 cups
- 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground cardamom*
- 2 tablespoons mini milk chocolate chips adjust amount to preference!
Instructions
- Add the sugar and water to the pot and mix well.
- Secure the lid, close the pressure valve, and cook for 11 minutes at high pressure.
- Quick-release pressure.
- Add ghee, dry milk powder, cocoa powder, and cardamom to the pot and quickly mix until well combined. You may want to wear a glove to hold onto the hot pot as you stir – you will need to be fast!
- Pour the mixture into a parchment-lined 8×8 pan/dish (you’ll need a spatula to scoop the mixture out of the pot and into the pan). Shake the pan gently so that the mixture spreads evenly.
- Sprinkle the mini chocolate chips and gently shake the pan again to help them stick.
- Let the chocolate burfi cool down on a wire rack for 25 to 30 minutes, then put it in the fridge for 2 hours to set.
- Remove the chilled fudge, and slice it into medium-sized squares (I slice 5 rows by 5 rows and cut off any uneven edges). Then place the individual pieces on a plate. If you eat the mithai at this point, it will be soft and fudgy (my husband prefers it this way!). In order for it to taste more like burfi, you’ll want to let the sliced pieces sit out at room temperature for 6 to 8 hours (or overnight) to dry out. This completely changes the texture of the burfi so that it tastes more like burfi and not like fudge.
- Once dry, you can store this burfi on the counter for up to one week. I prefer to eat this mithai at room temperature (so if you store in the fridge, make sure to bring it to room temp before eating).
Notes
- For Step 4, you can mix the dry ingredients together (dry milk powder, cocoa powder, cardamom) but make sure to keep the ghee in a separate bowl!
- When this burfi is cold, it’s glossy. You have to give it 6-8 hours to dry out – then it’ll change to a matte appearance and turn into dense burfi.
- Freshly ground cardamom powder is much more aromatic and flavorful than store-bought. I highly suggest grinding your own for this recipe (and any Indian dessert recipe). Grind your own by removing the green shell and the black seeds inside. I love this electric spice grinder if you’re looking for a recommendation.
- Important! All of the recipes on my blog are tested using a 6-quart instant pot – I have not tested this recipe in a different-sized pot. I don’t know if this recipe will work in a 3 quart or 8 quart as the surface area is different and will affect the temperature of the sugar syrup. I suggest only using a 6 quart for this recipe.
- Do Not Double Recipe: Please do not double/triple this recipe or any other Instant Pot dessert recipe on my blog. A dessert or anything made with sugar syrup can be finicky in an Instant Pot. I have only tested this recipe as written.
Mimi says
Hello! Excited to try this out. What brand of dry milk powder did you use? Is Nido ok?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Yes, Nido works! I’ve tried many different brands over the years as a lot of my Indian desserts call for milk powder and they have all worked for me.
Shan says
Hi Ashley,
Tried this chocolate Burfee today. O God my family didn’t even let it sit for 2 hrs and gobbled it. I have to make it again to see how it tastes after 8hrs like burfee. Thank you so much for the such perfect tasty sweet.
Sindhu says
Hi Ashley,
Minor correction in your recipe ingredient measurements – for Drymilk powder it shows 2 cups instead of 1 cup. I believe its a 1:1 proportion for sugar and dry milk powder? I made the recipe without realizing and the burfi came out too dry 😀
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi, the most accurate measurement would be if you weigh the milk powder in grams – this comes out to 2 cups for me. I would make sure you are not packing it into the cup too much. Also, did you use the listed amount of ghee?
Roopa Santosh says
Made this last year and this year. Lobe it. Added a pinch of salt to intensify the chocolate taste. Thanks for the easy recipe. Happy Diwali !
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Roopa, thanks for letting me know how much you like this 🙂
Binny says
Hi Ashley,
The recipe looks easy to follow and tempting.
I just want to ask if cooking time or anything will change if I reduce the quantity of everything to half as it will be more of a trial round.
Does it make a difference if the water and sugar is boiled in a pan on stove as other than that there isn’t a role of IP here, not sure if I am missing something here.
Many thanks.
Neil says
Urgent help please. I completely messed up. I didn’t have milk powder, so I used coconut milk powder. Not by itself a disaster. But I rand out of coconut milk powder, so I topped it up with normal milk. Which is silly, because it’s only just dawns on me as the whole thing is in the fridge to set, that it will never set– correct? Because the milk hasn’t been cooked beforehand. (The batter tastes amazing though). Anything I can do to make it set? Or to somehow rescue this?
Jay says
Chocolate barfi recipe worked out just great in 3 quarts instant pot. I put it in the freezer and take out a couple of pieces, let it air for about 10 minutes and it is ready to be consumed as barfi. Great recipe just like your kalakand and cheese cake recipes. Thanks.
Anu says
I had burn signal when I used the instant pot for the water and sugar combination
Aarti Gautam says
Hello Ashley, I tried this recipe it looks solidified in refrigerator but when I tried to cut it is not solidified, and at mixture! What can be improved? Thank you
Aarti Gautam says
* not solidified and wet with difficult to cut into pieces!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Aarti, how long have you let it set? Maybe try leaving it in there a bit longer – fridge temps can vary and sometimes opening the fridge often can interfere with cooling so hopefully that’s all it is. Let me know if it ends up setting!