21 Sweet Dishes In India One Must Try

Indians have a love for food which is rich in flavours and taste. Indians take their food very seriously and no Indian festival, gathering or occasion is complete without a sweet dish. Whether it is a marriage or a birthday party or a normal family dinner, no Indian meal is complete without a sweet dish. As the saying goes, “Khane ke bad Kuch Meetha toh hona he Chahiye” is an apt representation of Indian food habits. If you are having a sweet tooth, then India should be on your priority list to explore the variety and richness of sweet dishes which India has to offer from its diverse corners.

Here is a list of 21 sweet dishes from India which everyone must taste to satiate their sweet tooth.

1. Gulab Jamun

Gulab Jamoon are soft delicious berry sized balls made of milk solids, flour and a leavening agent. These are dipped in rose flavoured sugar syrup and enjoyed.

2. Gajar Ka Halwa

Gajar ka Halwa is an Indian pudding made with fresh carrots, milk, sugar, ghee and nuts. It is made by simmering grated carrots in full fat milk and then sweetened with sugar.

3. Mysore Pak

Mysore Pak is a famous Indian sweet from Southern India. It is made up of generous amounts of ghee, sugar, gram flour and often cardamom. The texture of this sweet is similar to a buttery and dense cookie.

4. Malpua

Malpua is a traditional Indian sweet from Rajasthan and Orissa. The pancakes are made using flour and soaked in sugar syrup. They are best served with a topping of creamy rabdi.

5. Rasmalai

Rasmalai is a Bengali delicacy which is very popular among Indian sweet lovers. Ras translates to juice and Malai means cream. Flat shaped balls made of chenna are dipped into condensed milk and garnished with saffron and nuts.

6. Kaju Katli

Kaju Katli or Kaju Barfi is a fudge made up of cashew and milk solids. It is one of the most popular Indian sweets and probably the most gifted one during festivals.

7. Ghevar

Ghevar is the traditional Indian sweet popular in the state of Rajastan and it marks the festivity of Teej and Rakshabandhan and so its not available throughout the year. Ghevar is a disc-shaped sweet cake made with maida and soaked in sugar syrup in addition to a topping of pistachios.

8. Rasgulla

The most famous Indian sweet dish, although the place of its origin is still a debatable topic among Bengali and Odia folks. It is made up of ball shaped dumplings of Chenna and soaked in light sugar syrup.

9. Soan Papdi

A popular Indian dessert, it is made up of sugar, gram flour, ghee, flour, milk and cardamom. It is usually cube shaped or served as flakes and has a crisp and flaky texture.

10. Misthi Doi

Misthi Doi is a classic Bengali sweet made with milk, curd culture and jaggery or sugar. The jaggery used to make Misthi Doi is palm jaggery. It differs from plain yoghurt because of this technique preparation.

11. Gujiya

A gujiya is a sweet deep-fried dumpling made with suji or maida and stuffed with a mixture of sweetened khoya and dried fruits. The other variants can have coconut filling.

12. Modak

It is a popular Indian sweet and marks the festivity of Ganapati Puja. The sweet filling on the inside of the modak consists of freshed grated coconut and jaggery while the outer soft shell is made from rice flour or wheat flour mixed with maida flour.

13. Shrikhand

Shrikhand is a sweet dish made using hung curd and powdered sugar. It is basically an assortment of a silky smooth curd, a hint of flavouring and crunch of dry fruits.

14. Rabri

Rabri is a sweet condensed-milk dish, originating from the Indian subcontinent, made by boiling the milk on low heat for a long time until it becomes dense and changes its color to off-white or pale yellow. Spices and nuts are added to give it flavour.

15. Sandesh

A Bengali meal is incomplete without the cute little sweet sandesh. It is prepared by kneading three basic ingredients, sugar, chenna and cardamom powder.

16. Phirni

Phirni is a pudding, made by boiling milk and sugar with one of the following; rice, broken wheat, tapioca, vermicelli or sweet corn and is flavoured with cardamom, raisins, saffron, cashews, pistachios, almonds or other dry fruits and nuts.

17. Balushahi

Balushahi is made up of maida flour and are deep fried in clarified butter and then dipped in sugar syrup. Balushahi is similar to glazed doughnut in terms of ingredients but differs in texture and taste.

18.Jalebi

Jalebi also known as zulbia and zalabia is an Indian sweet made up of deep-frying maida flour batter in pretzel or circular shapes, which are then soaked in sugar syrup.

19. Mohan Thaal

Mohan Thaal is a popular indian sweet and is prepared as an offering to Lord Krishna. It is made up of gram flour, sugar, dryfruits, khoa or milk powder.

20. Kulfi

Kulfi is a traditional Indian ice-cream which is basically a frozen dairy dessert and is made up of boiled milk, sugar, saffron, pista and cardamom. It is available in many flavours.

21. Peda

A popular sweet dish originating in Mathura is made into thick, semi-soft pieces and its main ingredients are khoa, sugar and traditional flavourings including cardamom seeds, pistachio nuts and saffron.