Kashi Halwa Dumroot Halwa Ash Gourd Halwa

About Kashi Halwa

Ash gourd or white pumpkin also has other names by which it is referred to locally in different regions of South India. For instance, it is known as ‘kumbalanga’ in Malayalam and ‘poosanikai’ in Tamil languages. The other English names for this squash are Winter Gourd, White Melon, Ash Pumpkin, Wax Gourd, Winter Melon, Tallow Gourd, Winter Gourd. The name of the halwa is unique considering it has South Indian origins. Not only it is popular in the Udupi and Mangalore regions, it is also often served in the Tambrahm (Tamil Brahmin) weddings. In Tamil, this halwa is called Kasi Halwa. It could be that white pumpkin is also called ‘Kashiphal” in Hindi and hence the name of Kashi Halwa. Since the time I had shared other recipes related to the pumpkin family, I have been getting a lot of requests for the recipe of Ash Gourd Halwa as well. So, I finally made this White Pumpkin Halwa during the festival of Navratri, one of the years and shared it here on my blog for my readers. This is a super simple and easy to make halwa recipe and you really won’t believe that the dish is actually made with ash gourd. For my version of this halwa, I referred to Venkatesh Bhat’s Kashi Halwa recipe on the popular Indian OTT platform Hotstar. I have loosely adapted this recipe from there. Some definite changes that I have made in the recipe are:

I have reduced the quantity of sugar in my version.I have also not strained the grated white pumpkin.

Since the quantity of ghee and sugar added in the Ash Gourd Halwa already makes it quite rich and heavy. It is better to indulge in just a few spoons of the halwa and not too much. But if you reduce the sugar and ghee too much, then you can actually consume the halwa a bit more and relish its taste and texture as well. You can serve this Dumroot Halwa as an after-meal dessert. You can also prepare this Kashi Halwa as a naivedyam and offer it to deities. The same methodology can be referred to make a red pumpkin halwa as well. I have also posted a variation of yellow Pumpkin Halwa which uses less ghee and sugar.

How to make Kashi Halwa

Grate White Pumpkin and More Prep

1. Firstly, rinse and peel 315 grams ash gourd or white pumpkin. Remove the seeds and the white pith. Then, chop it in large pieces, so that you can easily grate.
2. Grate the ash gourd. Keep aside. You will need 1 cup grated ash gourd.
3. Heat 1 tablespoon ghee in a thick bottomed pan. Add 12 to 15 cashews. You can even add less cashews.
4. Sauté till the cashews turn light golden.
5. Then, add ½ tablespoons raisins. You can add less raisins or skip them.
6. Stirring often, sauté the raisins till they swell and puff up. Remove both the cashews and raisins with a slotted spoon. Keep aside.

Cook Ash Gourd

7. Lower the heat and in the same pan, add the grated ash gourd. 8. Mix very well. 9. Cover the pan with its lid and on low heat, cook the grated ash gourd till its raw aroma goes away. 10. Check after every 4 to 5 minutes. Usually ash gourd has enough water to cook in its own juices. But if the ash gourd starts sticking to the pan or getting lightly browned and the mixture looks dry, then add water. This will depend on the water content in the ash gourd. 11. I did add water as the mixture had become dry. I added ¼ cup water and cooked the ash gourd with the lid on the pan. 12. You have to cook the ash gourd till the raw aroma goes away. It took me around 15 minutes on low heat. Time will vary depending on the pan thickness, size, dimensions and the flame intensity. So, keep around 10 to 15 minutes time for cooking ash gourd.

Make Kashi Halwa

13. Next, add ½ cup (225 grams) sugar.
14. Mix the sugar very well with the ash gourd.
15. Then, add a generous pinch of saffron strands. Saffron strands are used to give a nice orange-yellow color to the halwa and also for the aroma. If you do not have saffron strands, skip it or use a natural orange color extract.
16. Mix saffron with the mixture.
17. Keep on stirring and sautéing the halwa mixture on low heat.
18. Once the mixture starts thickening, you will feel a bit heavy while stirring the mixture. The lightness that was there before, won’t be there.
19. The halwa mixture has to be stirred often and sautéed on low heat, till it thickens and starts to leave the sides of the pan. After adding sugar, it took 10 minutes for the halwa to come to the consistency as shown in the picture below. So, it may take between 6 to 10 minutes, depending on the type of pan, metal thickness, etc.
20. Once the halwa mixture thickens and starts separating from the pan, add 1 to 2 tablespoons ghee.
21. Mix the ghee very well.
22. After adding ghee, continue to sauté on low heat till the halwa starts separating from the pan. This will take 2 to 4 minutes.
23. Then, switch off the heat and add ¼ teaspoon green cardamom powder.
24. Also, add the fried cashews and raisins.
25. Mix very well.
26. Let the Kashi Halwa cool down a bit and then serve. Avoid serving hot as it is very hot due to the sugar syrup consistency. You can even serve Dumroot Halwa warm or at room temperature.

Expert Tips

Please be sure to rate the recipe in the recipe card or leave a comment below if you have made it. For more vegetarian inspirations, Sign Up for my emails or follow me on Instagram, Youtube, Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter. Suji ka Halwa Recipe (Sheera Recipe) Kesari Recipe | Rava Kesari Karachi Halwa | Bombay Halwa Badam Halwa Recipe | Rich South Indian Almond Halwa This Kashi Halwa recipe from the archives, originally published in October 2016 has been updated and republished on January 2023.

title: “Kashi Halwa Dumroot Halwa Ash Gourd Halwa” ShowToc: true date: “2024-10-09” author: “Michael Pratt”

About Kashi Halwa

Ash gourd or white pumpkin also has other names by which it is referred to locally in different regions of South India. For instance, it is known as ‘kumbalanga’ in Malayalam and ‘poosanikai’ in Tamil languages. The other English names for this squash are Winter Gourd, White Melon, Ash Pumpkin, Wax Gourd, Winter Melon, Tallow Gourd, Winter Gourd. The name of the halwa is unique considering it has South Indian origins. Not only it is popular in the Udupi and Mangalore regions, it is also often served in the Tambrahm (Tamil Brahmin) weddings. In Tamil, this halwa is called Kasi Halwa. It could be that white pumpkin is also called ‘Kashiphal” in Hindi and hence the name of Kashi Halwa. Since the time I had shared other recipes related to the pumpkin family, I have been getting a lot of requests for the recipe of Ash Gourd Halwa as well. So, I finally made this White Pumpkin Halwa during the festival of Navratri, one of the years and shared it here on my blog for my readers. This is a super simple and easy to make halwa recipe and you really won’t believe that the dish is actually made with ash gourd. For my version of this halwa, I referred to Venkatesh Bhat’s Kashi Halwa recipe on the popular Indian OTT platform Hotstar. I have loosely adapted this recipe from there. Some definite changes that I have made in the recipe are:

I have reduced the quantity of sugar in my version.I have also not strained the grated white pumpkin.

Since the quantity of ghee and sugar added in the Ash Gourd Halwa already makes it quite rich and heavy. It is better to indulge in just a few spoons of the halwa and not too much. But if you reduce the sugar and ghee too much, then you can actually consume the halwa a bit more and relish its taste and texture as well. You can serve this Dumroot Halwa as an after-meal dessert. You can also prepare this Kashi Halwa as a naivedyam and offer it to deities. The same methodology can be referred to make a red pumpkin halwa as well. I have also posted a variation of yellow Pumpkin Halwa which uses less ghee and sugar.

How to make Kashi Halwa

Grate White Pumpkin and More Prep

1. Firstly, rinse and peel 315 grams ash gourd or white pumpkin. Remove the seeds and the white pith. Then, chop it in large pieces, so that you can easily grate.
2. Grate the ash gourd. Keep aside. You will need 1 cup grated ash gourd.
3. Heat 1 tablespoon ghee in a thick bottomed pan. Add 12 to 15 cashews. You can even add less cashews.
4. Sauté till the cashews turn light golden.
5. Then, add ½ tablespoons raisins. You can add less raisins or skip them.
6. Stirring often, sauté the raisins till they swell and puff up. Remove both the cashews and raisins with a slotted spoon. Keep aside.

Cook Ash Gourd

7. Lower the heat and in the same pan, add the grated ash gourd. 8. Mix very well. 9. Cover the pan with its lid and on low heat, cook the grated ash gourd till its raw aroma goes away. 10. Check after every 4 to 5 minutes. Usually ash gourd has enough water to cook in its own juices. But if the ash gourd starts sticking to the pan or getting lightly browned and the mixture looks dry, then add water. This will depend on the water content in the ash gourd. 11. I did add water as the mixture had become dry. I added ¼ cup water and cooked the ash gourd with the lid on the pan. 12. You have to cook the ash gourd till the raw aroma goes away. It took me around 15 minutes on low heat. Time will vary depending on the pan thickness, size, dimensions and the flame intensity. So, keep around 10 to 15 minutes time for cooking ash gourd.

Make Kashi Halwa

13. Next, add ½ cup (225 grams) sugar.
14. Mix the sugar very well with the ash gourd.
15. Then, add a generous pinch of saffron strands. Saffron strands are used to give a nice orange-yellow color to the halwa and also for the aroma. If you do not have saffron strands, skip it or use a natural orange color extract.
16. Mix saffron with the mixture.
17. Keep on stirring and sautéing the halwa mixture on low heat.
18. Once the mixture starts thickening, you will feel a bit heavy while stirring the mixture. The lightness that was there before, won’t be there.
19. The halwa mixture has to be stirred often and sautéed on low heat, till it thickens and starts to leave the sides of the pan. After adding sugar, it took 10 minutes for the halwa to come to the consistency as shown in the picture below. So, it may take between 6 to 10 minutes, depending on the type of pan, metal thickness, etc.
20. Once the halwa mixture thickens and starts separating from the pan, add 1 to 2 tablespoons ghee.
21. Mix the ghee very well.
22. After adding ghee, continue to sauté on low heat till the halwa starts separating from the pan. This will take 2 to 4 minutes.
23. Then, switch off the heat and add ¼ teaspoon green cardamom powder.
24. Also, add the fried cashews and raisins.
25. Mix very well.
26. Let the Kashi Halwa cool down a bit and then serve. Avoid serving hot as it is very hot due to the sugar syrup consistency. You can even serve Dumroot Halwa warm or at room temperature.

Expert Tips

Please be sure to rate the recipe in the recipe card or leave a comment below if you have made it. For more vegetarian inspirations, Sign Up for my emails or follow me on Instagram, Youtube, Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter. Suji ka Halwa Recipe (Sheera Recipe) Kesari Recipe | Rava Kesari Karachi Halwa | Bombay Halwa Badam Halwa Recipe | Rich South Indian Almond Halwa This Kashi Halwa recipe from the archives, originally published in October 2016 has been updated and republished on January 2023.