Watermelon halwa – No artificial colors. This is the easiest halwa to make. It is so soft and chewy, a nice gummy sweet to have on any festive ocassion.
Halwa making in North Kerala is at least 2 centuries old. It is traditionally made with rice flour or glutenous mixture extracted from all purpose flour, in the bronze metallic cookware called Uruli with coconut oil now that makes the halwa naturally vegan too. The stirring process takes about 2 hours and the result is beautiful glassy sweet.Halwas are available in many colors and flavors. The brick sized chunks of halwa of different colors adorned the sweet shops in those days. The vendors arrange in small pyramids.
The joy of sinking my teeth into childhood favorite red halwa is beyond words.Many flavors and many colors..sadly the dyes used in now a days makes me immediately allergic and sick.
This Watermelon halwa contains no artificial colors recipe takes 15 minutes max. It has the natural watermelon flavored and it is 100 % natural red color. Is that not a win – win situation!
—-VIDEO OF watermelon halwa WITH STEP BY STEP PROCESS:
Points to note while making watermelon halwa :
- Replace arrowroot powder with corn starch if it is hard to find in stores.
- The color of the halwa is totally dependent on the color of the watermelon.
- Using a heavy non stick pan to make halwa prevents it from sticking to the sides and bottom easily. Unlike traditional halwa this is not a long cooking process on very high heat so it is ok to use non stick.
- Avoid mixing arrowroot directly to the hot boiling liquid. It will result in clumping up and ruin the dish. Instead always mix arrowroot powder evenly in a small amount of cold liquid first to get the beautiful finish of the starch.
Halwa making mistakes:
- Do not work in high heat to finish off fast this will result in a brownish halwa. To maintain the red color work only in low and medium heat.
- Do not wait for the halwa to form a ball while stirring with the spatula and come off of the sides like other halwas. The starch in this one will toughen and yield in a very rubbery texture.
- Do not leave the halwa to cool down in the pan itself. It will harden sitting in the pan later it will be hard to cut into pieces. You might have to scrape it out. The residual heat will toughen the halwa.
Other naturally colored Halwas to try:
Carrot Halwa in Instant pot
Arrowroot Halwa
Do give this watermelon halwa- no artificial food color a try and let me know how it goes.
Meena
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