Laddu

Laddu

Tray of Laddus
Origin
Place of origin	India
Dish details
Course served	Dessert, Snack, Festive food
Main ingredient(s)	Flour, Milk, sugar, etc
Variations	gram flour, rava

Laddus packed for a wedding

Laddu or Laddoo (Telugu:లడ్డు, Malayalam: ലഡ്ഡു "laddu" Marathi: लाडू laadu, kannada:ಲಾಡು laaDu, Hindi: लड्डू; Urdu: لڈو, Tamil:லட்டு) is a ball-shaped sweet popular in South Asian countries including India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh as well as countries with immigrants from South Asia. Laddu is made of flour and sugar with other ingredients that vary by recipe. It's often served at festive or religious occasions.

Origins

Laddu comes from the Sanskrit word transliterated as ladduka or lattika meaning a small ball. One of the earliest mentions of laddu is in a twelfth-century Gujarati manuscript.

Composition

Common flours used for laddu include besan (chickpea flour), rava (wheat semolina) and ground coconut. These are combined with sugar and other flavorings, cooked in ghee and molded into a ball shape. Some laddu recipes are prepared using Ayurvedic medicinal ingredients, including methi laddu and resin laddu.

Use

Laddu is often prepared for festivals or family events such as weddings and births, or given as a prasad at Hindu temples. In Maharashtrian cuisine, there are traditional recipes for laddu intended as travel provisions (Marathi: तहान लाडू, भूक लाडू).

Cultural references

In the Sesame Street episode "Rakhi Road", laddus are featured prominently as a favoured Indian dessert. Elmo is shown making laddus and enjoying eating them as part of the celebrations around the Indian festival of Rakhi. ^[1]

See also

Laddu - given as prasad

• Indian sweets

References

1. ^ "Show Guide Landing". Sesame Street. http://www.sesamestreet.org/onair/episodes?p_p_id=56_INSTANCE_EPSD&p_p_lifecycle=0&p_p_state=maximized&p_p_mode=view&doAsUserId=Hb9IwH3E%2FLU%3D&_56_INSTANCE_EPSD_cmd=view-episode&_56_INSTANCE_EPSD_seasonNumber=Season41&_56_INSTANCE_EPSD_episodeNumber=4228. Retrieved 2011-10-13. 

External links

• How to make Laddu