Nendra Bale Halwa | Nendra Banana Halwa

A quite popular sweet in Southern India is the Banana Halwa. Nendra / Nendran banana is the variety of banana which is invariably used for the colour and taste that it imparts. This variety of banana is widely grown in Kerala state, India and also the bordering South Canara district of the Karnataka state.For the right texture, colour and smoothness, choosing the right variety of banana is very important. Also, the riper the banana is, the better it is.

Special thanks to my mother for helping me out with this recipe and dish.

Total time : 50 minutes

Total preparation time : 5 minutes

Cooking time : 45 minutes

Ingredients :

Fully ripe bananas (Nendra) : 10

Sugar : For each cup of banana paste, 3/4^th cup of sugar

Cardamom : 6

Cashew : 10 to 12

Ghee : 3/4^th cup

Method :

 

• Peel the bananas and cut into small pieces

• Grind it into a smooth paste

• For every cup of the banana paste add 3/4^th cup of sugar. Gring it again and keep it aside

• In a deep bottom pan, add 2 tbsp ghee and in medium flame fry the broken cashew till it turns golden brown. Keep it aside

• In the same pan add 2 more tbsp. of ghee and add the banana sugar paste

• Keep stirring occasionally. Cook in medium flame for about 45 minutes ( need not necessarily, it may vary depending on the quantity and the flame used for cooking). At regular internals add ghee and continue stirring

• Add the fried cashews when the halwa turns brown and continue stirring

• Add cardamom when the halwa turns dark brown. Stir for few minutes and remove off flame once the ghee starts to ooze out

• Take the halwa out of the pan , transfer to a greased plate and level it

Cut it into pieces of desirable size, munch it immediately or store it.

Nendra banana halwa has good shelf life.

 

Nendra banana stories:

During our preparatory holidays, mom used to prepare variety of sweets and store so that we have something to munch in between studies, and more often than not, it used to be our favourite Nendra bale halwa / nendra banana halwa.

Now, it’s my daughter’s turn to demand. This time around when my mom visited me, I asked her for the recipe. She said, the recipe is quite simple and easy. The challenge here is deciding on “how much to cook” before the halwa is ready. She warned me! This is one recipe where you need a lot of patience and never ever blindly go by the time; just look at the readiness of the halwa before it is taken off flame. You will know this, when you see ghee oozing out of the halwa. If you remove it from flame before time, the halwa will be very sticky and light brown in colour. If you remove it from flame a little later, the halwa becomes way too hard to be eaten. Thus, to get the right texture which is chocolaty brown with glossy appearance, it is very important to keep a close watch on the halwa, stirring it at regular intervals, and at the right time, remove off flame.

Note : Use ghee liberally; the more you use, the better it tastes. Though banana halwa can be prepared with any banana, the best tasting banana halwa is Nendra banana halwa/ Nendra Bale Halwa.