Delicious and simple zucchini halwa made in Instant Pot! This warm and comforting halwa flavored with cardamom is a perfect dessert for any occasion. Check out how to make this zucchini halwa with detailed step-wise pictures.
How can I skip Instant Pot dessert when it comes to Deepavali recipes? So here is a delicious halwa with zucchini made in Instant Pot very similar to the famous Kasi halwa or white pumpkin halwa.
I know it’s hard to translate Indian recipe names into English. Halwa is dessert pudding, and you can make it with vegetables like carrot, bottle gourd, ash gourd, pumpkin, and also with other flours. It’s a popular Indian dessert, and you can find a zillion varieties across the country. You can find carrot halwa, banana halwa, badam halwa on my blog as well.
Zucchini Recipes
Remember, I kept saying that I have more zucchini recipes coming up on my previous posts, especially the zucchini spread post? Here is one – zucchini halwa or the zucchini pudding. (Yes, I have more)
I have quite a few zucchini recipes on my blog, including fries, pakora, soup, rice, chili, zoodles, and raita. A zucchini dessert was missing, and here I am to amend that. Forget Kasi halwa and make a similar one with zucchini, and I am sure you will fall in love with this warm and comforting halwa.
When I made my zucchini spread, I decided to make the halwa more like the white pumpkin or Kasi halwa, and I duly made it on the stove-top. I grated the zucchini with the skin on and grated it on the bigger side of the grater, i.e., coarsely. The taste was delicious, but the cooking time was comparatively longer.
So I wanted to try it again by peeling the zucchini skin and grating it finely. Also, I wanted to try it on Instant Pot and see if I can reduce the cooking time, especially the supervising part. Again I duly did, and it worked perfectly. Tested it again, and finally, here it is on the blog.
This zucchini halwa is the last recipe for this year’s Deepavali recipe series. I hope you all enjoyed what I posted this year, and I hope you try them in your kitchen as well.
A warm Deepavali wishes from Vidhya’s Vegetarian Kitchen! Stay safe and have a great celebration.
Now without any further ado, let’s see how to make this delicious zucchini halwa in the Instant Pot. Please refer to notes for all the tips and tricks, as well as the stove-top instructions.
Prep-Work
- Peel and grate the zucchini on the smaller side of the grater, i.e., grate it finely. I got about two cups(heaped) of grated zucchini—no need to squeeze the water.
How to make zucchini halwa in Instant Pot?
Roast the cashews
- Set the Instant Pot in saute mode, and after 30 seconds, add 1 tbsp of ghee. When the ghee melts, add the cashews and roast until it turns golden brown. Turn off the Instant Pot. Transfer the cashews from the Instant Pot and set it aside.
Cook the grated zucchini
- Add the grated zucchini to the Instant Pot and spread it evenly like below.
- Close the Instant Pot. Make sure the vent is in the sealing position. Select manual/pressure cook and set the time to 8-minutes at high-pressure mode. When the cooking is complete, let the pressure release naturally. Carefully open the lid after releasing the pressure, and here is how the zucchini looks.
- Mash the zucchini thoroughly.
Add the sugar and make the halwa.
- Add the sugar, cardamom powder, and a pinch of edible camphor.
- Mix well and set the Instant Pot in saute mode back again. The zucchini mixture will be watery, and it’s perfectly normal.
- Add 1.5 tsp of ghee and cook this halwa in saute (normal) mode for 7 to 8 minutes. Keep stirring the halwa every 2 to 3 minutes and do not leave it unattended. Slowly the moisture will be all absorbed. Now add the remaining 1.5 tsps of ghee.
- And cook again for 3 to 4 minutes till it thickens slightly and comes together. At this stage, you can see the halwa leaving the sides of the pan and coming together. That’s the stage to turn off the Instant Pot. Do not let it dry out completely. It usually takes about 10~12 minutes. You can also saute the halwa in the “Saute-less” mode, but it takes a little longer.
- Please turn off the Instant Pot and transfer the halwa to a serving bowl and garnish it with the roasted cashews and serve warm.
Recipe Notes
- Adjust the sugar as per your preference.
- I used ground cardamom and edible camphor for flavoring, but you can use flavorings of your choice.
- The ghee amount was sufficient for us. You can add one or two tsps extra but not more than that.
- We love edible camphor in white pumpkin/Kasi halwa, so I added this zucchini halwa too. But that’s optional. If you are using edible camphor, use a small amount. A tiny mustard size piece is sufficient for this measure.
- Grate the zucchini on the smaller side of the grater so that it is cooks faster—also, no need to squeeze any water.
- You can make similar halwa with grated bottle gourd or ash gourd/white pumpkin.
- The halwa’s doneness: We need to cook until the halwa thickens slightly or when it comes together, leaving the pan’s sides. The halwa thickens as it cools down. So do not cook till the halwa dries up completely. It will become chewy.
- Instant Pot burn signal: I tested this recipe on my 6-quart Instant Pot 7 in 1 DUO. I did not encounter any “burn” notification issues. But in the newer model, it is prevalent. When pressure cooking the zucchini, you can add one to two tbsps of water in the inner Pot and then add the grated zucchini and spread it evenly. After adding sugar and when the moisture is partially absorbed, you can change the saute mode to less from “normal” and cook slowly to avoid the burn signal issues.
- Stove-top Instructions: Heat a pan or kadai and add a tbsp of ghee. Roast the cashews until golden brown and set it aside. Now add the grated zucchini and add two tbsps of water. Cover and cook till the zucchini is soft and mushy. If required, add more water while cooking. Cook well, and you should be able to mash it thoroughly. Now add sugar, ground cardamom, and edible camphor. Mix well and add ghee. Cook till the halwa thickens slightly and leaves the sides of the pan. Add little ghee halfway through as required.
PS: If you try this zucchini halwa, please don’t forget to comment and rate this recipe. If you have any questions, please leave a comment, and I will get to it A.S.A.P. Make sure to follow me on my Pinterest for more healthy and delicious ideas! Follow me on Instagram or join my Facebook Group for more gardening and recipe updates! You can also sign-up for my newsletter for weekly updates.
More Instant Pot Desserts
Instant Pot Zucchini Halwa
Equipment
- Instant Pot or Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
Instructions
Prep-Work
- Peel and grate the zucchini on the smaller side of the grater, i.e., grate it finely. I got about two cups(heaped) of grated zucchini—no need to squeeze the water.
Roast the cashews
- Set the Instant Pot in saute mode, and after 30 seconds, add 1 tbsp of ghee. When the ghee melts, add the cashews and roast until it turns golden brown. Turn off the Instant Pot. Transfer the cashews from the Instant Pot and set it aside.
Cook the grated zucchini
- Add the grated zucchini to the Instant Pot and spread it evenly like below.
- Close the Instant Pot. Make sure the vent is in the sealing position. Select manual/pressure cook and set the time to 8-minutes at high-pressure mode. When the cooking is complete, let the pressure release naturally. Carefully open the lid after releasing the pressure, and here is how the zucchini looks.
- Mash the zucchini thoroughly.
Add the sugar and make the halwa.
- Add the sugar, cardamom powder, and a pinch of edible camphor.
- Mix well and set the Instant Pot in saute mode back again. The zucchini mixture will be watery, and it’s perfectly normal.
- Add 1.5 tsp of ghee and cook this halwa in saute (normal) mode for 7 to 8 minutes. Keep stirring the halwa every 2 to 3 minutes and do not leave it unattended. Slowly the moisture will be all absorbed. Now add the remaining 1.5 tsps of ghee.
- And cook again for 3 to 4 minutes till it thickens slightly and comes together. At this stage, you can see the halwa leaving the sides of the pan and coming together. That’s the stage to turn off the Instant Pot. Do not let it dry out completely. It usually takes about 10~12 minutes. You can also saute the halwa in the “Saute-less” mode, but it takes a little longer.
- Please turn off the Instant Pot and transfer the halwa to a serving bowl and garnish it with the roasted cashews and serve warm.
Notes
- Adjust the sugar as per your preference.
- I used ground cardamom and edible camphor for flavoring, but you can use flavorings of your choice.
- The ghee amount was sufficient for us. You can add one or two tsps extra but not more than that.
- We love edible camphor in white pumpkin/Kasi halwa, so I added this zucchini halwa too. But that’s optional. If you are using edible camphor, use a small amount. A tiny mustard size piece is sufficient for this measure.
- Grate the zucchini on the smaller side of the grater so that it is cooks faster—also, no need to squeeze any water.
- You can make similar halwa with grated bottle gourd or ash gourd/white pumpkin.
- The halwa’s doneness: We need to cook until the halwa thickens slightly or when it comes together, leaving the pan’s sides. The halwa thickens as it cools down. So do not cook till the halwa dries up completely. It will become chewy.
- Instant Pot burn signal: I tested this recipe on my 6-quart Instant Pot 7 in 1 DUO. I did not encounter any “burn” notification issues. But in the newer model, it is prevalent. When pressure cooking the zucchini, you can add one to two tbsps of water in the inner Pot and then add the grated zucchini and spread it evenly. After adding sugar and when the moisture is partially absorbed, you can change the saute mode to less from “normal” and cook slowly to avoid the burn signal issues.
- Stove-top Instructions: Heat a pan or kadai and add a tbsp of ghee. Roast the cashews until golden brown and set it aside. Now add the grated zucchini and add two tbsps of water. Cover and cook till the zucchini is soft and mushy. If required, add more water while cooking. Cook well, and you should be able to mash it thoroughly. Now add sugar, ground cardamom, and edible camphor. Mix well and add ghee. Cook till the halwa thickens slightly and leaves the sides of the pan. Add little ghee halfway through as required.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It varies depending upon the product types or brands.
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