Quick No-Cook Kaju Barfi Recipe (Easiest 2-Ingredient Cashew Fudge)
No-Cook Kaju Barfi. This very easy no-cook kaju barfi (kaju katli / cashew fudge) requires zero stove time, no tricky sugar syrup consistency, and just 2 simple ingredients – cashewnuts or kaju of course and sugar to sweeten it. A little water to bind the dough, and this rich, buttery, and melt-in-your-mouth soft fudgy barfi comes together in under 10 minutes. If you are looking for a quick last minute Diwali treat or perhaps a sudden sweet craving, this might be your answer.
What is Kaju Barfi / Kaju Katli
Kaju Katli (also known as Kaju Barfi or Kaju Katri) is a traditional, popular Indian fudge-like dessert made primarily from finely ground cashew nuts, sugar, and often ghee. It is popularly served at Diwali and Ganesh Chaturthi, also at weddings. It’s a sweet quintessential to all Indian celebrations. While my recipe here uses only the natural fats from cashews and no added ghee, ghee is sometimes added. Cashews of course are the star ingredient, an ingredient I love to use!
Kaju Barfi, also known as Kaju Katli, is often the first mithai or Indian sweet to disappear from serving platters due to it’s rich, buttery, fudgy bite as also due to it’s endearing texture. This delicious treat has a longer shelf life than most Indian sweets since it contains no milk solids and is naturally vegan and gluten free, made solely of cashew nuts and sugar. I made some Besan Almond Laddoos as well for the first time ever which turned out too delicious, and will share that recipe another day.
Why You’ll Love This No-Cook Kaju Barfi
- Zero Stove Time: No heat, no cooking, and no risk of burning the cashew powder. Anyone can make these. A great kitchen adventure for young hands and for beginners.
- No added fat: There’s no added ghee or fat to the barfi. We rely on the natural fats in cashews to do their magic!
- No Sugar Syrup Hassle: Skip the traditional 1-string (ek taar) sugar syrup consistency check entirely.
- Beginner & Fail-Proof: Ready in 10 minutes with a smooth, pliable dough that rolls out cleanly without cracking. This is key! Make sure you add the water gradually and mindfully.
- Naturally Gluten-Free: A pure, classic Indian festive dessert made with simple pantry staples.
- Simple Delicious Vegan Dessert : It’s not always easy to find an Indian mithai without milk solids or clarified butter. This vegan mithai is outstanding and delicious.
- Added flavours: Add saffron to make this a kaju kesar barfi/katli, add chopped blanched pistachios to give it added bite, use this as a base to make kaju rolls etc. You can also add cardamom powder, rose water etc to flavour it. This is a very versatile recipe.
The 2 Essential Ingredients
- Fine Cashew Powder (Kaju Powder): High-quality raw cashews blended into a fine powder without over-blending into a butter {see recipe notes}. Sifted to remove all coarse bits. Use the best cashews you can find because they are the star of the recipe.
- Castor Sugar: Powdered and sifted to ensure a silky, non-gritty texture.
- Water: To knead the dough, not quite an ingredient!
Grinding the cashew nuts:
- The heart of the recipe is good quality cashews and how finely you grind them. Trust the process, take your time. Don’t hurry or you’ll end up with cashew butter since these nuts are high in natural fats.
- The cashew nuts can be ground ahead of time.
- You can do the grinding in 2 lots if you like. I like to do it in small batches in my spice/coffee grinder as it helps to grind the nuts better, 50g cashews + 25g sugar at a time. You need a fine dry grind, not oily. If you over grind them, the nuts will release their oil, so be careful.
Of course there are plenty of other sweet options you can make at this time of the year. If you’re geared up for a slightly more involved dessert, may I suggest another favourite, Angoori Kesari Gulab Jamuns.
These gulab jamuns can be most deliciously baked into a cheesecake too should you be willing to take a step further. For now, I leave you with this dead simple recipe for Kaju Barfi / Kaju Katli. Happy Diwali!!
Quick No-Cook Kaju Barfi Recipe (Easiest 2-Ingredient Cashew Fudge)
Equipment
- 1 Dry grinder
- 1 Sieve
- 1 Mixing bowl
- 1 balloon whisk
- 1 Rolling Pin
- 1 Knife
- Butter paper/parchment paper
Ingredients
- 150 g raw cashew nuts, kaju
- 150 g castor sugar Divided 100g+50g
- 2-2½ tbsp water
- Beaten silver foil to decorate if desired chaandi ka warq
Instructions
- In the jar of your dry grinder, add in the cashew nuts with 50g castor sugar. Process in short, quick bursts to grind the cashews. We need a fine dry grind but not oily. {See notes}
- Sift the mix into a large bowl and return the coarse bits to the grinder. Process briefly to grind. Sift again into the large bowl. Add the leftover coarse cashew bits to the 100g reserved sugar. There should just be a teaspoon or two.
- Now place the castor sugar with the few cashew bits and process until ground fine.
- Turn the sugar into the bowl with the cashew powder and whisk well to mix uniformly
- Add 1 tbsp of water, and use the whisk to distribute it evenly, then add another tbsp of water and repeat. Now bring the mixture together using your hands, kneading briefly. The mixture should come together into a firm smooth dough after 2-3 minutes of kneading. You can add a ½ tsp water at a time to correct the consistency. It should be firm and smooth and pliable like playdough. Don't be tempted to add too much water or you will end up with an unset, sticky barfi.
- Turn the dough onto a sheet of butter paper. You can knead it using the butter paper if you need to make it smoother, then level out using the paper into a flattish square. Cover with another sheet of butter paper and gently roll into a larger rectangle to your desired thickness. Mine were about ½cm thick. Using a large knife or dough cutter, gently push the edges into shape trying to get a clean rectangle. This reduces wastage.
- Now gently but firmly score straight lines through the rolled dough using a heavy knife. Next score obliue lines to get diamond shapes which are quintessential to kaju barfi. You can cut squares as well if you like.
- If using beaten silver foil/chaandi ka warq, you can gently add it to the top now. Laeve the barfi/fidge to rest at room temperatre for about an hour or so. Score over the lines again, separate the pieces. Your easy 2 ingredient kaju barfi / cashew fudge is ready. Store in an airtight container at room temperature if the weather is cool, or in the fridge if very warm. The barfi/fudge will get slightly firmer in the fridge but will keep deliciously soft at room temperature.
Notes
- The cashew nuts can be ground ahead of time.
- You can do the grinding in 2 lots if you like. I like to do it in small batches in my spice/coffee grinder as it helps to grind the nuts better, 50g cashews + 25g sugar at a time. You need a fine dry grind, not oily. If you over grind them, the nuts will release their oil, so be careful.
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