Kaju pista roll is a premium Indian festive sweet made with melt-in-the-mouth cashew dough wrapped around a fragrant pistachio filling. Learn how to make halwai-style kaju roll easily at home with this foolproof recipe and step-by-step photos.
Kaju sweets are one of the costliest sweets in sweet stalls. No matter about its price or calories, we never say no to sweets made with cashews. Its our family favorite. So I used to make kaju katli for all the special occasions like birthday, anniversary. When I asked Raksha about her choice for Diwali sweets, her first reply was “Kaju Katli”. Then came gulab jamun, Badam halwa etc etc. So this morning, I made kaju katli for her, Kaju roll for my blog posting, kaju strawberry, kaju flower and kaju apple just for myself. Yes, I used the same cashew dough for all these varieties.
Basically the ingredients & the method of cooking Kaju katli and Kaju roll are almost the same. Additionally, pista stuffing is to be made and rolled in cashew dough for Kaju pista roll. If you can make a perfect cashew dough, all these sweets can be made in no time. Making Kaju dough is not so difficult. Troubleshooting is also easy. This is a no-fail recipe. I am sure anyone can get it right. For variations, badam or dates can be used for the filling and prepared as Kaju badam roll or Kaju khajur roll. In general, Kaju roll is really a good alternative for Kaju katli or kaju burfi If you are bored with it. So try this easy, interesting sweet for Diwali and have a great celebration.
Generally kaju pista rolls are wrapped with silver varaq in sweet stalls. As I didn’t have it, I just kept a colored dot and made a simple presentation by seeing the picture of Nestle Milk Maid Kaju roll recipe. It looked really attractive. Try this decoration if you don’t have silver varaq. Ok, Lets see how to prepare perfect Kaju roll recipe with step by step images along with some tips for trouble shooting. Here is the picture of all the Kaju sweets I made for this Diwali. Check out my Kaju katli recipe with video.
Quick Notes for US & Abroad Kitchens
- Nut Selection: Whole raw unsalted cashews and shelled pistachios from Costco, Trader Joe’s or Patel Brothers give vibrant color and rich natural flavor. Ensure both nuts are completely at room temperature and dry before grinding.
- Grinding Texture: Pulse cashews in a spice grinder in 3-second bursts, sifting through a medium-mesh sieve so only fine flour is used. For pistachios, grind coarsely first before adding powdered sugar so the natural oils help bind the dough without requiring excessive water.
- Heat Control on Electric Stoves: Cook the cashew mixture on medium-low (setting 3 or 4). Electric cooktops retain heat, so pull the pan off the burner right as the mixture forms a soft, pliable ball to avoid drying it out.
- Rolling Technique: Roll the cashew dough between silicone baking mats or parchment paper lightly greased with ghee. Roll the enclosed logs gently with your palms to elongate them uniformly without tearing the outer cashew layer.
Kaju Pista Roll Recipe (Cashew Roll)
Ingredients
- 1 cup Cashew nuts / Kaju (approx. 140 g / 5 oz, raw cashews)
- ½ cup Sugar (approx. 100 g / 3.5 oz)
- ¼ cup Water (approx. 60 ml / 2 fl oz)
- 1 tsp Ghee (for greasing hands and sheets)
- 1 to 2 tsp Milk or water (for troubleshooting only if needed)
- ½ cup Pista (approx. 65 g / 2.3 oz, raw unsalted pistachios)
- ¼ cup Powdered sugar (approx. 30 g / 1 oz)
- 2 to 3 drops Cardamom essence or rose water (or cardamom powder)
- few drops Water (as needed to make smooth dough)
Instructions
- Making cashew powder: If you have kept the cashews in refrigerator, take it out and let it dry completely. Powder the dry cashews in a suitable mixer. For this, grind the cashews continuously for a minute till it becomes smooth powder. Do not grind for long time because cashews release oil and it becomes a paste. You can also grind it by using pulse option (i.e grind for few seconds, wipe the sides and repeat until it becomes a powder). After grinding, sieve with a wire mesh if needed. Keep the powder aside.
- Cooking cashew dough: In a kadai, heat sugar + water and melt it. Boil till it reaches one string consistency. String should be thin. To this, add the powdered cashews and mix well. It will become watery at first. Keep mixing in medium flame by staying nearby.
- Checking consistency: The mixture will thicken and start to leave the sides of pan. At that time, simmer the flame completely. Take a pinch of cashew dough by greasing your fingers. Try to make a soft, smooth ball. If you are able to do it, cashew dough is done. Immediately transfer it to a greased plate.
- Kneading cashew dough: Using a spoon, just mix the cashew dough to turn thick and warm. Once its heat is enough to handle, grease your hands with ghee and keep kneading for few minutes. It will turn soft, smooth like a dough ball. Cover the kneaded cashew dough with a dry cloth and set aside.
- Making pista dough: Powder the pista to a smooth powder in short pulses without letting it release oil. To the pista powder, add powdered sugar, a drop of green food color and cardamom essence or rose water. Add just a few drops of water and knead into a smooth, non-sticky dough with ghee-greased hands. Divide into 2 parts and roll into thin cylindrical logs.
- Rolling and assembling: Place the cashew dough between two parchment sheets and roll thin with a rolling pin into an even circle. Cut the circle into two halves. Place one pista log along the cut edge of the cashew sheet. Fold the cashew layer over the pista log to encase it, then gently roll forward on your work surface until elongated and uniform.
- Cutting and shaping: Trim the uneven ends. Slice the roll into small cylindrical pieces using finger width as reference. Gently press each cut roll against the board to shape neat rounded edges. Repeat with the remaining dough. Let the rolls set for 1 hour at room temperature before serving.
Notes
- Cashews should be completely dry before grinding. While powdering the cashews please be careful in running the mixie. Over doing it makes the cashews sticky & wet. You wont get the perfect smooth powder.
- One string consistency is very important. If sugar reaches more than one string consistency, katli will become hard. You have to add more milk to make it soft. Adding more than the required milk makes the dough wet & sticky. It reduces the shelf life of the sweet.
- You can check the consistency of dough by making a small ball out of it. The ball should be non-sticky. Suppose if you over mix the dough and if it becomes hard, no worries. Just keep the dough in a plate and let it warm. Add few tsp of little milk to it and knead it well by greasing your hands with ghee. It will become soft. Then you can roll it and make pieces as mentioned above.
- Troubleshooting tips: In case you missed the right consistency and if the dough becomes crumbly and hard, just break them into pieces. Grind in a big mixie jar adding little water or milk and make a smooth paste. Transfer the mixture to the kadai and again cook it till you attain the correct stage. You can easily identify the right stage as you know where you went wrong. So do it patiently and remove it at the right stage.
- For the pista dough, add water strictly by drops. If it becomes too sticky, add a tbsp of milk powder or maida and mix in a warm pan on low heat until firm and pliable.
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Delicious Kaju Pista Roll is ready to enjoy!
For more traditional festive ideas, check out my complete collection of South Indian Diwali Sweets and Snacks Recipes.
wow, super super super!!!
Hi chitra beautiful rolls. Kajulotus was the first recipe I tried from ur site and came out very well.
Thank you Harini. I still remember your wonderful words on that recipe :)
Hi Chitra, really loved this roll recipe, it was pretty well explained and the picture were very useful for me to understand the whole cooking process. Thank you very much for sharing!
Jen
Thank you !
Beautiful and perfect rolls :)