Best Ready To Eat Gulab Jamun Brands in India: Soft & Scrumptious

Sinful fried dough balls dipped in sugar- is this what they call heaven? If there’s one dessert that makes our entire team weak in the knees, it’s these luscious gulab jamuns. Hot, cold, and even room temperature, they always taste exceptional. 

To kick start our festive special week, we reviewed six brands of instant gulab jamun mixes. And if you’re someone who loves savoring and not struggling, here are some of the best ready to eat gulab jamun brands we reviewed. Five brands and multiple taste tests later, we chose Haldiram’s Gulab Jamun as the winner. We also recommend Mother Dairy gulab jamuns. Here’s why!

In this section, we discuss the packaging of these ready to eat gulab jamun brands, their taste, texture, and more importantly the number of pieces in each tin.

1. Available Sizes

Ready to eat gulab jamuns are usually offered in 1 kg tins. Although recently, one of the brands we reviewed launched 100 gram cups as well.

2. Package Type

Desserts like gulab jamuns and rasgullas are served with the chashni. This is exactly why the packaging must be sturdy and leak-proof. To ensure this, most brands pack such desserts in tin cans. Some were further packed in cartons. 

3. Shelf Life

The shelf life of RTE gulab jamuns ranges from six to twelve months. 

4. Price Range

All the gulab jamun tins were priced between Rs 195/- to Rs 240/- for a 1 kg pack.

Very often packaged gulab jamuns are associated with overbearing sugary taste and flavors that don’t do justice to this gorgeous mithai. In our ready to eat gulab jamun brands review, we conducted a two-way taste test.

As you already know gulab jamuns can be eaten hot and cold, and we wanted to check how these taste in every way possible. Our team decided on heating a batch of gulab jamuns for all the brands and then tasting them cold as well. This helped us differentiate how well the chashni is absorbed and if the fat and sugar has solidified in places. 

Here are the results and our review parameters –

1. Packaging

Whether you’re gifting this delicacy or purchasing it for personal consumption, the functionality of the packaging is as significant as its looks. We looked for sturdy tin cans with lids. An additional carton is even better. 

2. Taste

Gulab jamuns are essentially sweetened dough balls. The sugar syrup, milkiness, and aromatics (cardamom/saffron) should all be present in the right proportions. The chashni plays a vital role here. An overly sweet gulab jamun is as undesirable as one that tastes raw. 

Do any of the brands have an artificial aftertaste? Does it have an industrial or rancid taste? 

3. Texture

Soft enough for the spoon to seamlessly cut through them and hard enough to retain the shape- the texture of a perfectly kneaded and fried gulab jamun. Similarly, the center must be cooked through as well for a delightful experience in each bite. Is the sugar syrup nice and flowy? Or had it solidified?

4. Use Of Aromatics

Indian desserts are uplifted using flavoring agents/aromatics like cardamom, saffron, cinnamon, nuts, etc. In this review, we tried to find a brand of ready to eat gulab jamuns that showcases a great balance between the flavor of aromatics and levels of sweetness.

Does the gulab jamun use any aromatics like cardamom? If yes, how accentuated is the flavor?

5. Price

A 1 kg tin of gulab jamuns generally falls in the price range of Rs 200-250. How is the gulab jamun tin priced? Is it priced higher than the competition? If yes, does the ingredient list and flavor justify the price difference?

Haldiram’s Nagpur gulab jamuns are packed in a peacock blue tin. It doesn’t come with a lid and must therefore be transferred to another container and consumed within 24 hours once opened. A 1 kg can of the same is priced at Rs 195/-.

Spot on sweetness and a sublime texture, Haldiram’s gulab jamun was chosen as our Top Pick. Like authentic gulab jamuns from a local mithaiwala, these pack a delicate flavor and aroma of cardamom. The gulab jamuns soak up just the right amount of sugar syrup which doesn’t just ensure balanced sweetness but also prevents breakage. 

Features

• This can holds 16 pieces.
• A 1 kg can is priced at INR 195.
• It has a shelf life of 12 months. 
• A combination of maida and semolina is used. 

Mother Dairy is one of two brands of ready to eat gulab jamuns that was packed in an external carton. The carton is equipped with a handle but there is no reusable lid for the can. On both, the carton and the can, a bowl of deep brown gulab jamuns is placed with a bokeh background. Full festive feels!

As compared to these graphics, the actual product was relatively lighter. As we placed the gulab jamuns in a bowl, a pleasing aroma was noticed. We think this was a blend of rose essence and kewra. Mother Dairy’s gulab jamuns were fried very well. We Also Recommend these gulab jamuns as they were firm yet soft and weren’t overly sweet.

Features

• There are 12 pieces in a 1 kg tin.
• Before opening, the shelf life was six months.
• Sugar syrup, milk solids (11%), ghee, cottage cheese (2.18%), refined wheat flour, and cardamom are the ingredients used. 

The Gits Open and Eat gulab jamuns are packed in sturdy cans. In addition to the seal, there is a transparent plastic lid. It is a convenient storage option. A 1 kg tin of the same is priced at Rs 220/-

Of all the five ready to eat gulab jamun brands we reviewed, Gits was comparatively the smallest. To better explain, these were slightly larger than angoori gulab jamuns. These gulab jamuns had a deep, intense brown surface. Compared to the Top Pick, these were marginally more soft. We give it full marks for the texture and bite. 

However, the flavor let us down. We could hardly taste any cardamom. The overall taste of these gulab jamuns was somewhat off-putting. 

Features

• Gits gulab jamun has a separate plastic lid to reseal the can.
• It has a shelf life of eight months.
• Once opened, these must be stored under refrigeration and consumed within seven days.
• These gulab jamuns are made using pure cow ghee.
• There are no added preservatives, artificial flavors or colors used. 
• Wheat and corn flour are used as the base. 

MTR Gulab Jamun comes in a red tin with a lid. It is priced at Rs 240/- for a 1 kilo pack which contains 18 pieces. The gulab jamuns are medium-sized. There were a lot of things that didn’t work for MTR’s Gulab Jamun. From the overly soft, almost squidgy, texture of the gulab jamuns to lack of a pleasant flavor.

Features

• The 1 Kg pack is priced at Rs 240/-. The pack contains 18 pieces.
• Once consumed open and keep under refrigeration for 7 days
• Shelf life – 12 months (unopened)
• Ingredients – Sugar, Water, Khoya (dried whole milk), Refined wheat flour (maida), Edible veg oil, Raising agent, Sodium bicarb and Cardamom.

Bikano’s gulab jamuns are packed in an easy-to-open tin which is further packed in a sturdy box. A 1 Kg tin is priced at Rs 220/-. Bikano’s gulab jamuns have a firm bite but are soft. These are undoubtedly delicious, but the only reason they did not win a spot in the Top 2 was because this was marginally a step down from our winners, flavor wise. The sweetness is balanced and the gulab jamuns have soaked the right amount of chashni. We could not detect any essence.

Features

• The 1 Kg pack is priced at Rs 220/-. The pack contains 12 pieces.
• Once opened consume within 24 hours.
• Shelf life – 6 months (unopened)
• Ingredients – Sugar syrup, Concentrated milk solids, Refined palmolien oil, Milk powder, Cottage cheese (chenna), Clarified butter, Refined wheat flour (maida), Corn starch, Cardamom.

Why did we choose Haldiram’s Gulab Jamun as our Top Pick? We Also Recommend Mother Dairy Gulab Jamun. Why?

Festivities, gifting and delicious mithais!

Gulab jamuns, hot or cold, should be soft yet have a firm bite. Often flavored with cardamom and rose essence, they make for a scrumptious inclusion during festivities and otherwise. 

Haldiram’s gulab jamuns did a great job on all parameters – flavor and texture.

Mother Dairy gulab jamun also performed extremely well in our taste test. Both these brands soaked up just the correct amount of sugar syrup and did not break apart upon heating.

Here are some interesting FAQs on ready to eat gulab jamun brands.

Saying no to gulab jamuns is unheard of! So a ready to eat option is much appreciated. Just open the tin and gobble some.

We tested five popular brands of gulab jamun tins and chose Haldiram’s Gulab Jamun as our Top Pick. We also recommend Mother Dairy Gulab Jamun tins. Both these brands offer gulab jamuns with the perfect texture and flavor in its hot and cold form. 

Which is your favorite mithai this festive season? Let us know in the comment section below.

* If you do agree with our review, please give it a thumbs up! And, tell us which one is your favorite from this list. If you don’t, please tell us why!

* Food & Beverage is a constantly evolving segment with new products launched daily. Our endeavor here is to help shoppers buy better. If there’s a product you would like us to review tell us by clicking here.

* Our reviews are unbiased and all samples used during the reviews were paid for by us. Read our entire ethics statement here.

* No part of this review is sponsored by any brand. All expenses were borne by us.