List of Indian sweets and desserts facts for kids

India is famous for its amazing sweets and desserts, often called mithai! These yummy treats are a big part of Indian food and celebrations. Many Indian desserts are made with sugar, milk, or creamy condensed milk. You'll find lots of them are fried until golden. The ingredients and types of sweets change a lot depending on which part of India you're in. For example, in eastern India, many sweets are made mostly from milk. Lots of these desserts are flavored with tasty things like almonds, pistachios, cardamom, nutmeg, cloves, and black pepper. They often look beautiful, decorated with nuts or even shiny gold or silver leaf!

Popular Indian Sweets from the North

The northern parts of India have many delicious sweets, often made with milk, sugar, and ghee (clarified butter).

Name	Picture	Main ingredients	Type of sweet
Arisa Pitha		Rice flour, jaggery (a type of unrefined sugar)	Fried, jaggery-based
Apple Halwa		Apples, Milk, Ghee	A type of Halva (a dense, sweet confection)
Boondi		Gram flour (besan), ghee, sugar	Sugar syrup-based
Gajar Paak		Carrots, milk, sugar, ghee, cashews, and raisins	A type of Halva
Ghevar		Flour, ghee, milk, sugar, almonds, pistachios, saffron, cardamom	Fried, sugar syrup-based
Gulab jamun		Fried milk balls soaked in sweet syrup, like rose syrup or honey	Fried, sugar syrup-based
Imarti		Sugar syrup, lentil flour	Fried, sugar syrup-based
Jalebi		Dough fried in a coil shape, then dipped in sugar syrup. Often eaten with milk or yogurt.	Fried, sugar syrup-based
Kaju katli		Cashews, ghee, cardamom, and sugar	A type of Barfi (a milk-based sweet)
Kalakand		Milk, cottage cheese	A type of Burfi
Kheer		A rice pudding made with milk, rice, sugar, and dried fruits	Pudding
Khirmohan		Chhena (fresh cheese), sugar, semolina, water	Sugar syrup-based
Kulfi		An ice cream made with milk and sugar, with flavors like mango, saffron, or cardamom	Ice cream
Laddu		Gram flour (besan), ghee, sugar	A round sweet called Laddu
Lassi		Yogurt, milk, nuts. Can be made with mango.	Yogurt drink
Motichoor laddu		Besan flour, sugar	A type of Laddu
Malpua		Wheat or rice flour	Fried, sugar syrup-based
Nankhatai		Refined flour, besan, ghee, powdered sugar, yogurt, cardamom seeds	Baked
Petha		Firm white pumpkin, sugar, kitchen lime, alum powder	Sugar syrup-based
Phirni		Rice, sugar, nuts	Pudding
Rabri		Boiled condensed milk, sugar, spices, and nuts	Pudding
Sheera		Semolina, ghee, nuts, milk	Pudding
Sohan halwa		Corn flour, ghee, dry fruits	A type of Halva
Sohan papdi, pateesa		Besan flour	A type of Barfi

Sweet Treats from Eastern India

Eastern India is famous for its milk-based sweets, especially those made from chhena (fresh cheese).

Name	Picture	Main ingredients	Type of sweet
Amriti		Deep-fried vigna mungo (black gram flour), sugar syrup	Fried, sugar syrup-based
Cham cham		Flour, cream, sugar, saffron, lemon juice, coconut flakes	Milk-based
Chhena gaja		Chhena, sugar, ghee	Milk-based
Chhena jalebi		Chhena, sugar, ghee	Milk-based
Chhena poda		Sugar, chenna cheese	Milk-based
Coconut Barfi		Coconut, fine ground sugar, ghee, cardamom powder, and milk	Coconut and milk-based
Kheer sagar		Chenna, condensed milk, sugar, saffron, cardamom	Milk-based
Labanga latika		maida, khoa, nutmeg, grated coconut, ghee, nuts, raisins, cardamom, cloves, and sugar	Fried and sugar syrup-based
Lyangcha		Flour, fried milk powder, sugar syrup	Milk-based
Mihidana		Besan flour, sugar, ghee	Fried, sugar syrup-based
Misti doi		Yogurt, jaggery	Milk-based
Pantua		Chhena, sugar, ghee	Milk-based
Rabri		Sweetened milk	Milk-based
Rasabali		Chenna, sweetened milk	Milk-based
Ras malai		Chhena, reduced milk, pistachio	Milk-based
Rasgulla		Chhena, sugar	Milk-based
Sandesh		Made from cheese, mixed with fine ground sugar and molasses	Milk-based
Shorbhaja		Sugar, cream, ghee, maida	Fried, milk and sugar syrup-based
Sitabhog		Chhena, rice flour, sugar, vermicelli/rice	Fried, rice, and sugar syrup-based

Southern India's Sweet Delights

Sweets from Southern India often use rice flour, jaggery, and coconut, creating unique textures and flavors.

Name	Picture	Main ingredients	Type of sweet
Ada		Rice flour, grated coconut, jaggery or sugar
Adhirasam/Khajjaya/Ariselu		Rice flour, jaggery, ghee, vegetable oil, cardamom
Bandar laddu		Besan, jaggery, cardamom powder, ghee, cashews, and raisins	A type of Laddu, popular in Machilipatanam, Andhra Pradesh
Kovilpatti Kadalai Mittai		Nuts (usually peanuts), jaggery
Dharwad Pedha		Milk, sugar, Dharwadi buffalo milk	A type of Burfi
Double ka Meetha		Loaf bread, milk
Jaangiri		Black gram	Fried, syrup-based
Kakinada Kaaja		Wheat flour, sugar
Kozhukkattai		Rice flour, groundnut, jaggery, grated coconut	Similar to Modak in Tamil Nadu
Mysore Pak		Besan flour, sugar, ghee	A type of Burfi
Obbattu / Holige / Bobbatlu / Pappu Polelu / Boli		Maida flour, Coconut or Channa Dal/Toor Dal, Jaggery	Bread-like sweet
Poornalu		Chana dal, jaggery
Pootharekulu		Rice flour, powdered sugar/ghee
Tirunelveli Halwa		Wheat flour, sugar, ghee, nuts, cardamom	A famous sweet in Tamil Nadu
Khubani ka meetha		Apricots, sugar syrup
Kesari bat		Rava (semolina, ghee, sugar)
Unni Appam		Rice flour, banana, jaggery, coconut

Western India's Sweet Selection

Western Indian sweets include a variety of baked and fried treats, often using flour, milk, and jaggery.

Name	Picture	Main ingredients	Type of sweet
Anarsa		Slightly fermented rice flour, jaggery, poppy seeds
Basundi		Sugar, milk
Bebinca		Flour, sugar, ghee, egg yolk, coconut milk	Baked layered Christmas sweet
Kaju katli		Cashews, ghee
Mahim halwa		Semolina, sugar
Modak		Rice flour, coconut jaggery stuffing	Fried
Mohanthal		Besan, ghee, sugar, and nuts
Puran poli		Wheat flour, gram, jaggery	Bread-like sweet
Shankarpali		Sugar, ghee, maida flour, semolina
Shrikhand		A creamy dessert made from strained yogurt, often served with dried fruits like mangoes	Yogurt-based
Sutar feni		Maida, sugar, ghee

Sweets Enjoyed Across India

Some sweets are so popular that you can find them almost everywhere in India, with slight variations in how they are made.

Name	Picture	Main ingredients	Type of sweet
Barfi		Milk powder	A type of Barfi
Halva		Corn flour	Boiled
Kheer		Milk, vermicelli, sugar, nuts	Milk-based, also called Payasam in Southern India
Laddoo		Milk, flour	A type of Laddu
Peda		Milk (khoya), sugar, saffron	Milk-based

See also

• List of Indian snack foods
• List of pastries