Mango And Cashew Nut Kulfi (Indian Frozen Milk Dessert)

Posted on May 11, 2014 by Anjana @ At The Corner Of Happy & Harried

If you love ice cream and Indian flavors, then this post is for you. Kulfi is a frozen Indian dessert made from slowly evaporating and thickening sweetened milk. The milk is flavored by a variety of ingredients like saffron (kesar), cardamom (elaichi), nuts, fruits (usually mango), and even rose-water.

Kulfi is almost like ice cream, but it can hold its own in terms of flavor and texture. In olden days, it was typically set and served in small clay pots called matkas. Nowadays special kulfi molds are available, just like popsicle molds. I used a couple of small steel glasses, stuck a popsicle in each and came up with kulfi pops. What better way to entice your kid! Not that Boy needs any enticing when anything sweet, cold and mango-ey is involved!

There are a lot of kulfi recipes, each slightly different from the other. Traditionally, thick and fatty milk alone is reduced till it is semi-condensed. Modern recipes call for short-cut ingredients like evaporated milk, condensed milk, milk powder and cornflour to speed things up. If you are using any kind of slurry (cornflour, rice flour or plain custard powder paste), make sure to properly cook it so that the ‘floury’ taste does not linger in the end.

I made kulfi using whole milk, sugar and milk powder. I added a sprinkling of fresh cardamom powder, some cashew nut paste and lots of pulpy mangoes. All these combine to make delicious and creamy kulfi. I don’t think there could be anything better to welcome the arrival of warmer climes than luscious, sweet mangoes.

You will need:

Whole milk – 3 cups
Cardamom powder – 1/4 tsp
Saffron – a pinch (optional, I didn’t have it)
Sugar – 1/4 – 1/2 cup (depends on the sweetness of the mangoes used)
Milk powder (full fat) – 3/4 cup
Condensed milk – 1/4 cup
Cashew nut paste – 3 tbsp (made from around 20 cashew nuts)
Mango pulp/puree – 1 1/2 – 2 cups (add less for a mild mango taste and more for a rich mango flavor)

How to:

Take the milk in a large, thick-bottomed pan and start heating it. Add cardamom powder and saffron to the milk. Do not let it boil now.
Add sugar, milk powder and condensed milk to the slightly hot milk. Stir well and let it come to a gentle boil. Reduce the heat and let the milk reduce. Keep stirring every now and then, scraping down the creamy bits that gather at the sides of the pan.
Meanwhile, prepare the cashew nut paste by soaking it in warm water for 5 minutes and coarsely grinding it by adding a little bit of water or milk. When the milk has reduced and thickened considerably (it will take around 20 minutes), turn off the stove. Add the cashew nut paste and mix well.
Allow the milk mixture to cool completely. Stir in the mango pulp (the kulfi mixture will thicken further.). I used tinned pulp, you can puree fresh mangoes and strain it to remove the fibers.
Fill in kulfi molds, popsicle molds, small glasses or ramekins. Cover tightly and freeze till solid (at least 8 hours).

To remove the frozen kulfi, dip the mold/ramekin in warm water for a minute and invert onto a plate.

I was pleasantly surprised at how creamy and delicious this kulfi was. After all, it was my very first time! I couldn’t believe my eyes nor my taste buds. Seriously! I had no patience to photograph them and even considered the possibility of ~~hiding~~ eating all of the kulfi before the guys returned!