Holi Thandai: 15-Min Recipe

Every round of tossing colour and playing Holi is punctuated with a tall cold glass of traditionally-made Thandai. Food blogger Siddhi Panchal offers her version.

Ingredients

• 1¼ cup sugar
• ⅓ cup cashews
• ⅓ cup pistachios + extra sliced for garnish

Ingredients, continued

• ¼ tsp kesar or saffron + few strands for garnish
• ⅓ cup almonds, soaked, peeled
• ¼ cup saunf or fennel seeds
• ¼ cup muskmelon seeds

Ingredients, continued

• ½ tbsp black peppercorns
• ¼ tsp jaiphal or nutmeg powder
• 1 tbsp green elaichi or cardamom
• 500 ml full-cream milk

Method

• Warm the milk in a saucepan and bring to a boil over low heat.
• Meanwhile coarsely grind the almonds, pistachios, cashews, muskmelon seeds, saunf, cardamom seeds, black peppercorns in a mixer/blender.

Method, continued

• Pulse the nut-spice mixture, pausing every few minutes as you grind, remove lid and mix, so it grinds evenly but coarsely.
  Repeat the mixing process if required.
• Once you have a coarse mixture, add the sugar, nutmeg, kesar and grind again.

Method, continued

• When the milk boils, add 3 tbsp of the thandai masala and mix well.
• Continue to boil over medium heat, stirring continuously and allow the mixture to thicken a little; it will take a few minutes.

Method, continued

• Take off heat.
  Cool to room temperature and refrigerate.
• Pour in glasses and garnish with sliced pistachios and a pinch of kesar.
  Serve chilled; makes 3-4 glasses.

Tips
Garnish with rose petals.
You can use 1 tbsp watermelon seeds, dash gulab jal (rose water) and 2 tbsp khus khus (poppy seeds) too.
The extra masala can be stored in an air-tight container or ziploc bag in the freezer or fridge for future use.