Homemade Kulfi
Updated: Nov 25, 2021
With summer setting in, there’s no better Indian dessert than delicious, luscious, creamy homemade kulfi. Yes, it will take a couple of hours but it’s totally worth the effort!
ALWAYS use full fat milk for this homemade kulfi recipe, coz there’s no such thing as low fat kulfi!
Choose to flavour your homemade kulfi recipe as per your preference – with natural extracts (pista, almond…), add rose syrup at the end to make rose kulfi, mango pulp or reduced orange juice to make mango kulfi or orange kulfi…
This recipe of homemade kulfi does not use rice flour or cornflour as thickeners – the only “thickeners” used here are the coarsely ground nuts which, besides adding flavour to the kulfi, add a nice creamy texture.
No cornflour or grain-based thickeners makes this homemade kulfi the perfect milk-based dessert for the days when you're fasting (vrat / upvas). Navratri vrat, purnima vrat, ekadashi vrat or any other fasts that you undertake.
This homemade kulfi recipe is also naturally gluten free.
Savour homemade kulfi as it is or make some falooda noodles, flavoured reduced milk with dried fruits and sabza to put together a falooda kulfi / ice-cream at home, using ofcourse homemade kulfi.
Kulfi tastes even better after a dinner of spicy Indian Curry or biryani.
You could also pair homemade kulfi with these Indian desserts.
Connect with me on social media for (errrmmmm) not-so-regular updates! Yes, I’m not going to be on your screen all day every day!
Makes: 12 kulfis
Time taken
Cooking: approx. 1 hour
Freezing time: approx. 4 – 8 hours (depending on your freezer settings)
Ingredients to make Kulfi
2 litres full fat milk
¾ cup sugar, adjust to taste*
½ cup of nuts (of choice – pistachio, almonds, cashewnuts) – coarsely ground
4 – 5 green cardamoms, powdered
A few strands of saffron
A pinch of salt
*adjust the quantity of sugar in case adding rose syrup, mango pulp, orange juice, depending on the sweetness / tartness of the fruits.
Method of making Kulfi
Bring the milk to a gentle boil in a thick bottom vessel.
Continue to cook the milk on medium low flame, stirring occasionally to stop the milk solids / cream from sticking to the bottom of the vessel and burning.
When the milk is reduced to half the quantity, add sugar, coarsely ground nuts and salt**. Mix well and continue to cook it down further.
** a pinch of salt is added only to bring the flavours together and enhance the sweetness.
Skip if making kulfis to be eaten while fasting.
Taste and adjust sugar. When adding sugar, remember it will taste 'less sweet' once the mix is frozen - add just a little extra sugar than you normally would (maybe just a tablespoon or so).
Throughout the cooking process, keep scraping the sides of the vessel, to put the malai back in to the kulfi mix. That’s where all the flavour is!
Once the quantity of milk is reduced to one third the original quantity, take the kulfi mix off the heat and add saffron strands (optional).
Mix well and leave the kulfi mix to cool. Once it is at ambient temperature, add the cardamom powder and mix well.
If making malai kulfi, transfer the reduced milk to kulfi moulds as it is. For silkier textured kulfi, whiz the mix in a blender and then transfer to kulfi moulds.
Freeze for 5-6 hours or overnight. Once set, serve kulfi plain or drizzled with rose syrup.
If you're making flavoured homemade kulfi, add the natural extracts at this point. Mix well, pour in to kulfi moulds and freeze.
For fruit based kulfi, add the fruit pulp after the kulfi mix has cooled down, to avoid curdling of the reduced milk. Mix well, pour in to kulfi moulds and freeze.
Remember to adjust the sugar while the kulfi mix is cooking, as per your taste and the sweetness / tartness of your syrups or fruit pulps.
Do take a look at the other traditional Indian desserts and more delicious Indian recipes & meal ideas.
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