Shrikhand is a delicious and creamy yogurt dessert made with thick plain yogurt, sugar and flavored with sugar or saffron. Shrikhand is very simple to make and is popular in western parts of India. You can use greek yogurt to make it as well.
Allow me to call it a beauty.I dont mean fancy or flashy. Neither I want to hint that I toiled over this dessert for hours. This eliachi shrikhand is hopelessly easy to make. Yet succeeds in achieving the delight a dessert can bring. Slightly tart yogurt flavored with freshly ground elaichi (cardamom) and topped with a luscious mango saffron compote - as simple as it can get but like a little sunshine in a bowl.
It is hard to believe that something so simple as yogurt & sugar can turn into a creation which appeals to the sweet tooth. Cream add more body to the dessert in my opinion and makes it a little more wonderful. Cream is not used traditionally shrikhand. You can skip it. I like it for the added richness that it lends.
What is Shrikhand?
Shrikhand is a yogurt sweet dessert from western parts of India.Shrikhand recipe is like a blank canvas - some like to add nuts, some combine chopped or pureed fruits with it and some let the melt in the mouth consistency remain unadulterated. Experiment as it pleases you.
I ate shrikhand for the first time prepared by one of my friend's mom in Pune. She served it along side pooris (deep-fried flatbread) & a spicy bean sprouts curry. The combo was a bit odd for me at first but I immensely enjoyed it.
Usually, pureed mango is mixed with hung yogurt and shrikhand becomes amrakhand. My favorite summer fruit is here. I bought season's first mango last week & they seemed perfect to add a texture to the dessert. The mangoes were ripe & sweet - a compote was definitely on my mind. Addition of saffron to it seemed an obvious decision to accentuate the exotic flavors. The fact that I prepared the dessert with homemade dahi (indian style yogurt) made me a happier than usual.
Make It With Greek Yogurt
If you are in a rush, you can use greek yogurt in this recipe. It saves you additional time of straining the yogurt.
Follow instructions as it is from the recipe card. You can refrigerate it for 30 minutes and serve.
Cardamom(Elaichi) Shrikhand With Mango Saffron Compote
Equipment
- Colander
- Cheesecloth or Muslin
- Mixing Bowls & Spoons
Ingredients
- 4 cup plain yogurt full fat
- 50 ml heavy cream cold
- ⅓ cup fine sugar or to taste
- ½ teaspoon green cardamom powder
- pinch nutmeg powder optional
For Mango Compote
- 8-10 saffron strands
- 1 tablespoon warm water
- ½ tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 cup mango chunks
Instructions
Cardamom Shrikhand
- Line a colander with muslin/cheese cloth large enough that you can tie up its ends. Place the colander over a large bowl. Ensure that there is gap between the colander bottom & the bowl bottom to collect the draining liquid. Pour the yogurt into the colander and tie up all the ends of the muslin/cheesecloth. Let drain refrigerated for at least 6 hours or preferably overnight i
- Discard the whey once drained.cIf in hurry, you can use Greek yogurt to make shrikhand too. Skip draining if doing so.
- Transfer the strained yogurt into a bowl. Add cold cream to it and start whisking using a hand beater. Slowly add the sugar and beat until slightly stiff peaks. Add cardamom & nutmeg powder, mix and refrigerate for 1 more hour.
- Serve the chilled shrikhand into serving bowls & top with mango compote (recipe below). Keeps well in fridge for 2-3 days
Mango Saffron Compote
- In a medium bowl, dissolve the saffron in lukewarm water till it dissolves. About a minute or so. Stir in the lime juice, sugar and mix till sugar dissolves. Add in mangoes. Let sit for 2-3 hours in the fridge. Use as needed
Nikhil
Tanvi-- I have to thank you for this recipe. I had never made shrikhand before in my life, as it always seemed so daunting. But I made it the other day when I had some family over and it was a huge hit. For all your lazy readers out there, I took a few short cuts and it still turned out amazing. First of all, I used Greek yoghurt. Secondly, I didn't bother to drain the dahi after adding the cream, nor did I bother to put it in the fridge for two hours. (Next time, I think I will skip the cream entirely, so as to make it less fatty. As it is, I used 0% fat Greek yoghurt). Lastly, I didn't use as much sugar as is called for in the recipe, which does make it less authentic, but we liked it nonetheless. The shrikhand with the mango compote was a genius idea of yours, thank you again!