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    Home » Indian Festival Recipes

    Thandai Recipe - Holi Drink

    Published: Mar 14, 2022 by Tanvi Srivastava · This post may contain affiliate links

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    Thandai is a indian summer drink made with milk to which aromatic spices and nuts & seeds paste is added. This refreshing sweet drink is very popular in north india on festivals like Maha Shivratri and Holi (indian festival of colors) which usually fall during the spring months.

    In this post, I am sharing recipe made with instant homemade thandai masala powder.

    Chilled Thandai in a glass garnished with nuts, rose petals and saffron

    Our holi celebration is incomplete without Thandai. It is such a crowd pleaser drink with all the fragrant spices. Since I make mine without bhaang (cannabis), it is perfect for kids because not only its cooling & delicious but super nutritious as well. 

    In weeks leading to Holi, I make a large batch of thandai masala to last us for a while but use it a lot in my recipes. Such as these thandai spiced nankhatai and rose thandai cheesecake bars that use masala to flavor traditional indian shortbread.

    Jump to:
    • What Is Thandai
    • How To Make Thandai Masala
    • Thandai Ingredients
    • Steps of Making Thandai
    • How To Serve & Store
    • Spiked Thandai
    • More Variations
    • Tips
    • FAQs
    • Thandai Recipe (With Instant Thandai Powder)

    What Is Thandai

    In Hindi, the word Thanda means something cool or cold and it forms the root word for thandak or thandai. Thandai means "cooling". It is a chilled milk drink made using cooling spices like fennel. The traditional thandai paste is wet. It is made using nuts and seeds which are grinded by hand on sil batta (large tabletop mortar & pestle extremely popular in indian kitchens). Thandai is also known as Sardai in few states of India.

    This drink is extremely popular during Holi and traditionally bhaang (cannabis) paste is mixed with it during before serving to adults. Holi is time for fun and frolic and the spiked drink definitely adds to the merriment.

    In my recipe I don't use bhaang, however if you live where you can easily find it, go for it 🙂

    How To Make Thandai Masala

    A well made masala is the soul of delicious thandai. Take your time to select the freshest nuts and seeds. Source good quality green cardamom, saffron and rose because not just the taste, the aroma is a huge part of the experience. 

    • I always buy fresh nuts and spices. I like to buy the ingredients in the same week as I am going to make the masala. You may be having nuts lying around in the fridge for 3 months. But, for thandai masala,I suggest buying fresh nuts since a variety of nuts go in, if one kind of nut is old, smelly or bitter in taste, the entire batch is spoiled. 
    • Taste a few nuts, seeds and spices (if you can for quality check before grinding).They should not be smelly or bitter. 
    • Wash the grinder jar nicely with warm warm and soap and completely dry before grinding. Even if you have a dedicated spice jar, you dont want your masala to smell of cumin that you grinded last week, right? Make sure that the blender jar is free of aroma of any other spice. 

    Ingredients Needed for Thandai Masala

    • Nuts - Almonds, cashews and pistachios. You can add a few pieces of walnuts if you wish. Other than these, I don't suggest any other nuts. My grandmother used almonds and cashews only. Almonds add the signature wonderful taste and the cashews add the creaminess which goes so well with milk. I add pistachios to mine because I love the taste with rose and saffron. 
    • Seeds- Traditionally char magaz or melon seeds are used and I do the same. You can easily buy them from indian stores and they last for 6-8 months in the freezer. They are amazing added to curry bases and pilafs. If not, I go for un roasted, unsalted sunflower seeds. White poppy seeds (khus-khus or Khas-Kash) are the second seed that go in. White poppy seeds are mellow and creamy in taste. The taste and the texture they add in cooking is totally different as compared to black poppy seeds.It is not unusual if you cannot find white poppy seeds(they are restricted in many countries due to opium categorization), simply skip. 
    • Spices & Aromatics - Black peppercorns and fennel seeds are a must when it comes to spices. I love to add a couple cloves, cinnamon and bit of nutmeg for warm notes. For the aromatics- green cardamom and edible rose petals.
    • Saffron Strands. Dont go overboard saffron. Thandai has a mellow saffron flavor and pale yellow color unless you are making kesar thandai. The flavor profile is a melange of nuttiness as well as warmth and aroma of all the spices with prominent notes of green cardamoms and hints of rose & saffron. 

    You can customize the flavors and spices as per your liking. Add or take away any spices you dont prefer. If there are kids at home, you can reduce the quantity of black peppercorns for a milder masala. It is again your choice if you want to make a wet thandai masala or a dry powder. I like making the latter since it has a long shelf life.

    Spices. nuts and seeds needed for making thandai masala powder on a white plate.

    Wet & Instant Thandai Masala

    To Make Instant Thandai Masala Powder, simple add all the nuts, seed and paste to a grinder (I use Vitamix) and grind for a minute. Stop and scrape the side. Once the nuts have broken down, just pulse several times. Make a fine powder until pulsing & stopping to make sure that nits do not release too much oil and turn pasty. Store in an airtight container for several weeks.

    To Make Wet Thandai Masala :- Soak the nuts, spices and seeds for 10 minutes in warm water. Drain and discard the water. Add everything to a blender, add milk and blend into a thick fine paste.Store refrigerated since wet thandai masala has a shorter shelf life.

    Instant Thandai Masala in a gold dish

    Thandai Ingredients

    • Whole Milk - You can use half or half as well. Or use Milk + Evaporated Milk. The creamier the milk, the better tasting the thandai will be. 
    • Thandai Powder or Paste - As noted above

    Steps of Making Thandai

    • Warm up Milk:- In a large, heavy bottom pot, bring milk to a slow boil. Keep stirring the milk every now and then. 
    • Simmer Milk with Sugar & Thandai Powder- Once milk is simmering, add the spice powder and sugar. Mix well and let the milk simmer for 10-15 minutes on low heat. You can stir the milk while it simmers. 
    • Let Steep :-Take off the stove and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Once little cooled, mix in the rose water and saffron. Let the flavors steep in milk for about 1.5 hours. Cover the pot and let stand on kitchen counter. 
    • Straining the Thandai (Optional) - My mom doesn't like to strain and she serves the thandai as it is. However, I like to strain it since my husband finds the taste a bit gritty. 
    • Refrigerate - Refrigerate the thandai for a few hours or overnight for best flavor. 
    • Serve over ice cubes. Garnish as you wish.

    Refer to recipe card for detailed instructions.

    Thandai being poured into glasses

    How To Serve & Store

    Serving - Serve chilled Thandai garnished with silvered nuts, rise petals and few strands of saffron. You can add some ice cubes if you wish. Serve with gujiya for perfect Holi grub!!

    Storing Thandai Masala - Store in air tight container for 6-8 weeks. Store it refrigerated to avoid the nuts from getting smelly. Always use a dry clean spoon to use it. Wet masala can be stored for 3-4 days refrigerated before it changes taste.

    Storing Thandai - It is a perfect make ahead drink. You can make it 2-3 days in advance and keep refrigerated. Trust me the flavors get better and better.

    Spiked Thandai

    Growing up, there used to be bhaang thandai for adults but we kids were given a chilled glass on its own. Sometimes mom would add malai (cream) on top.

    Bhang is made by grinding the buds and leaves of cannabis plant. During Holi bhaang paste is added to make bhaang thandai.

    I have never added bhaang but my husband loves to spike thandai with vodka or mix in few shots of tequila and its quite amazing! Give it a try.

    More Variations

    Mango Thandai

    Add some mango puree for a mango flavor.

    Rose Thandai

    Add rose syrup (like Rooh afza).

    Caramel Thandai

    Sweeten the thandai with caramel sauce

    Thandai in a glass garnished with nuts, rose petals and saffron. Closeup shot

    Tips

    • Add rose water and bloomed saffron after the thandai has cooled down a bit.
    • Allow to rest/steep for a few hours for best flavor.
    • You can use Thandai masala to your pancake batter, smoothies or oatmeal for a flavor boost.

    FAQs

    Can I Make Vegan Thandai?

    Use any nut based mylk like Cashew or Almond milk for vegan version. I won't recommend using oat or coconut. Use Maple syrup to sweeten if you wish.

    Can I use hemp seeds to mimick bhaang flavor?

    No. Hemp seeds sold in US stores are seeds of the cannabis plant used for wide range of medicinal and culinary products. Bhaang is made by grinding leaves of the cannabis plant. No. Hemp seeds sold in US stores are seeds of the cannabis plant used for wide range of medicinal and culinary products. Bhaang is made by grinding leaves of the cannabis plant. While they may or may not be part of the same plant- taste wise they are completely different and cannot be substituted.

    Thandai Featured Image

    Thandai Recipe (With Instant Thandai Powder)

    Tanvi Srivastava
    Thandai is an indian summer drink made with milk, nuts&seeds and spices.It is popular during festivals like Shivratri and Holi.
    5 from 8 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time 25 minutes mins
    Total Time 35 minutes mins
    Course Drinks
    Cuisine Indian
    Servings 6
    Calories 263 kcal

    Equipment

    • Mixer Grinder
    • Sauce Pot

    Ingredients
      

    For Instant Thandali Masala Powder (Makes 1 cup, makes extra)

    • 40-50 almonds raw
    • 20 cashews whole, raw
    • 2 tablespoon pistachios raw
    • 1.5 tablespoon white poppy seeds
    • 1.5 tablespoon fennel seeds
    • 25 black peppercorns
    • 20 green cardamom pod
    • 2 tablespoon dried rose petals
    • ½ teaspoon saffron strands
    • ¼ teaspoon nutmeg powder optional

    For Thandai

    • 4 cup whole milk
    • ½-3/4 cup thandai powder adjust to liking
    • 1 tablespoon rose water optional
    • ⅓ cup sugar adjust to taste

    Instructions
     

    To Make Thandai Masala

    • To Make Instant Thandai Masala Powder, simply add all the nuts, seed and paste to a grinder (I use Vitamix) and grind for 30 seconds. Stop and scrape the sides. Once the nuts have broken down, just pulse several times in intervals of 10-12 seconds. The nuts should be powdered but not release too much oil and turn pasty. Tip: You can roughly chop the nuts before grinding to make it easy on the grinder.
      To Make Wet Thandai Masala :- Soak the nuts, spices and seeds for 10 minutes in warm water. Drain and discard the water. Add everything to a blender, add 4-5 tablespoon milk (or as needed) and blend into a thick paste. Note:-You can use water to blend as well

    To Make Thandai

    • Warm up Milk:- In a large, heavy bottom pot, bring milk to a slow boil. Keep stirring the milk every now and then so that the milk does not stick to the bottom. 
    • Simmer Milk with Sugar & Thandai Powder- Once milk is simmering, add the thandai masala powder and sugar. Mix well and let simmer for 10-15 minutes on low heat. Stir intermittently while milk simmers. 
    • Let Steep :-Take off the stove and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Once little cooled, mix in the rose water and saffron. Let the flavors steep in milk for about 1.5 hours. Cover the pot and let stand on kitchen counter to completely cool down.
    • Straining the Thandai (Optional) - My mom doesn't like to strain and she serves the thandai as it is. However, I like to strain it since we find the taste a bit gritty. You can decide as per your liking.
    • Refrigerate the cooled thandai for atleast 4 hours or overnight for best flavor. 
    • Serve chilled. Garnish (optional) with nuts, rose petals and saffron strands

    Notes

    Thandai Masala
    • I add a few warm spices to my thandai masala for warm spice notes, you can skip if you wish. 
    • Store thandai masala refrigerated in air tight sterile containers. 
    • You can use Thandai masala to your pancake batter, smoothies or oatmeal for a flavor boost.
    • Skip white poppy seeds if you cannot find. 
    • Substitute melon seeds with unsalted sunflower seeds
    Thandai
    • Use Half Milk, Half Evaporated Milk for creamier thandai.
    • Add rose water and bloomed saffron after the thandai has cooled down a bit.
    • Allow to rest/steep for a few(4-6 hours) hours making it for best flavor.
    • Use almond or cashew milk for vegan thandai. 
    • Use maple or jaggery or honey instead of sugar to make refined sugar free version.
    • Thandai is a perfect make ahead drink. You can make it 2-3 days in advance and keep refrigerated.Trust me the flavors get better and better.
    • Spike it with vodka or shots of tequila. 
    Storing 
    Storing Thandai Masala - Store thandai masala powder in air tight container for 6-8 weeks. Store it refrigerated to avoid the nuts from getting smelly. Always use a dry clean spoon to use it. Wet masala can be stored for 3-4 days refrigerated before it changes taste.
    Storing Thandai - Thandai is a perfect make ahead drink. You can make it 2-3 days in advance and keep refrigerated. Trust me the flavors get better and better.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 263kcalCarbohydrates: 28gProtein: 10gFat: 14gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 20mgSodium: 66mgPotassium: 482mgFiber: 5gSugar: 20gVitamin A: 279IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 314mgIron: 2mg
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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