Kesar Pista Rabri – Saffron & Dry Fruit Laced Reduced Milk Dessert

by Shaheen Ali

A big shout to all those who have a sweet tooth like me !!! India has given us an enormous variety of desserts. Most have them carry a  traditional essence. One such dessert that is liked and loved by all and is a common preparations in festivals too… the royalty lies in it’s name, the one and only KesarPista Rabri !!!


You will rarely find someone who doesn’t like a thick and creamy Rabri laced with lots of exotic dry fruits and saffron. The recipe i have used has traditional methodology in which the milk is reduced in a large thick bottomed pan in slow heat and also has small pieces of solidified milk cream.

The slow cooking method gives a thick and creamy texture to the dessert which keeps You rolling your tongue inside to feel the smoothness and the abundant use of chopped dry fruits gives it a chewy texture that gives you a bite on each spoon.

Did you know that the quintessential Rabri from Calcutta has probably been handed down from the Rabri that is originally from Varanasi. This very rich dessert is made by heating sweetened milk in a large open vessel (kadhai). As the layer of cream begins to form on the surface of the milk, it is taken off and kept aside. The process continues until the milk is exhausted. The Rabri thus formed is extremely creamy and very heavy on the stomach, but loved by the average Bengali. Rabri was banned in Calcutta for sometime during the years of milk scarcity because of the fact that it uses up a large quantity of milk. So let us now learn how to make a traditional style Rabri ….

Print Recipe
KESAR PISTA RABRI - Saffron & Dry Fruit Laced Reduced Milk Dessert
Course dessert
Cuisine north indian
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 60 minutes
Servings
serving
Ingredients
For Garnishing :
Course dessert
Cuisine north indian
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 60 minutes
Servings
serving
Ingredients
For Garnishing :
Instructions
  1. Take a broad and thick bottomed pan. Pour milk in it and boil.
  2. Once the milk starts boiling, simmer the gas flames and let the milk reduce. This may take 30-35 mins or even more.
  3. Keep stirring in regular intervals just to avoid milk getting burnt from bottom.
  4. Meanwhile add cardamom powder, saffron strands and chopped dry fruit. You can also soak saffron in a small bowl of milk before adding. This will give immediate color to the Rabri. I added directly so it's completely your choice.
  5. Once you see the milk reducing from it's original level, you will find the cream sticking all around the pan. Keep scratching it with a spatula and add in the milk. Don't forget to stir.
  6. Now add sugar and stir continuously till it dissolves.
  7. Keep scrapping small cream chunks collected on the side of pan into milk (this will make delicious small cream chunks in rabri). Cook for 2 minutes and turn off flame. Let it return to room temperature naturally. Refrigerate it for at least 2 hours before serving.
  8. Transfer the chilled Kesar Pista Rabri into serving bowls and garnish it with sliced Pistachios, rose petals, silver leaf and saffron strands.
  9. Your Saffron and Dry Fruit laced Rabri is ready to serve. Serve Chilled !!!
Recipe Notes

Powered by WP Ultimate Recipe

You may also like

3 comments

Sumi August 6, 2017 - 10:13 am

Trying this for Reaching tomorrow.. Thanks for the awesome recipe.

Reply
Sumi August 6, 2017 - 10:15 am

Oops that is Raakhi

Reply
Shaheen Ali August 6, 2017 - 5:11 pm

Thanks Sumi 🙂 Lemme know how it turned out and yesss, Happy Rakshabandhan 💕

Reply

Leave a Comment

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Accept Read More

Privacy & Cookies Policy