How to make the perfect kulfi

Kulfi (the proper name for the dalek-shaped ices found at the end of Indian restaurant menus on the rare occasion that your appetite makes it that far) isn’t just the Hindi word for ice-cream – and it’s not just the exotic flavourings that make it taste so special.

Where western ice creams are egg-custard based, often with added cream, kulfi is traditionally made from milk alone, simmered for hours – what it loses in volume it gains in gorgeous nutty caramelised flavour. It really is quite unlike any other ice.

Modern shortcuts, as used (I suspect) to produce the kulfi served in most British curry houses, substitute commercial evaporated milk, but connoisseurs aren’t impressed; as Caroline and Robin Weir put it in their masterwork, Ice Creams, Sorbets and Gelati: “The original way of making it is time-consuming and tedious but it really is worth the effort as shortcut versions do not have the same flavour and texture.” Are they right – can the average person tell the difference?

The milk

The Weir’s traditional recipe (they also give a quicker version that they damn with faint praise as “a very acceptable dessert to follow a curry at home”) simmers whole milk until reduced in volume by two-thirds. This can, they warn, take up to four hours. Mine, of course, takes even longer, and it’s not something you can leave to its own devices; given milk’s tendency to catch, the pan requires stirring “very frequently”. You’ll need some decent music or, possibly, an entire weekend newspaper spread out next to the hob to keep you entertained. The results are well worth it though. It has the authentic chewy texture, and a gorgeous subtle caramel flavour that makes up for the fact that it completely stole my Saturday morning.

The other ones I try all truncate the process in various ways. Rick Stein, who reckons kulfi “more often tastes to me just like vanilla ice cream flavoured with cardamom” combines milk and evaporated milk in his book India, and reduces them by about half, which takes just over an hour. The texture is good, but the flavour less interesting than the Weirs’ version.

Meera Sodha, author of Made in India, who writes evocatively of her Bengali family’s passion for ices, uses a mixture of evaporated milk and double cream for her quick method, simmered for a mere five minutes. The results are amazingly good for such an easy recipe: rich and creamy, with a lovely flavour – but it still lacks the elusive caramel tang of my first effort.

Charmaine Solomon’s recipe in the India and Pakistan volume of her Complete Asian Cookbook thickens three-quarters of the milk with arrowroot, and boils the remainder down to the consistency of “thick batter” before stirring in thick cream. It has a good texture, but again, though delicious (let’s be honest, it’s hard to make an ice cream that isn’t), the flavour just isn’t quite right.

Food writer and TV chef Manju Malhi’s recipe also uses a thickener, in her case cornflour mixed with a little milk, but that’s the only part straight milk plays; instead she combines the evaporated and condensed varieties with thick double cream for a creamy result that tastes uncannily like a Milky Bar. I know, in my heart of hearts, even as I finish the tub, that are no shortcuts to the perfect kulfi. Milk, reduced by two-thirds, is the only way to go.

Sugar

Malhi’s recipe at least has the benefit of requiring no extra sugar thanks to the condensed milk. Sodha uses caster, Solomon doesn’t specify, the Weirs suggest unrefined granulated and Stein recommends a mixture of caster and jaggery, an unrefined sugar popular in south and south-east Asia. Much as I love the last, its pungent treacly flavour masks the natural caramel notes of the reduced milk, rendering four hours work pointless. It seems a shame to use boring old caster though – subtle demerara is the best compromise, and not too much of it either; though Indian desserts are notoriously sweet, you should still be able to taste the milk.

Flavourings

As usual, this is very much a matter of personal preference. I try, variously, pistachio and rosewater from the Weirs, Sodha’s pistachio and saffron, Stein’s cardamom and cashew, Solomon’s kewra (screwpine essence), almond and pistachio and Malhi’s simple cardamom. My favourite is Sodha’s pistachio-heavy kulfi shot through with the subtle richness of saffron, but feel free to substitute any of the above, or indeed, experiment with flavours of your own if you’re feeling adventurous. Lychee, mango and even paan (betel) are common in its homeland. Whatever you use, Stein’s pinch of salt is a good balance.

Method

Malhi blitzes her kulfi mix with a hand blender before freezing, and Solomon suggests stirring every few hours to keep the nuts evenly distributed, but I don’t think either is necessary – unlike ice cream, which is churned to trap air as it freezes, kulfi relies on hard freezing for its distinctive rock-hard consistency.

Conical kulfi moulds are surprisingly tricky to come by, even down in the Asian supermarkets of east London, but I find them online – that said, freezing it in an ordinary container, as Malhi and Solomon do, works perfectly fine. You will note from the photographs that I find it almost impossible to get them out of the moulds in one piece, not least because mine come without the requisite stand to keep them upright in the freezer, so they all have wonky bottoms. Any tips much appreciated!

How to make the perfect kulfi

(Makes 5 portions)
1.25l whole milk
75g demerara sugar
Pinch of salt
Pinch of saffron
Oil, to grease
40g pistachios, finely chopped

Put the milk in a wide saucepan or clean frying pan, and bring to the boil, ideally over a heat diffuser if you have one, stirring constantly. Note how full the pan is at this point.

Turn the heat down a bit and simmer gently until reduced to about a third of its original volume – about 415ml (ladle into a heatproof jug to check), stirring regularly and scraping down the sides of the pan towards the end. Beware, this will take about 4 hours, so make sure you have a stool, and something good to read or watch, near the hob.

Stir in the sugar, salt and saffron, and simmer for another 5 minutes. Allow to cool.

Grease kulfi moulds, if you have them, and sprinkle with chopped pistachios. Stir the remainder into the mixture and add to the moulds. If you don’t have them, stir most of the nuts into the mixture and pour into a freezer-proof container, keeping back a spoonful of nuts as garnish.

Freeze for at least 6 hours. To release, take out of the freezer about 5 minutes before you want to serve and dip the moulds, if using, briefly in hot water.

Kulfi – are you a fan of the daleks, and if not, which Indian dessert would you like to recommend people save space for? And if so, which other flavours would you recommend? And someone – what’s the most reliable way of getting them out of the moulds without fuss?