Thandai (Cooling Nut and Spice Milk, Street Style)
A celebration of spring spices! Ayurvedic panacea with nuts and roses
Description
Sacred cooling beverage drunk at Holi (Festival of Colors)/Maha Shivaratri, dissolving paste of crushed almonds, melon seeds, fennel, black pepper, rose petals in cold milk.
Restaurants serving Thandai (Cooling Nut and Spice Milk, Street Style)
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On this site you can check dictionary details and, later, places to buy or eat related items.
The Recipe section below is a general reference, not a recipe from the listed shops.
Recipe
Ingredients
- Milk
- Almond
- Cashew
- Melon seeds
- Fennel
- Black pepper
- Rose petals
- Saffron
- Cardamom
- Sugar
Instructions
- [For
- Servings/Ingredients] 500ml cold full-fat milk,
- tbsp sugar, For Thandai paste (
- each almonds/cashews/pistachios,
- tbsp watermelon/melon seeds,
- tbsp fennel seeds,
- black peppercorns,
- cardamom pods, saffron pinch,
- tbsp dried rose petals, little water).
- Soak almonds, cashews, melon seeds, fennel seeds, black peppercorns, rose petals in water since previous night to soften.
- Peel almond thin skins, put all soaked ingredients, saffron, cardamom in mortar (or mixer), adding little water making smooth sticky highly-aromatic 'Thandai paste'.
- At street stalls enveloped in Holi (Festival of Colors) frenzy, put massive ice-cold full-fat milk and ice in large bowl.
- Dump pre-made Thandai paste and sugar by tbsp there, vigorously stirring 'shaka-shaka!' using traditional wooden masher (or whisk) completely integrating milk/paste.
- Pour into unglazed vessel (Kulhad) or glass cup, scatter crushed pistachios, saffron, rose petals on top to serve. Rich nut depth, fennel freshness, and black pepper stimulation popping back of throat instantly cool down heat-flushed bodies—sacred Ayurveda drink.
Learn more Spice, substitutes, tips
Key spices
Fennel、Black pepper、Cardamom、Saffron
Substitutes at Japanese supermarkets
Dilute commercial Thandai syrup with milk (lacks authentic freshness but subbable)
Pairing
Alongside Holi (Festival of Colors) sweets(Gujiya etc.)
Trivia
[Hardcore] 'Thanda' means 'cold' in Hindi. Absolutely indispensable in 'Holi' celebrating spring's arrival or Shiva festivals. Ayurvedically cooling ingredients (melon seeds/fennel) are meticulously calculated/formulated. Some stalls serve it mixed with cannabis paste (Bhang) as 'Bhang Thandai (Bhang Lassi)' boosting festival frenzy further, but regular version is non-alcoholic legal supreme health drink.
Eating tips & etiquette
[Unique Eating] Hold glass with both hands, wash cold milk down throat while tasting 'chewingly' the crushed nut/spice graininess remaining as grit in milk!
Allergen
Dairy, Tree nuts