In India we call mango the “king of fruits” and the title is well deserved. Every summer I wait with joyful anticipation to gorge my way through lots of mangoes. Most days I prefer to have only mangoes for lunch. They are delicious and super nutritious for your body. The best part is that you can eat mangoes in so many different ways – have them as it is or in salads, make a simple sabzi from semi ripe mangoes, enjoy aamras- puri or even make shrikhand out of them ( popularly called aamrakhand ). The list is never ending.
This mango kulfi recipe is super easy but very impressive mostly because I use the fruit itself as the kulfi mould. I got this idea from a popular kulfiwala in old delhi called kuremals kulfi.
I have used alphonso mangoes in this recipe because of 2 main reasons. First is that the these mangoes are firm and easier to handle while coring and deseeding, second because they are uniform in size and easier to freeze once filled with the kulfi mixture. In this recipe I have used the pulp from the alphonso mangoes for flavouring the kulfi but if you want you can use the same quantity of 50-50 mixture of alphonso and paayri mangoes for a more tangy taste.
To reduce the milk I have used a flat and wide mouth pan. This helps to thicken the milk faster since the surface area available for evaporation is higher. That is why halwais use huge wide kadais for making khoya and pedas. It is also easier to stir frequently and scrape the bottom in a flatter pan, to avoid scalding of milk .
- Milk - 750 ml
- Sugar - 80 gms
- Mangoes - 5 (about 150gms each)
- Mango pulp - 170 gms
- Choose firm but ripe mangoes of medium size. Slice the top part near the stem and reserve it for later use.
- With the help of a sharp knife and spoon, start scooping out the pulp and seed from the fruit. You can rub the mango between your hands with light pressure to loosen the pulp. Reserve the pulp.
- Heat 30 gms sugar and mango pulp till it thickens a little and the sugar has dissolved completely. This step is necessary to remove extra water from the pulp which may make the kulfi icy and it also avoids blackening (oxidation) of the fruit which helps to retain a bright golden yellow colour.
- Pass the pulp through a sieve to remove the large lumps of mango pieces.
- Boil milk and sugar till almost half. Keep stirring continuously to stop the milk from sticking to the bottom and burning. Chill in the fridge for 2-3 hours.
- Mix the cold fruit puree and the reduced milk together . You can use a hand blender for uniform mixing.
- Fill this mix into the hollowed out mangoes. Place the mangoes in the freezer until ready to serve ( 24hrs is best).
- You can put the mangoes in small bowls to keep them upright in the freezer to avoid spilling the mix for the first 3-4 hours. Once they are frozen solid you can remove the bowls.
- Keep stirring the milk while boiling it. This stops it from burning at the bottom and also prevents the skin from forming. It is better to have a smooth textured reduced milk (like basundi), rather than having bits of skin in it (like rabdi).
- Nevertheless if skin forms you can blend it with a hand blender before mixing with the puree for a smoother texture.
To watch in English :-
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To watch in Hindi :-
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