Basundi is sweet and thickened milk flavored with saffron, cardamom, and chopped nuts. It is a creamy, decadent, luscious, and delicious Indian dessert!
Basundi is an Indian sweet, primarily popular in Gujarat, Maharashtra, and some parts of South India. Making this dessert requires only a few ingredients, and it is a fairly straightforward recipe.
Creamy and Delicious Milk Dessert Basundi
As a Gujarati, I grew up with this delicious and creamy dessert. My mom often made Basundi when guests came over for lunch or our family’s Sunday special meal.
Also, you can find Basundi on the menu of wedding ceremonies. And we also make this dairy-based dessert during various Indian festivals.
I often make Basundi, as we love milk-based Indian desserts; other popular desserts include Rice Kheer, Carrot Kheer, and Paneer Kheer.
Here, I am sharing a traditional Gujarati Basundi recipe, where milk is cooked until it reduces significantly, becoming thick and rich. Then it is sweetened with sugar, flavored with saffron and cardamom, and topped with chopped nuts.
If you’d like to make an instant Basundi, you can use milk and condensed milk.
Why You Will Love Basundi
- Basundi is a creamy, rich, luscious, and decadent dessert.
- It’s an easy yet excellent recipe.
- The recipe requires only two core ingredients.
- It is a traditional Indian dessert.
- Basundi is a dessert for all ages.
Ingredients and Notes
- Milk: It is essential to use full-fat milk or whole milk for a creamy and luscious Basundi. I live in Canada, and we have whole milk with 3.25% fat here. I always add cream or half-and-half to my milk-based desserts to make them creamy and rich.
- Cream: It is optional to use the cream for this recipe. And if you use full-fat milk with 4-6% fat, you do not need to add cream. However, as I mentioned above, I added cream to my recipe because, where I live, milk comes with only 3.25% fat. In this case, use cream or half-and-half to make the dessert creamier.
- Saffron: I love to add saffron to Basundi for a bright color and flavor. However, to keep the Basundi white or off-white, skip adding saffron.
- Sugar: Use white sugar to retain the color of Basundi. Additionally, adjust the amount of sugar to suit your personal sweet preferences.
- Nuts: I have added slivered almonds and pistachios to Basundi. And then also garnished it with a few more nuts.
- Ground Cardamom: This spice provides a warm and pleasant flavor to this decadent Indian dessert. You can also add a pinch of ground nutmeg with cardamom if you like.
How To Make Basundi
- Take the milk and cream (if using) into a wide and thick-bottomed pan or pot. Add saffron strands.
- On medium heat, bring milk to a boil. Keep stirring the milk regularly to prevent it from sticking to the bottom.
- Once the milk starts boiling, let it simmer on low to medium heat until it has reduced to almost half.
- Make sure to keep stirring at regular intervals, and don’t let the cream (Malai) layer form on top of the milk.
- Also, keep scraping the sides of the pan, and stir any milk solids back into the milk.
- Add sugar, cardamom, and nuts once the milk has thickened and reached the desired consistency.
- Mix well, then taste and adjust the sugar as needed. Continue cooking for 5 minutes, and turn off the heat.
- Cover the pan and let it cool completely.
- Then, chill the Basundi for at least 2-3 hours. Next, pour it into a serving bowl and garnish with additional nuts and rose petals.
- You can also serve the Basundi hot or warm if you like.
Serving Suggestions
You can serve Basundi on its own after a meal or as part of a feast Thali.
I love chilled Basundi, but you can also serve it hot or warm if you like.
Basundi Poori is a fantastic combination and is popular during festivals and weddings.
You can also consume Basundi during fasting days, such as Navratri.
Storing Suggestions
Basundi keeps well in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Once it has cooled completely, store it in an airtight container and refrigerate it.
Helpful Tips For Basundi
Milk: Use only full-fat or whole milk to make creamy and rich Basundi.
Cream: If you use milk with 5-6% fat, skip adding cream. Here in Canada, whole milk comes with 3.25% fat, so I like to add either half-and-half cream or heavy cream to make the Basundi creamier and luscious.
Sugar: Add sugar to taste according to your sweet preference. Initially, add ½ cup of sugar, then taste and add more sugar if necessary.
Cooking: Use a heavy-bottomed and wide pan or pot for cooking milk. That way, there will be less chance of milk sticking to the bottom. Once the milk comes to a boil, gently simmer it on low to medium heat for the best Basundi texture. While cooking the milk, keep stirring frequently and avoid allowing the cream layer to form on top of the milk.
Spices: I highly recommend adding ground cardamom. However, if you want, you can skip adding saffron. You can add a pinch of nutmeg powder, in addition to cardamom, if you prefer.
Nuts: I have added almonds and pistachios, but you can add your choice of nuts.
Scaling: This recipe can be easily halved or doubled as needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
The ingredients for Basundi and Rabri are almost identical, but their cooking methods, textures, and consistencies differ. Basundi is popular in western parts of India, while Rabri is more famous in northern parts of India. While Rabri is very thick and pudding-like, Basundi is thinner with a smooth consistency.
More Delicious Desserts
You May Like More Indian Sweets
- Ricotta Cheese Peda / Kesar Peda with Ricotta Cheese
- Burfi Recipe / Mawa Burfi / Khoya Barfi
- Milk Peda / Kesar Malai Peda
- Sandesh – Bengali Sweet Recipe
- Kalakand / Easy Kalakand Recipe
Recipe Card
Basundi / How To Make Basundi
Ingredients
- 2-liters (8 cups) whole milk or full-fat milk
- 250ml (1 cup) cream or half and half cream (optional / see notes)
- A few saffron strands
- 10 tablespoon sugar (or to taste)
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
- 3 tablespoon chopped or slivered nuts (plus more for garnishing)
Instructions
- Take milk and cream (if using) into a wide, thick-bottomed pan or pot. Add saffron strands.
- On medium heat, bring milk to a boil. Keep stirring the milk at regular intervals to prevent it from sticking to the bottom.
- Once the milk starts boiling, let it simmer on low-medium heat until it reduces to almost half.
- Make sure to keep stirring at regular intervals, and don’t let the cream (Malai) layer form on the top of the milk.
- Also, keep scraping the sides of the pan, and stir any milk solids back into the milk.
- Add sugar, cardamom, and nuts once the milk is thickened and you have achieved the right consistency.
- Mix well, taste, and adjust the sugar if you need to. Continue cooking for 5 minutes, and turn off the heat.
- Cover the pan and set it aside to cool completely.
- Then chill the Basundi for at least 2-3 hours, then pour into a serving bowl and garnish it with more nuts and rose petals.
- You can also serve the Basundi hot or warm if you like.
Serving Suggestions
- You can serve Basundi on its own after a meal or in a feast Thali.
- I love chilled Basundi, but you can also serve it hot or warm if you like.
- Basundi Poori is a fantastic combination and popular during festivals and weddings.
- You can also consume Basundi during the fasting days like Navratri.
Storing Suggestions
- Basundi keeps well in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Once it is cooled completely, store it in an airtight container and place it in the fridge.
Notes
- Milk: Use only full-fat or whole milk to make creamy and rich Basundi.
- Cream: If you use milk with 5-6% fat, skip adding cream. Here in Canada, the whole milk comes with 3.25% fat, so I like to add either half and half cream or heavy cream to make the Basundi creamier and luscious.
- Sugar: Add sugar as per your sweet preference. Initially, add ½ cup of sugar, taste, and add more sugar if you need to.
- Cooking: Use a heavy-bottomed and wide pan or pot for cooking milk. That way, there will be less chance of sticking milk to the bottom. Once the milk comes to a boil, gently simmer the milk on low-medium heat for the best Basundi texture. While cooking the milk, keep stirring frequently, and don’t let the cream layer form on the top of the milk.
- Spices: I highly recommend adding ground cardamom. However, if you want, you can skip adding saffron. You can add a pinch of nutmeg powder other than cardamom if you like.
- Nuts: I have added almonds and pistachios, but you can add your choice of nuts. Scaling: This recipe can easily be halved or doubled as per the requirements.
Thanks for coming! Let me know what you think.