If you are in search of different holi recipes to try out this year, here are some amazing thandai recipes that you can make.
Thinking of holi foods, how can we not mention thandai! This is one thing that people absolutely love drinking while enjoying the festival of colours. This year, holi celebrations won’t be the same due to the pandemic situation but you can totally gorge on your favourite foods. While you would be excited about the traditional holi recipes, let us not forget that thandai is also a holi food that helps in keeping the body cool. Besides, it also tastes great and uplifts the festival fever. Prepare thandai the traditional way or you can also try some unconventional thandai recipes. Take cues from this article and impress everyone with your new and delectable thandais.
Rose Thandai
If you are a fan of the royal rose flavour, you must try out rose thandai this year. It is healthy because all the ingredients that would go in this thandai are good for health including low-fat or skimmed milk, dry fruits, fresh rose petals or gulkand. We don’t suggest using rose essence as it won’t give the natural flavour to your thandai.
Also, you can prepare thandai mix at home or purchase one from the market that comes as a premix of ingredients including herbs and spices. Mix as per the directions given on the pack. For the enchanting rose flavour, either add gulkand to it or grind fresh rose petals and mix it with the thandai mix and milk. Keep it in the refrigerator to serve chilled.
Guava Thandai
Next amazing thandai recipe is made of guava fruit. The best is using pink guava for this thandai to give it a nice blush pink colour and sweet flavour. To your conventional thandai jar, add fresh pink guava pulp. For that, just blend some guavas and sieve the mixture to get rid of the seeds. Add a handful of chopped nuts, chia seeds and scented spices to make the perfect thandai glass. Serve chilled to your guests.
Mango Thandai
If you are a mango fan and eagerly waiting to gorge on them, well, mangoes become available around this time of the year though they may not taste like the seasonal ones but you can totally add them to get the flavour. Just blend in freshly chopped mangoes with skimmed milk and add thandai mix to it. You can also add some sugar or natural sweeteners to make it sweet since mangoes would be having a tanginess to them. Add generous amount of nuts and seeds to make it wholesome and healthy. You can also add mango jelly or tutti-frooti on the top to enhance the presentation.
Almond Milk Thandai
If you are celebrating with your gang, you need something more energetic to lift your energies high without increasing the calories, right? If yes, then you must replace regular milk with almond milk. This would not only enhance the energy factor but also double up the taste factor. This refreshing thandai recipe is super easy to make and rich in healthy ingredients including dry fruits, seeds and aromatic spices.
Mix thandai mix into the jar of almond milk. Add sugar-free or stevia(if you are making a sugar-free thandai option) or you can also add sugar to make it a little sweeter. Top it off with almond flakes and a stand of saffron.
Soymilk Thandai
Just like almond milk thandai, you can also prepare soy milk thandai. This is perfect for people who are on a diet and like to have soy milk instead of regular milk or other flavoured milks. This is also an aromatic milk option that can be used for preparing thandai for holi treats.
Boil soy milk and add thandai premix to it. Additionally, you can also add fennel seeds, cardamom to enhance the flavour. This is totally optional as you can add or eliminate anything as per your liking and taste preferences. Fennel seeds have a cold tendency and therefore, these are best options for thandai and other summer drinks. Chop some dry fruits of your choice to finish off this delicious thandai recipe.
Tea Thandai
For chai lovers out there, we have an amazing tea thandai recipe for you. And no, this won’t taste like tea! This is basically ice tea version of thandai that has tea flavour but it doesn’t look or taste like regular milk tea. Just like how refreshing and soothing iced tea can be during the hot summer weather, iced tea thandai would also do wonders in cooling down the body heat. Boil milk with some tea leaves(either Assam tea or other herbal teas), cardamom and dry fruits. The ultimate tea thandai is ready!
Thandai Phirni
Have you ever thought about merging drink and dessert together? If not, today is the time. Let us tell you how to make the perfect and out-of-the-box holi food with thandai phirni. Phirni is a loved dessert made with milk and rice. To make this, first prepare thandai like you would usually do. Now, boil this mixture and add broken rice or blended rice to it. Let them boil and keep stirring from time to time until you get the right phirni texture. Add dry fruits and saffron strands to make it look palatable.
Conclusion
Thandai is a traditional drink but it can be modified in numerous ways. You can try these methods to make thandai for your family and friends this holi. They would certainly love them.