Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Falooda / Faluda



Falooda / Faluda is a cold dessert / drink popular in the Indian sub continent. Traditionally it is prepared by mixing rose syrup, cooked vermicelli (falooda sev), soaked basil seeds/ tukhmaria/sabja, jelly pieces with some lightly sweetened milk. I have adopted a layer approach and layered the different ingredients (nuts, rose syrup, soaked basil seeds, noodles,jelly pieces and milk) and finally topped with a scoop of ice cream:) It  is perfect during hot summer days:)





Although, Falooda is very popular in India and Pakistan, the origins of Falooda go back to Persia where it was called Faloodeh. It is said to have made its entry in to India through the Muslim merchants and royal dynasties like "The Mughals" that  invaded the country and settled here.There are other variants of the popular Falooda served in many other countries like Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Mauritius etc. In Thailand, a drink named "Nam Manglak" is very much similar to Falooda. As I always believe , food brings us all together:)


Coming back to this recipe, you need to do some prep work but the assembly is super easy:)Also, once prepared, it has to be served immediately.So lets get started with the prep work..

Step 1
Soaked Basil Seeds: Sweet basil seeds are also called Tukhmaria or Sabza seeds. They are available in the Indian grocery store. Apart from being a source of coolant during summer, they are also said to be good for the skin, hair and digestive system. You can read more about their benefits here.
Take  1.5 tbsp of the sweet basil seeds and soak them in enough water for about an hour. They will swell up and obtain a gelatinous texture.Drain and set aside.






Step 2
Cooked Vermicelli / Falooda Sev: You can purchase these Falooda sev from the Indian grocery stores. They are generally made of corn flour. Cook the 1/2 cup of falooda sev as per the instructions mentioned in the packet. In my case, I cut the falooda sev into small pieces and added them to boiling water and cooked for about 5 minutes. Drained the hot water and let some cold water run through it. Drain and set it aside.





In case you do not get hold of the Falooda Sev, you can use the  wheat vermicelli that is used in Indian recipes/ desserts .
wheat vermicelli used in Indian recipes

Cook in enough water . Once done, drain. Run some cold water through it , drain and set aside.

Step 3
Jelly:
Prepare the jelly as per package instructions .I have prepared strawberry jelly. Set it aside to cool.






Step 4
Sweetened Milk: Add 1/4 cup of condensed milk to the 2 3/4 cups of regular milk and heat this sweetened milk in the microwave for a 5 minutes. Chill this sweetened milk in the refrigerator.


 Now with the prep work all done , lets prepare Falooda:)



INGREDIENTS
Note: All measurements are based on the US measuring cup and spoon sizes where 1 cup = 235 ml
Serves 4
  • Sweetened Milk : 3 cups
  • Rose Syrup / Rooh Afza : 6 tbsp
  • Jelly - 16 small scoops or cubes
  • Cooked Falooda Sev / vermicelli : 4 tbsp
  • Soaked Tukmariya / basil seeds : 4 tbsp
  • Vanilla ice cream - 4 scoops
  • Raisins : 16
  • Chopped / Slivered almonds : 2 tbsp
  • Rose petals for garnish (optional)
  • Everest  kesari milk masala (for sprinkling on top)


PROCEDURE:


  1. Take a tall glass. Put 1/2 tbsp slivered almonds and  about 4 raisins into the glass.
  2. Next, add 1.5 tbsp of  rose syrup / Rooh Afza.
  3. Add 1 tbsp of soaked sweet basil seeds / tukmaria / sabja.
  4. Add 1 tbsp of cooked Falooda sev / vermicelli.
  5. Add 4 small scoops or cubes of jelly.
  6. Slowly pour 3/4 cup of the chilled sweetened milk.
  7. Lastly, add a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
  8. Sprinkle some Everest kesari milk masala on top and garnish with rose petal.(Instead of the milk masala, you can simply put crushed pistachios on top and sprinkle small pinch of powdered cardamom powder).
  9. Repeat steps 1 to 8 for the remaining 3  tall glasses.



18 comments:

  1. This is such a visual stunner. Your beautiful clicks are making me drool. So nicely explained. This is a sure head turner at any party. Brilliant.

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    1. Ty so much Piyali:)Yes, Falooda is great for parties as it can be put together easily and has a visual appeal too:)

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  2. I really like it & this will make my family happy��

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  3. Falooda brings back memories of hot hot days in India. Love your recipe and presentation.

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  4. flooda is healthy and good, I was reading about it on a website last month. they used in summer drinks. Thanks for the awesome recipe.

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  5. Heard of Falooda, taste Falooda before, never made before but after seeing this falooda, I am all geared up.

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  6. Outstanding and a classic drink dear. My extremely fav drink. Lovely colors and ingredients. I personally liked ur glass very much.

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  7. Such an awesome awesome post! Delicious with layers of soothing textures and flavors. Cool and comforting pleaser. Gorgeous presentation. <3 Superb!

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  8. Who doesn't love a good rose flavored falooda? This one look exotic and so so delish, Shubha. Loved the fact you used jelly cubes! :)

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  9. Lovely falooda, another all time favourite dessert, nicely presented Shubha

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  10. love to try this sometime...wonderfully colourfull

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  11. lovely stunning and wonderful color/presentation!! did you had to give a stir once you add all the ingredients (before topping with icecream?)..wonder how the rose color sustained throughout the container! really mind-blowing stunning and most inviting! have to give it a try! Thanks for the detailed recipe.

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  12. What a gorgeous looking falooda dear...you nailed it!!....Just awesome dear!!

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  13. So glad to have found your recipe, Shubha. I have had falooda at Indian restaurants many times. This will definitely be on my to do list. I love too your gorgeous photos and presentation.

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  14. What a delicious falooda. I have not tried it at home. Will definitely try your recipe. Bookmarked !!

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  15. I really love Falooda with rose flavor. I was searching for the recipe and came across your site. The pics of Falooda look tempting. I will surely try it out. Thanks for sharing the recipe with us.

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