We were surfing food videos and one thing led to the other and were watching an artisan make lassi in Varanasi India. As temperatures soared on a Sunday afternoon, this Lassi just happened!

Sweetness of Saffron and Pistachios

Lassis we had on our trips to India recently seemed far too high on sugar. The syrupy effects add a thick consistency to lassi but seemed too overpowering. With saffron and pistachios we felt it even more important to use lesser sugar to let one taste both prominently. Also too much sweetness makes lassi one dimensional, and we also prefer slightly acidic yogurt with a hint of sourness.

Saffron itself smells sweet and give the feeling of sweetness and richness. We used a pinch of it per person and ground it in the mortar and pestle with the little sugar we used. Then added a few tea spoons of warm water and let it sit and infuse.

Get the right Yogurt

Check the ingredients list of your yogurt and it should not have anything but milk and cultures. We have found a yogurt we love called Traderspoint Creamery and it is from Indiana and uses grass fed cow milk. Better yet make your own yogurt. Also use whole milk yogurt, just reduce the portion size if you need to.

Also we love to top our lassi with cream/malai. For that we just buy one of the plain yogurts which comes with cream top and use the top!

Peeling the Pistachios

Although not an essential step the green pistachios do look gorgeous and provide a bit of a guilty luxury when eating to not have the skin. To peel boil the water and then add pistachios till skin starts loosening then drain and shock in ice water. Then drain onto a kitchen towel and rub between it. The skin will come off and you can pick off the peeled pistachios. You can then slice it thin or chop as needed.

Whisking the Yogurt

Actually whisking is exactly what you should avoid. Whisking makes the yogurt collapse. We just use the pestle to stir around the yogurt and stirring itself creates the emulsification you want without also trapping too much air or foaming that a blender will do. It will stay thick. Also do not add water. Just add very little milk, that too if needed. We mixed ours by adding the saffron and pistachios.

The assembly

After mixing the base with yogurt, splash of milk, saffron water and sugar and most of the chopped pistachios, pour lassi into the container. Dot the top with some cream top. Then drizzle a bit of the saffron water syrup. Top with pistachios.

Kesar Pista Lassi

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★★★★★

5 from 1 review

• Author: BreakingNaan
• Total Time: 15 mins
• Yield: Serves 2

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Ingredients

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• 2 cups whole milk yogurt (preferably no additives and grass fed)
• 2 to 4 tsp milk
• 2–3 tsp sugar (use 3 Tbsp to get india style sweeter lassi)
• 2 pinches saffron threads
• 0.25 tsp salt
• 10 shelled pistachios
• 2 tsp cream top of yogurt

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Instructions

1. Add saffron threads to sugar in a mortar
2. Crush to powder in mortar pestle and add 4 tsp warm water to create saffron infused syrup. Let stay for 10 minutes.
3. To peel boil the water and then add pistachios till skin starts loosening then drain and shock in ice water. Then drain onto a kitchen towel and rub between it. The skin will come off and you can pick off the peeled pistachios. You can then slice them thin or chop
4. Add yogurt to a mixing bowl, add all but 1 tsp of saffron syrup and Add all but few pistachios
5. Mix without whisk using pestle or a spoon so as not to collapse the yogurt. Add upto 4 tsp of milk if needed to get the right consistency. Season with salt as needed – a grain or two of salt lifts up the sweet flavors.
6. Pour lassi into serving cup to the brim. Top with 1 tsp cream top. Drizzle some saffron syrup. Top with pistachios.

• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 5 mins
• Category: Dessert
• Cuisine: Indian