If you are a fan of thandai, then try making this instant thandai powder that will get ready in just 10 minutes. Store this thandai powder and enjoy your favourite drink any time.
About This Recipe
Thandai is a very popular drink prepared during the festival of Mahashivaratri and Holi. Thandai powder is a quick way to enjoy your thandai any time. This instant masala gets ready in just few minutes and can be stored in refrigerator. Not only this thandai powder is used to make thandai drink, it can also be used to prepare a variety of desserts and baked goodies like thandai mathri, thandai cake, thandai mousse and more.
All the ingredients added to prepare thandai powder has great health benefits.
Ingredients
Nuts – We have used almonds and pistachios. You can use cashews as well. Either you can use a combination of 2 or 3 nuts or use any 1.
Spices & Kesar – Whole spices like peppercorns, green cardamom along with the flavour of kesar (saffron) makes this drink refreshing and flavourful.
Seeds – For the seeds, we have used melon seeds, poppy seeds, and fennel seeds. In case you don’t get melon or poppy seeds, you can skip adding them to the recipe. Do not skip adding fennel seeds (variyali), as it is one of the main ingredient of thandai and you will not enjoy thandai without the flavour of variyali.
Thandai Syrup v/s Thandai Powder
How to prepare thandai using thandai syrup
We have shared the recipe for thandai syrup. Preparing thandai syrup is a very easy process, but a little time-consuming. The time goes in collecting ingredients and soaking them. All the soaked items are crushed well and then it has to be boiled with sugar syrup to achieve the consistency. The benefit of making thandai syrup is that you can instantly prepare thandai drink using it. Just add 2-3 tablespoon thandai syrup to ¾ – 1 cup milk and mix well. You can use hot, warm or cold milk.
So in a nutshell, while it takes time to prepare thandai syrup, you can prepare thandai instantly with it.
But in case of thandai powder, you need to simmer it for a few minutes so that flavours are absorbed well.
How to prepare thandai using thandai powder
In comparison to syrup, thandai powder gets ready in just 10 minutes. Just collect all the ingredients and crush. But to prepare thandai drink using thandai powder, heat 1 cup milk in a pan over medium heat. Once the milk comes to a boil, add about 1-1.5 tablespoon of thandai masala powder and let it simmer on low-medium flame for 4-5 minutes. By doing so all the thandai masala flavours will be absorbed in milk. In the end, add sugar/rock sugar (mishri) to taste and simmer for another minute till it gets dissolved.
Let it come to room temperature. Strain it using a fine-mesh strainer or a muslin cloth. Serve at room temperature or chilled.
How to Prepare Thandai Powder – Step by Step Recipe
Remove seeds from cardamom.
In a small mixer jar, combine cardamom seeds, fennel seeds and peppercorns. Grind to make powder. Now pass this through a sieve with big holes. No need to use a fine strainer or sieve.
Keep the fine powder collected in the bowl aside.
Put the coarse powder (collected in the sieve) into medium sized mixer jar. To it add the remaining ingredients – almonds, pista, melon seeds, poppy seeds and saffron. Grind to a fine powder. Pulse the mixer at intervals of 10-20 seconds but not longer. Otherwise nuts will release its moisture and you will end up getting a sticky thandai powder.
Once crushed well, take it out in a bowl and add prepared fine powder of cardamom seeds, fennel seeds and peppercorns to it. Mix.
Store this thandai powder in an air tight container in refrigerator for about 2-3 months.
Storage
Store thandai powder in an air tight container in refrigerator for about 2-3 months. Take out only the required quantity and again close the lid tightly and put it back in refrigerator. Make sure container is dry before you store the powder.
Tips & Tricks
- Reduce the quantity of black pepper, if you prefer less spicy taste. Similarly you can also increase the quantity if you prefer a spiced thandai drink.
- The quantity of all the ingredients can be adjusted as per taste and availability.
- In case you don’t get melon or poppy seeds, you can skip adding them to the recipe.
- While grinding, pulse the mixer at intervals of 10-20 seconds but not longer. Otherwise nuts will release its moisture and you will end up getting a sticky thandai powder.
- We have used almonds and pistachios, but you can you any one of them or can even use other nuts like cashews and walnuts.
- If you like rose flavour, add about 2 teaspoon dried rose petals while grinding.
More Holi Special Recipes
Recipe Card
Instant Thandai Powder
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Ingredients (1 cup = 240 ml)
- 5-6 peppercorns / sabut kali mirch reduce the quantity if you prefer less spicy taste
- 15-20 cardamom / elaichi
- 2 tablespoon fennel seeds / variyali / saunf
- ½ cup almonds / badam
- ½ cup pistachio / pista
- 1 tablespoon melon seeds / magaz / kharbooje ke beej
- 1 tablespoon poppy seeds / khus khus
- pinch of saffron / kesar
Instructions
- Remove seeds from cardamom.
- In a small mixer jar, combine cardamom seeds, fennel seeds and peppercorns. Grind to make powder. Now pass this through a sieve with big holes. No need to use a fine strainer or sieve.
- Keep the fine powder collected in the bowl aside.
- Put the coarse powder (collected in the sieve) into medium sized mixer jar. To it add the remaining ingredients – almonds, pista, melon seeds, poppy seeds and saffron. Grind to a fine powder. Pulse the mixer at intervals of 10-20 seconds but not longer. Otherwise nuts will release its moisture and you will end up getting a sticky thandai powder.
- Once crushed well, take it out in a bowl and add prepared fine powder of cardamom seeds, fennel seeds and peppercorns to it. Mix.
- Store this thandai powder in an air tight container in refrigerator for about 2-3 months.
- To prepare thandai drink using thandai powder, heat 1 cup milk in a pan over medium heat. Once the milk comes to a boil, add about 1-1.5 tablespoon of thandai masala powder and let it simmer on low-medium flame for 4-5 minutes. By doing so all the thandai masala flavours will be absorbed in milk. In the end, add sugar/rock sugar (mishri) to taste and simmer for another minute till it gets dissolved. Let it come to room temperature. Strain it using a fine-mesh strainer or a muslin cloth. Serve at room temperature or chilled.
Video
Notes
- Reduce the quantity of black pepper, if you prefer less spicy taste. Similarly you can also increase the quantity if you prefer a spiced thandai drink.
The quantity of all the ingredients can be adjusted as per taste and availability.
In case you don’t get melon or poppy seeds, you can skip adding them to the recipe. - While grinding, pulse the mixer at intervals of 10-20 seconds but not longer. Otherwise nuts will release its moisture and you will end up getting a sticky thandai powder.
- We have used almonds and pistachios, but you can you any one of them or can even use other nuts like cashews and walnuts.
- If you like rose flavour, add about 2 teaspoon dried rose petals while grinding.
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