Mango kulfi | Indian mango ice cream

Oh so delicious mango kulfi! We finally have some sunny weather here in the Netherlands. The past few weeks it has been grey (luckily not raining), but we haven't had much sunshine. However, the past few days have been glorious with warm weather and sunny days. The perfect excuse to have a mango kulfi. 

I actually made this mango kulfi a while back when we were still getting delicious Alphonso mangoes from the Indian supermarkets here. I saved a few kulfi because one of my friends from my bachelors is visiting this past week. It has been so nice to see her and we enjoyed these mango kulfi together!

What is mango kulfi? 
Kulfi is basically the Indian version of ice-cream. However, Western style ice-cream is whipped - usually resulting in a light texture. Kulfi is not whipped, which means that the final product is denser and creamier - almost like a custard. 

Traditionally, kulfis are made by simmering milk on a low heat until you are left with the creamy milk solids. Sugar is added and then the mixture is frozen. From this you get kulfi in its most basic form and it is called "malai kulfi" (malai meaning milk in Hindi). The slow cooking of the milk results in a distinct almost caramelised like flavour which is so different from the western style ice cream. 

These days many people also add other flavourings to their kulfi, such as saffron, cardamom, strawberry, paan (Indian betel leaf) and mango. Mango is my personal favourite! I made this kulfi by reducing whole milk on the hob. At the same time, I also added some condensed milk and milk powder for a lovely creaminess. This saves a bit of energy and cooking and means you can have these mango kulfi ready in a short amount of time, whilst still getting the delicious authentic kulfi style flavour. 

Ingredients 
Makes 12-15 medium-small kulfi
1 litre / 4 cups full fat milk 
125 g / 1 cup milk powder 
1 can / 397g condensed milk 
1 tbsp cornflour or cornstarch mixed with a few tbsp of milk 
1 1/2 cups / 375ml mango pulp tinned or freshly blended (use mangoes which aren't stringy) 

Pinch saffron strands soaked in a few tsp warm milk 
1 tsp cardamom powder 

For the moulds 
Wooden sticks 
Small paper cups 

Method
Cook time - 45 mins, freezing time - 8 hrs (or overnight)

• Take a heavy bottomed pan and place on medium heat. Add the milk and soaked saffron strands, and heat until warm (you should be able to dip your finger in the milk without it burning you). 
  
  
• Lower the heat and then add the milk powder & condensed milk. Whisk well to ensure that no lumps form. 
  
  
• Finally, mix in the cornflour slurry. The mixture will thicken considerably. You want to reach a stage where it coats the back of a spoon and has a smooth and glossy texture. 
  
  
• When the mixture has thickened, mix in the cardamom powder. 
  
  
• Let the mixture cool down completely before mixing in the tinned or fresh mango pulp. 
  
  
• Transfer the mixture to paper cups, cover the tops with foil or clingfilm and stand the kulfis upright in your freezer. Leave to freeze 1-2 hours. 
  
  
• Once they've partially frozen, insert a wooden stick into each paper cup. Place the kulfis back in the freezer until completely set (I did this overnight). 
  
  
• To demould the kulfis - take a knife and run around the edge of the mould. Alternatively you can dip them in some warm water to help loosen them. 
  
  
• Enjoy the kulfis as the perfect summer treat!