Mango Lassi Recipe:

A cold, refreshing yoghurt-based drink is welcome when the weather is hot, or if you need to tame the heat of a spicy curry. Lassi is popular all over the Indian subcontinent in both sweet and salty variations. I’ve tried salt lassi in India, which I’m confident is an ‘acquired taste’, so instead I have created a recipe for a sweet version featuring mango.

This recipe is from my cookbook CURRY COMPENDIUM, and is also in my second book, INDIAN RESTAURANT CURRY AT HOME VOLUME 2. All my books are available in both physical and kindle formats.

INGREDIENTS

250ml Natural Yoghurt (cold)
400ml Milk (cold)
150-200ml Water (cold)
250ml Mango Pulp (see Notes)
2 tsp Lime or Lemon Juice
2 TBSP Sugar
3-5 Green Cardamom Pods
Ice Cubes (a generous handful)
A few strands of Saffron (optional)

METHOD

Crack open the green cardamom pods with the back of a knife, extract the seeds, and discard the outer husks.

Crush the seeds using the blade of a knife or with a pestle and mortar. Pre-ground elachi (green cardamom) powder can be used instead, but the flavour will not be quite as good.
Add the yoghurt, milk, water, mango pulp, lime/lemon juice, sugar and the crushed green cardamom seeds into a jug or blender. Blend until smooth and frothy.
Add the ice cubes. Blend further if you want the ice to be crushed.
Pour into a glass, drizzle on some extra mango pulp, and optionally top with a few strands of saffron.

Watch the Video

NOTES

Mango pulp (mashed up blended and sweetened mango flesh) is usually sold in tins, which are readily available from Asian food shops and most of the larger mainstream supermarkets.
There are many different varieties of the mango fruit, and you are likely to notice different types of pulp sold (for example Alphonso and Kesar). There is some debate about which one is best, although the Alphonso variety gets some good press.

You can use fresh mango as a superior substitute for the pulp, in which case you may want to add extra sugar to get the desired level of sweetness in your lassi.
The lassi will keep in the fridge for 2-3 days.