Rabri Recipe : How to Make Rabdi or Rabri at Home

Prev Article Next Article

The delicious Rabdi is indeed a special dish for all Sweet lovers. It is the most popular North Indian sweet which is made from only milk. Rabri is the sweet dish prepared from the thickened sweetened milk. It has the layers of Malai or cream formed over it. Then it if flavored with various flavoring agents. This Rabri Recipe teaches you to make the restaurant Rabri at home in the traditional way. It retains the authentic flavors and taste.

Rabri

Author: Karishma Shah
Recipe Category: Sweets
Cuisine: Desserts

Description: “This Rabri Recipe teaches you to make the restaurant Rabri at home in the traditional way. It retains the authentic flavors and taste. Prepare Rabdi today!

Rabdi Recipe - Rabri Recipe

Let’s learn to make Rabri Step by step.

Ingredients for Rabri Recipe:

Milk ( Full Fat ) – 1.5 litres
Sugar – 2 ½ tbsp.
Green Cardamom Powder – ½ tsp.
Kesar/ Saffron Strands – 10 to 12 strands
Chopped Almonds – 2 tbsp.
Chopped Pistachios – 2 tbsp.
Rose water – 1 tsp. ( optional )

Note: You may add sugar as per your preference as well. If you do not have cardamom powder, then you can use 5 to 6 cardamom pods and crush them to powder in a mortar pestle.

Steps for Rabri Recipe:

The process of preparing Rabri is amazing and simple.

Preparation for Rabdi:

With little precautions, it is simple to prepare this sweet Rabri at home. To make the Rabri at home, you must first soak the dry fruits and then heat the milk. You can also keep the milk to heat and meanwhile soak the dry fruits.

Soak Dry Fruits:

Take the 2 tbsp. almonds and 2 tbsp. pistachios.
Soak them in hot water for 30 minutes.
Now, after 30 minutes, drain the excess the water.
Strain the dry-fruits and then remove their peels
Take them slice them or finely chop them.
Transfer the chopped dry fruits to a bowl.
Keep the bowl of chopped dry fruits aside.

Note: You can also chop the dry fruits, till the time the process of formation of the layer is going on. Chop them, and keep them aside and continue with simmering of milk. But if you are doing this process simultaneously then do keep a check on the simmering milk. You must have an eye on milk when soaking as well as slicing the almonds, pistachios.

How to Make Rabri:

Take a thick bottomed pan or kadhai.
Add 1 ½ litres of milk in this pan.
Place this pan on the stove.
Switch on the stove and boil the milk.
Heat the full-fat milk on a low flame.
You must begin to heat milk with low flame.
You can change the heat from low to medium in between.
As you heat the milk, it will start to froth.
Gradually a layer of cream/ Malai will be formed on the top of the milk.
So, heat the milk till you find the layer of cream floating on the top.
This layer of cream is also known as Malai.
Now when you see a layer is formed on the top, gently remove the Malai with a spatula.
You must be very careful while removing the cream layer.
To remove the layer means to bring the layer towards the side of the pan and stick it there.
So basically, you have to bring the cream to the edge of the pan.
Stick this cream layer on the sides of the pan with the help of a spatula.
Slowly while the milk is being heated, bring the cream to the corner of the pan.
Keep the flame low and simmer the milk on low flame.
In this similar way, keep on simmering the milk.
Again a layer will be formed in the top of the milk.
Also, keep on collecting the Malai that is being formed on the top.
Bring it to the side of the pan and stick it there as we have done it previously.
Every time, the cream layer is created, take it to the side of the pan.
The process of formation of cream layer and sticking it to the sides has to be repeated several times in low flame.
You have to carry out the process of collecting the cream till you get the Rabri.
You must continuously keep simmering of the milk.
This process will bring the cream on top of the milk.
Once the cream layer is formed, you have to bring it to the side and stick it.
In between keep a check on milk on the milk.
You must stir the milk to prevent it from burning.
It is not necessary to continuously stir the milk.
But you must gently stir the milk on occasions.
Also, scrape the sides and fold milk from the bottom.
Keep a check that milk does not get burnt from the bottom
Also, do not stir milk too much and too quickly. Else, you the layers of cream won’t form in the Rabri.
After 30 minutes milk will be reduced to half of its quantity.
Once the milk reduces to half, then you can add sugar to the milk.
You must add sugar as per your taste preference. Approximately add 2 ½
Now add saffron, cardamom powder and mix gently.
Add around 12 to 15 strands of crushed saffron.
Sprinkle ½ tsp. of cardamom powder in the Rabri.
Once you have added sugar, saffron, and cardamom, then stir gently.
Now again repeat the process as above and simmer the milk.
Continue collecting the cream formed on the layer of milk.
Continue to bringing it to the sides of the pan.
Once you bring the cream towards the side of the pan, you have stir it gently.
Otherwise, if you do not stir it then the milk can get burnt from the bottom.
Now, after adding the saffron, you will notice that color of milk has turned yellow.
As the milk keeps on reducing, gradually the color will change.
After some time, the milk will be reduced.
It would be reduced to ⅓ of or ¼ it’s quantity.
Switch off the flame of the stove when the milk is reduced.
At this point, the layer of cream would be accumulated on sides on the pan.
With spatula scrape off the entire cream layer.
Even take the dried milk solids.
Now, add these solids to the thickened milk.
Mix everything and once again stir gently.
Now, take this collected cream from the sides of the pan.
Remove from the sides of the pan and in the milk.
Mix this cream with the milk.
Add chopped and sliced nuts like almonds & pistachios.
Mix these nuts well in the milk.
If using rose water add at this point.
You can add Kewra water instead of 1 tsp. rose water.
Stir the milk gently again and serve Rabri.

And Rabdi is ready to eat!

Note: To make Rabri use a wide heavy frying pan. To avoid the burning of milk, you must prepare Rabri on the low heat. Take care that the milk on the upper edge does not burn. You can keep low flame initially and then change it to medium flame.

Additional Information:

Calories: 190 calories
Total Time: PT75M
Serves: 4
Date Published: 2017-02-18

Get Daily Dose of Delicious Recipes… Subscribe Now!

This style of preparing Rabri is also known as “lacha rabri”. It is very easy and simple to make Rabri at home. The preparation is quite fast as you just need milk and few soaked nuts. But it is bit time consuming and tough task to continuously simmer the milk and reduce it. You must also keep a watch on milk while making Rabri at home. It need your attention and concentration. There is no way you can cut on the efforts for making rabdi. Even if you make it for the first time, your Rabri would taste divine.

The normal rabri has the semi-thick consistency. Also, you can add cardamom and saffron for flavors. The addition of dry fruits like almonds and pistachios infuses nutty aroma and a bit of crunch in the creamy Rabri. This rich and creamy Rabri is also called as Shahi Rabri. There is the richness of cream and royalty of various flavors. The saffron, cardamom, nutmeg, and nuts give a nice aroma to the Rabri (or Rabdi). This classic recipe of traditional Indian sweet rabri is very easy to follow.

This famous delish of North Indian delicacy can be served as sweet with a meal or as a dessert after the meal. To prepare Rabri can be time taking as you have to reduce the milk and then refrigerate the Rabri before serving. This is a very rich dessert with high calories. It is the mixture of thickened creamy milk with the sugar and other ingredients. The key for making the Rabdi is to reduce and simmer milk on low flame. Even the quality of the milk has a huge impact on the quality of the Rabri.

Remarks:

Total time of cooking for preparing Rabri is more than 1 hour. The time depends on whether you make it on low flame or medium flame.
The measured proportion of ingredients makes Rabri that serves 3 people. This Rabri recipe can be doubled or tripled.
Keep on stirring in between otherwise the milk will burn.
You can any other dry fruits of your choice. You may add roasted and chopped nuts as well.
Kewra water can also be added for making flavorful Rabri.
Instead of green cardamom powder, you can use nutmeg powder as the flavoring agent for your Rabri.
Always use fresh milk for Rabri Recipe.
You can store the leftover Rabri in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. You may store it in frozen for a few weeks as well.
Always stir milk at regular intervals only. Do not keep of stirring it continuously.
If you stir milk continuously while cooking Rabri, then you may not require texture. The small chunks of cream won’t be present in thickened milk.

Garnishing:

The sweet aroma of the Rabri is highly delectable. But, you can garnish your Rabri and make it look more appealing to eyes. Mentioned below are the few garnishing ideas:

You can sprinkle some saffron strands over the Rabri.
You can season the Rabri with the chopped dry fruits.
The dry-fruits look attractive when you slice cut them.
Place some mint leaves over the Rabri.
Decorate your Rabri with the flower made from apple skin.
Add some fresh rose petals on the Rabri.
You can also keep some glazing cherries on the Rabri.

Serving Suggestion:

If you are wondering how and with what to serve Rabri, then check below:

The Rabri tastes best when it is served chilled.
You can keep the Rabri in the fridge and serve it chilled.
Whenever you want to serve Rabri for dessert, then use it warm.
Sprinkle the cardamom powder and serve the Rabri hot.
Pour the Rabri in the earthen bowl or glass for the authentic taste.
The Rabri taste best when served with hot fried jalebi.
The traditional way to eat Rabri is with the shallow fried malpua.
You can also serve Rabri with the plain Poori or fried Luchi.
The Rabri compliments well with the sweet Kulfi Falooda.
You can also serve Rabri as a sub-ingredient with the Gulab Jamun.

Quick Tip:

You can use toned milk instead of full-fat whole milk.
If you use spoiled milk, then your Rabri would be sour.
If you are in hurry, you can use condensed milk. But the taste of the Rabri will change.
Also, adjust the quantity of the sugar if you are using sweet condensed milk. You must reduce the proportion of sugar.
You can cook the Rabri over medium flame, to speed up the process.
Refrain from using the thin-based pan to cook Rabri. Otherwise, the milk will stick to the bottom of the pan and spoil the taste of your Rabri.
You can add ½ cup mango puree in the season of mangoes to make mango flavored Rabri.
For the softer and chewer texture, you can add small some paneer chunks in the milk.
If you want, you can just thicken the milk and scrape its solid from the sides. You will not be getting the cream layer in Rabri but it will still taste delicious.

Though the entire process of preparing Rabdi seem difficult, surprisingly it is easy to make. The usual way to eat Rabdi is with the golden Malpua’s. They are served with a topping of creamy rabri. The combination of the Malpua and Rabri is like a match made in heaven. These two different sweet dishes come together and create a blast of flavors in our mouth. Not just Malpua, but you can eat Rabdi with waffles as well. Similarly, there are countless combinations which you can do with the sweet Rabdi.

You can also relish this delicious sweet delish in various other interesting ways as well. Serve this chilled creamy Rabdi over a scoop of an ice cream. You can eat Rabri with any of your favorite flavor of the ice-cream. This combination of chilled Rabri with frozen ice-cream is just amazing. No other way of eating Rabri can beat this awesome combo!

Another interesting way to eat the cooked Rabri is with mixed fruit. This is also popularly known as mixed fruit Rabri. It is super easy and simply delicious. Just gather your favorite fruits or seasonal fresh fruits. Put them together and serve it for a party at your home.

You can use fruits like apple, pomegranate, grapes, strawberry, mangoes, banana, etc. You must chop the fruits into bite sized small cubical pieces. Then keep them in a bowl and top them with chilled Rabri. Season this combination with some chopped nuts of your choice. This adds the nutty aroma and some crunch in the dish. Eat and enjoy the heavenly dessert experience.

In the traditional methodology of cooking Rabri, you need to solidify milk. To prepare Rabri with the perfect taste and correct consistency, you must thicken the milk properly. Only then your Rabdi would be nice in taste and thick in consistency with a creamy texture. The general way to make rabri is in a broad pan or a thick bottomed Kadai. The broader the pan the better and faster would be the evaporation of the milk. The Rabri can also be prepared in the shallow pan instead of the broad pan instead. Whichever pan you use to prepare Rabri, just take care that it is of the heavy and thick bottom.

The rabri has small chunks of cream which are a delight to eat. The use of dry fruits enhances the texture of the plain Rabdi. If you add them in abundance, you get to eat chewy nuts with the creamy chunks in every spoon of Rabdi. Every bite of Rabri gives you the feel of ecstasy. It will feel your mouth with creamy and thick small pieces of milk. The aroma of saffron and sweet flavor of cardamom will instantly refresh you. The combination of various ingredients makes a beautiful sweet dish. It is little sweet in flavor with a creamy texture and aromatic fragrance. This sweet Rabdi is cooked little differently than other sweet dishes. You can also make lumpy Rabdi instead of creamy. But which style of Rabdi you make, always use full cream milk.

Instant Rabri Recipe:

If you do not want to follow the lengthy process of preparing Rabri at home, then follow this method of making Instant Rabri. With this instant recipe, you can make Rabri instantly within no time. In this Instant Rabri Recipe, you have to use the bread to thicken the Rabri. This method of preparing Rabri at home takes less time and less energy. It reduces the efforts spend behind stirring the milk to thicken it. The Rabri prepared with this technique is also low in calorie as it has less fat content. Follow the steps for this Instant Rabri Recipe:

Ingredients: