4.92 from 24 votes

Kulfi or Indian ice cream is a sought-after dessert, this recipe uses mainly three ingredients – evaporated milk, heavy cream, and sugar. Check out how to make kesar pista Kulfi without condensed milk in an ice cream maker.

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Kulfi is Indian ice cream and a very sought-after dessert. It can be made in various flavors like malai (cream), kesar (saffron), pista (pistachio), chikoo (sapota), mango, and many more. Unlike ice creams, it is denser and creamier in texture.

Traditionally kulfi is made from reduced milk (attained by boiling milk until it becomes one-third in quantity), sugar, and condiments like cardamom and saffron.

This is an easy kulfi recipe for an ice cream maker. There is no need to boil milk and sweetened condensed milk or cornstarch is not required in this recipe.

Ingredients

Traditionally only milk is used in making kulfi ice cream. But it takes a long time to cook it and reduce it to about a third of its quantity. This homemade kulfi recipe uses evaporated milk and there is no need to cook it.

The three main ingredients to make Indian ice cream are evaporated milk, heavy cream, and organic cane sugar. For flavor, condiments like cardamom, saffron, and chopped pistachios are added to make this kesar pista kulfi.

Instructions

It is very easy to make kulfi in an ice cream machine and I love making mine in the Cuisinart ICE-100 Compressor Ice Cream and Gelato Maker, it saves tonnes of time and effort.

The first step is to add sugar to the evaporated milk and whisk it until it dissolves. Do not over-whisk it since we want minimum aeration as kulfi should be dense.

Then add the full cream and stir it about two-three times. At this point, add condiments like cardamom for malai kulfi, ground cardamom, and a pinch of saffron for kesar or kesar pista kulfi.

Leave the add-ins like pistachio or raisins to be added towards the end of the ice cream maker cycle. Let the mixture rest for about 2 hours in the refrigerator before making the kulfi.

Once chilled, mix it well and then pour the mixture into the ice cream maker bowl. If you have the option of making gelato in the ice cream maker, you preferably want to use that churn the kulfi as it makes dense ice cream.

Once the cycle is complete, freeze it in kulfi molds, popsicle molds, or a container for 6-8 hours in the freezer before serving. You can garnish it with some milk masala powder. For good consistency, kulfi should be frozen at about -5°F.

Serving suggestions

Kulfi can be served like popsicles or ice cream scoops. Kulfi is commonly served with boiled vermicelli, known as falooda. It can also be served with basundi shots to make an exotic Indian dessert to accompany Indian meals, Indian appetizers, or complement Indian charcuterie board.

Equipment

It is very easy to make kulfi in an ice cream machine and I love making mine in the Cuisinart ICE-100 Compressor Ice Cream and Gelato Maker, it saves tonnes of time and effort. Check out this blog post on which ice cream maker to buy if you are interested in buying one for your family.

An immersion hand blender with a whisk attachment makes it very easy to blend all the ingredients. You can use a hand mixer or a stand mixer as well.

Storage

Homemade kulfi ice cream can be stored in the freezer for up to a month. You can store it in kulfi molds, popsicle molds, or an air-tight freezer-safe container.

Also, check anjeer (dried fig) kulfi and mango kulfi recipes and treat your family and friends to their delicious taste!

Don't forget to check out these dessert recipes

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📖 Recipe

Indian Ice Cream (Ice Cream Maker)

4.92 from 24 votes

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Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Indian

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegetarian

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 35

Total Time: 45

Servings: servings

Calories: 203kcal

Author: Alpa Jain

Equipment

Ingredients

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Instructions

Mix the sugar, pinch of salt, and evaporated milk with the whisk attachment of a hand blender (on low speed) until the sugar dissolves.
12 oz Evaporated milk, 10 tablespoon Organic cane sugar, 1 pinch Salt
Add the heavy cream and cardamom and mix it. Do not whisk at this stage
¾ cup Heavy cream, 1 teaspoon Cardamom powder
Add the saffron strands and refrigerate the mixture for atleast 2 hours.
15-20 strands Saffron
Mix the ingredients well and the mixture will have a golden color from the saffron.
Pour the ingredients into the ice cream machine bowl.
Start the ice cream machine for 35 mins, preferably on the gelato setting.
Add in the pistachios at about 25 mins or as per manufacturer instructions for add-ins.
1 tablespoon Pistachios
Kulfi is ready and is of soft-serve consistency. It can be stored in an air-tight container or kulfi molds for a firmer consistency. Freeze the kulfi in a container at -5°F for 6-8 hrs.