Ingredients
4 quarts whole-milk yogurt
5 whole green cardamom pods
1 teaspoon saffron threads
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons coarsely
chopped raw pistachios
Line a large strainer with a
double thickness of cheesecloth, and place the yogurt in it. Bring the ends of
the cloth together and tie into a bundle. Set the strainer over a deep bowl and
place in the refrigerator for 8 hours. All the whey will drip away, leaving
behind thick yogurt cheese. Check occasionally to make sure the bottom of the
strainer is not sitting in a pool of drained whey.
Using the side of a knife,
smash the cardamom pods so that the peels loosen. With your fingers, pry out
the seeds and use a mortar and pestle or a very clean spice grinder to grind
them to a fine powder.
Heat the saffron threads in
a small skillet over low heat until crisp, but be careful not to burn them.
This should take less than 1 minute.
Place the yogurt cheese in a
food processor. Add the sugar and pulse only until the sugar dissolves, 30 to
40 seconds. Do not overmix or the yogurt cheese will thin out too much. You do
not want to whip the yogurt; shrikhand should be thick and creamy in
consistency. For the perfect consistency, do what the Indians do -- use a food
mill with the finest disc attachment and pass the yogurt and sugar together
through the mill at least 5 times to dissolve the sugar completely.
Crumble the toasted saffron
over the shrikhand, fold in the pistachios and cardamom, and set aside,
covered, for at least 2 hours for the flavors to blend. Serve cold or at room
temperature. Shrikhand will last in the refrigerator, tightly covered in a
glass dish, for one week.
So you think you can cook?
To make our Recipe section
reflect the talents of local chefs and cooks who live here, the Journal wants
you to submit recipes for your favorite dishes.
We are looking for recipes
from local restaurants and residents, which you are willing to share with the
rest of the valley.
Send your recipe, a
photograph of the completed dish, a few sentences about you and a photo of you,
if you wish, to bmateo@syvjournal.com.
We hope to hear from you!