Stuffed Mango Kulfi

22 July, 2025 Recipe PREP 20 min, plus freezing time

Stuffed Mango Kulfi

PREP 20 min, plus freezing time

Description

This recipe offers a healthier, yogurt-based twist on the iconic stuffed Alphonso kulfi, a summer favorite, hawked in old Delhi, India. It combines mood-boosting saffron, vitamin-rich mangoes, and probiotic curd for a nutritious treat.


NOTE

Tools & Equipment: Tumblers, piping bag with nozzle or long-handled spoon, peeler.

Ingredients

2 SERVES
  • 1 tsp milk
  • 4 to 8 strands of saffron
  • 2 medium or large, firm alphonso mangoes
  • 6 Tbsp (100 g) thick strained yogurt, chilled
  • Pinch of powdered cardamom
  • 1 Tbsp pistachio, coarsely chopped

Directions

  1. Step 1
    In a small bowl, combine the milk and saffron strands. Let the milk infuse for 10 to 15 minutes while you prep the mangoes.
  2. Step 2
    Carefully slice off the top of a mango and save this little “hat” for later. Using a paring knife or a small knife, make an insertion close to the mango pit and rotate it in a circular fashion around the seed. Using your fingers, rotate the seed to loosen it from the pulp and pull it out. The idea is to remove the seed while leaving the skin intact and as much pulp as possible inside the mango. (See video for demonstration.) Set the mango upright in an cup or tumbler so the juices don’t spill out. Scrape any flesh from the seed back into the scooped-out mango. Repeat with the other mango.
  3. Step 3
    Stir the saffron milk into the yogurt along with a pinch of cardamom powder. Mix well. Spoon the yogurt into a piping bag with a nozzle, which you will use to fill the center of each mango to the brim with yogurt. Use a long-handled spoon if you don’t have a piping bag.
  4. Step 4
    Now place the top slice of the mango back on top of yogurt. Freeze the mangoes in the tumblers overnight.
  5. Step 5
    When you’re ready to serve, take the frozen mango out and let it sit or about 5 minutes or until it’s just warm enough to handle safely. Using a peeler or a sharp knife, peel off all of the mango skin in narrow strips. Use a sharp knife to remove the top cap of the mango. You can now cut the mango into vertical wedges or round, cross-sectional slices. Half or quarter them further, as you wish. Sprinkle with pistachios and serve.