Badam Milk Recipe (Creamy Indian Almond Drink)

Sweet, creamy, and deliciously spiced with cardamom and saffron, Badam Milk (also known as Badam Doodh) is a comforting Indian beverage. Made with almonds, milk, sugar and spices, this drink is equally delicious served warm in the winter or cold in the summer. Thus, this tasty drink is delightful all year round.

About Badam Milk

Badam Doodh (or Badam Milk) is a sweet creamy drink from the Awadhi cuisine. This delicious drink is flavored with ground almonds, cardamom powder, and saffron, and can be enjoyed either hot or cold.

According to Ayurveda, raw, unpeeled almonds are warming (garam). When you soak them in cool or room temperature water they become cooling (thanda).

So, if you plan to make badam milk to help cool your body, then soak the almonds overnight, or for 7 to 8 hours.

Soaking almonds also make them easier to digest and increases their nutritive value. Almonds are a good thing to include in your diet as they are rich in vitamin E, protein, and other essential minerals. They are also good for the brain and have many other health benefits.

In this badam milk recipe I have used a shortcut method of soaking almonds for 30 minutes in hot water. This method is good if you want the warming nature of the almonds and not cooling.

Since it has been raining and chilly here as of late, I have used this method. During summers, I soak almonds overnight.

The ancient Indian wisdom says that in the cold season, have warming food and in hot summers, have cooling food. So, if you want a cooling almond drink for summer then soak the almonds overnight or for 7 to 8 hours.

For the badam milk to have warming properties during the winters, either soak the almonds for less time or soak them in hot water for 30 minutes.

Saffron is also a warming element, which can be omitted if you plan to have badam milk for cooling the body. This badam milk recipe can be easily halved or doubled, depending on how many people you are trying to serve.

How To Make Badam Milk

Making this tasty almond-infused milk is quite simple. Here’s how it’s done:

Soak, Blanch, Peel Almonds

1. Rinse ¼ cup almonds (about 35 almonds) with fresh water and then add them to a bowl.

2. Add ⅓ cup hot boiling water. Cover and keep aside for 30 to 40 minutes.

Note: If you are making this as a cooling drink for warm weather, soak the almonds in hot water overnight.

3. Drain all the water.

4. Peel the almonds. You just need to press the skin and it comes out easily.

Blend Almonds

5. Add the peeled almonds in a sturdy blender or a grinder.

6. Next add 4 tablespoons sugar (or to taste), the seeds from 4 green cardamom pods, and 1 pinch of saffron. (Saffron is optional and can be skipped.)

7. Add ¼ to ⅓ cup milk. Milk can either be cold or at room temperature.

8. Grind to a fine and smooth consistency. The almonds should be ground very well to a fine or superfine consistency.

If there are coarse particles or chunks, then it can be irritating to the throat.

Make Badam Milk

9. Pour the ground almond mixture in a saucepan.

10. Now add the remaining ½ cup milk in the blender or grinder jar. Shake and swirl the grinder jar so that almond paste attached to the sides and bottom of the jar gets mixed with the milk and nothing gets wasted.

11. Add this milk in the saucepan.

12. Lastly add the remaining 1.5 cups milk in the saucepan. Mix well.

13. Keep the pan on a low heat and begin to heat the badam milk.

14. Stir at intervals so that the milk does not scorch from the bottom.

15. You just need to heat the milk; there is no need for a vigorous boil. A light boil is also fine. Switch off the heat when the milk becomes hot.

16. Serve Badam Milk hot or warm. It can be chilled also and then served. If you want, you can add a touch of rose water to the milk.

Alternatively, you can even garnish Badam Milk with rose petals. Sliced blanched almonds can also be used as a garnish as well as a few strands of saffron.

Expert Tips

• Soak the almonds according to whether you want a thanda (cooling) or garam (warming) beverage. For cooling, soak 7 to 8 hours. For warming, soak for just 30 to 40 minutes in hot water.
• Always soak the almonds. Soaking makes it easier for the nutrients to be easily absorbed in the body. Moreover soaking also soften the peels and makes them easier to remove.
• Do peel the almonds. Blending almonds with their skins will give a grainy texture to the ground almond mixture and does not make for a smooth, fine and creamy consistency.
• You can opt to sweeten the milk with jaggery or your preferred sweetener instead of sugar.
• Remember to blend or grind the almonds to a fine consistency. Any coarse particles or chunks are irritants for your throat.
• Make vegan badam milk by swapping in your favorite plant-based milk.

FAQs

Badam Milk recipe from the archives was first published on August 2017.