Try Shahi Tukda, a royal dessert that is easy to prepare! Buttery baked bread slices soaked in cardamom flavored syrup and topped with vegan cashew saffron Rabri cream.
Shahi Tudka – I think of this as a royal French toast. But it’s actually more of a dessert than a breakfast. It is a sweet Mughlai dessert often made by frying bread in ghee (clarified butter) or oil, then soaked in a cardamom flavored sugar syrup and then topped with Indian Rabri. Rabri, which is a thick milk pudding flavored with saffron, can be made thick or thin and the bread is completely dipped in it or served with the Rabri topping.
In this vegan version and my lighter take on shahi tukda, I make the bread. The oven toasts the bread evenly. You can also use a toaster, but the bread doesn’t toast evenly or fry enough, so it can get soggy quickly. I make a thick custard like Rabri with all the same delicious flavors and whip up and serve.
I slice the bread instead of frying it, then drizzle it with a little sugar syrup and top it off with a delicious vegan rabri. Oooh, la la!
Despite the sugar syrup, it’s not as sweet a dessert as Indian mithai tends to be. It’s creamy and delicious with the crispy toast that lightens it up.
This is a fantastic dessert to serve during Ramadan. It’s easy, delicious and festive.
Don’t have saffron? Use cardamom instead or use other flavors like rose or vanilla.
More recipes with saffron:
More Indian desserts
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Shahi Tukda (Crispy Toast with Syrup and Rabri Pudding)
Try Shahi Tukda, a royal dessert that is easy to make! Baked slices of buttered bread soaked in cardamom flavored syrup and topped with custard.
Rations: 4
Calories: 356kcal
Ingredients
- 6-8 slices your favorite bread the edges removed and cut into the shapes you prefer
- 2-3 teaspoons oil or melted vegan butter
For the sugar syrup
- 2 spoonfuls maple syrup
- 2 spoonfuls sugar
- 1 green cardamom pod open or 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 spoon water
- ½ teaspoon lime juice
For the cream of Rabri
- 3 spoonfuls cashews
- 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour or use a gf mix
- 3 spoonfuls sugar
- 7 strands saffron
- 1 ½ cups (350 ml) oat milk
- 2 spoonfuls almond flour
- 2 spoonfuls crust from the slices of bread you cut earlier omit for gluten free
- chopped pistachios for garnish
Instructions
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Cut the bread into triangles, circles or rectangles. Then place the bread on a baking sheet or parchment-lined baking sheet.
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Brush the bread with melted vegan butter or oil all over and bake in a 400F (205C) oven for 10-12 minutes or until the bread begins to turn an even golden brown. Remove the bread from the oven.
Make the custard.
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Mix all the ingredients under the cream until the cashews have broken up very well. I usually mix it for 1 minute, then let it sit for 5 minutes and mix again, then repeat 2-3 times until the cashews are very well mixed.
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Add the custard to a saucepan over medium heat and simmer until it thickens evenly. It will become a uniformly thick cream. Taste and adjust the sweetness and set aside. If you like your Rabri thinner, add another 1/2 to 1 cup of non-dairy milk, mix and bring to a boil. Then take off the heat.
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to ride, take each of the toasted slices and dip them in the sugar syrup (now hot and not too hot) on both sides, or you can brush the sugar syrup on both sides. Then, plate the bread on a serving plate or on individual plates.
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Repeat for all the sliced ​​bread. Then toss them with a generous serving of custard. I usually put some in the center of the bread slices, sprinkle with chopped pistachios for decoration and serve immediately.
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Keep all these 3 things separate until you are ready to serve. You can heat the sugar syrup a little and then brush the toast with it, then stir in the custard either hot or cold and serve.
notes
To make this gluten-free bread, use gluten-free bread.
nutrition
nutritional data
Shahi Tukda (Crispy Toast with Syrup and Rabri Pudding)
Amount per serving
calories 356
Calories from fat 90
% Daily Value*
fat 10g15%
Saturated fats 1 g6%
sodium 281 mg12%
potassium 223 mg6%
Carbohydrates 59 g20%
Fiber 4g17%
Sugar 31 g34%
protein 9 g18%
Vitamin A 195IU4%
Vitamin C 2 mg2%
calcium 216 mg22%
iron 3 mg17%
* Percent Daily Values ​​are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Sahi Tukda Ingredients:
- bread: we toast the bread in the oven for an evenly golden toast
- for the sugar syrup, we combine the maple syrup with sugar, cardamom, water and lime juice
- for the rabri, we mix cashews with sugar, saffron and oat milk and some bread for texture, so delicious
Advices:
- Keep the toast, syrup and custard separate until ready to serve. You can heat the sugar syrup a little and then brush the toast with it, then stir in the custard either hot or cold and serve.
- The sugar syrup can thicken too much when it cools completely, so soak when the syrup is warm. Do not dip the bread in very hot syrup. Wait 3-4 minutes and then dip.
- To make this recipe gluten-free, use gluten-free bread.
How to make Shahi Tukda
Cut the bread into triangles, circles or rectangles. Then place the bread on a baking sheet or parchment-lined baking sheet.
Brush the bread with melted vegan butter or oil all over and bake in a 400F (205C) oven for 10-12 minutes or until the bread begins to turn an even golden brown. Remove the bread from the oven.
Make the sugar syrup.
Add all the ingredients to a pan and bring to a boil. As soon as the mixture starts to feel a little thick, take off the heat. It will take a minute or two after it comes to a boil. Set the sugar syrup aside.
Make the custard.
Mix all the ingredients under the cream until the cashews have broken up very well. I usually mix it for 1 minute, then let it sit for 5 minutes and mix it again, then repeat 2-3 times until the cashews are very well mixed.
Add the custard to a saucepan over medium heat and simmer until it thickens evenly. It will become a uniformly thick cream. Taste and adjust the sweetness and set aside.
To assemble your Shahi Tukda, take each of the toasted slices and dip it in the sugar syrup (now hot and not too hot) on both sides, or you can brush the sugar syrup on both sides. Then, plate the bread on a serving plate or on individual plates.
Repeat for all slices of bread. Then toss them with a generous serving of custard. I usually put some in the center of the bread slices, sprinkle with chopped pistachios for decoration and serve immediately.
storage
Keep all these 3 things separate until you are ready to serve. You can heat the sugar syrup a little and then brush the toast with it, then stir in the custard either hot or cold and serve.