Drinks and Chutneys
Summer Drinks: Gond Katira, Tukh Malanga, Saunf, Mint and Jam-e-Shirin recipe
Five cooling summer drinks made from soaked gond katira and tukh malanga, saunf, mint and Jam-e-Shirin, served over ice in hot weather and at Ramzan iftar.

Watch the video · 7:25
Serves4 glasses of each drinkPrep15 min
Ingredients
- Soaked base for all drinks
- 2 tbsp gond katira, soaked in 1 1/2 cups water
- 2 tbsp tukh malanga (sabja seeds), soaked in 1 cup water
- Saunf drink
- 3 tbsp saunf (fennel seeds), crushed
- 3 tbsp sugar and 4 cups cold water
- Mint drink
- 1 cup fresh mint leaves
- 3 tbsp sugar, 3 tbsp lemon juice, 4 cups cold water
- Jam-e-Shirin milk
- 4 tbsp Jam-e-Shirin syrup
- 4 cups cold milk
- Ice cubes, to serve
Method
Prepare the base
- Soak the gond katira for 6 to 8 hours or overnight until it swells into soft, clear jelly. Soak the tukh malanga for 15 to 20 minutes until each seed has a clear coat.
Saunf drink
- Soak the crushed saunf in the cold water for 30 minutes, then strain. Stir in the sugar until dissolved and chill.
Mint drink
- Blend the mint, sugar, lemon juice and water for 20 seconds. Strain and chill.
Jam-e-Shirin milk
- Stir the syrup into the cold milk until evenly coloured.
To serve
- Put 2 tbsp gond katira and 1 tbsp tukh malanga in each glass, add ice, then pour over the drink of your choice and stir.
Good to know: Gond katira stays hard if soaked too briefly. Leave it soaking until fully soft and translucent, and rinse it once before using.