Taal Kheer - An Ancient Delicacy Of Bengal

       

Sandesh (A Popular Bengali Sweet) 

           As you know I am from Kolkata, India, I have a weakness regarding sweets. Kolkata is the sweet hub of India. The sweet recipes of Kolkata are evolving day by day to appear in the world market. As a result they are losing the authenticity. There are plenty of sweets that are being extinct. So I will try to give you the authentic flavours of Bengal. So stay with me.

Taal (Sugar Palm) 

             Today I am going to share with you an authentic Bengali sweet recipe which is Taal Kheer (Sugar Palm Custard). I know that you are thinking that what is Taal or Sugar palm. So Taal is a type of Palm tree. It is native to Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. The fruit measures almost 7 inches in diameter. Both ripe and unripe fruit of Taal are used in India. Ripe Taal is mainly used in West Bengal, India. Bengali people mastered the art of making various sweets with the pulp of the ripe Taal.

Janmashtami Puja 

           Custard is mainly an European dish. Authentic custard are made with a mixture of milk and egg. But the recipe I am going to share is a pure veg recipe. Bengali people make this sweet on the occasion of Janmashtami (Lord Krishna's birth anniversary).

              So let's get started:
       
      To make Taal Kheer you will need:

Ingredients:

• Milk - 250ml

• Sugar - 6 teaspoons

• Sugar Palm Pulp - 6 teaspoons

• Grated Coconut - 1 cup/ 100 gramsgrams

• Cashew - 15 grams

• Resins - 15 gram

Cooking Time: 10 - 15 minutes

Serving: 4

Cooking Process:

• Put a pan on heat add the milk and let it come to boil. 

• When the milk comes to boil add sugar to it.

• Mix the sugar well and let it boil for another 3-4 minutes.

• When the milk will become a little bit thicker, add the sugar palm pulp to it. 

• Mix the pulp in the milk ensuring that there are no lumps. Then cook it for 3-4 minutes. 

• Then add the grated coconut and mix well. 

• Let it cook for 2-3 minutes so that the coconut absorb all the flavours.  

• Finally add the soaked cashew and resins and cook it for 2-3 minutes. 

• Put the flame off and let it cool in room temperature. 

• Then put it in a freezer for 2-3 hours. 

• Serve chilled. 

Important Instructions:

• Always use full fat milk for this recipe. 

• The quantity of sugar can vary because of the sweetness of the coconut and sugar palm. 

• Always remove the pan from heat before adding the sugar palm pulp. Otherwise the milk may spill. 

• Do not turn the heat on while mixing the sugar palm pulp with milk. Otherwise it will become lumpy and you will be needed more effort to dissolve it. 

Taal Kheer (sugar palm custard)

                  It is one of my favourite sweet recipe. I like it this way simple and flavourfull. But if you want you can garnish it with grated coconut and dry fruits (cashew and resins). Try it and I'm sure you will love it. I will bring more authentic Indian recipes. So stay with me. 

            *** If you don't know how to extract the pulp from the sugar palm this video is for you