Lucknow Style Shahi Tukra (Tukda), Indian Sweet
Shahi Tukra or Tukda translates to ‘royal piece or bite’. If you are looking for a show-stopping dessert to wow your guests, this royal, easy, and rich dessert is it!
This easy-to-make, rich Eastern dessert will leave you speechless! Moreover, your guests will be asking you for the recipe. Following my simple and basic recipe, you can make this scrumptious dessert in no time!
To learn how to make this no-fuss, one-pot easy dessert recipe, read on!
About Shahi Tukra or Tukda
Shahi tukra is a rich, creamy, milk-based dessert made from fried bread, sugar, cream, and nuts. Doesn’t that just sound mouthwatering?
Mughal kings loved this creamy delight, hence the name ‘Shahi’ or royal. It is commonly served on special occasions such as Eid.
The cardamom-scented, sweet dish is almost like an Asian version of bread pudding! White bread slices become light and crispy by frying them in ghee, which makes the difference.
Then we dip the fried bread in sugar syrup, soaking it up, making it soft. Finally, we add the bread to the thickened, creamy milk and sugar mixture, then chill it before serving. Sounds delicious, doesn’t it?
Whenever I make this sweet bread and milk dessert, I cook it in my grandmother’s antique copper pan called a lagan. It is a wide-mouthed, flat-bottomed heavy pan made of either copper or aluminum. It’s extra special because whatever you cook in it will not burn.
In many places, Shahi tukra is also known as double ka meetha. Whatever you call it, the fact is that this is a delicious, no-mess recipe for royalty!
Reasons to Love Shahi Tukra
Just so you do give it a try, here are some reasons to love this recipe!
- Pantry-Freindly Recipe: When I say this is a basic recipe, I mean it! The ingredients are so straightforward that every home will always have them on hand! Bread, milk, and sugar. Those are the basic ingredients. Surprised right?
- 3-Step Method: The sweet Indian milk bread dish is easy to follow and simple. It involves frying the bread, cooking the milk to thicken it, making a simple sugar syrup, and then assembling it. It is chilled and served cold.
- Use up Leftover Bread: Do you have some leftover stale bread lying around your kitchen? Rather than throwing it out, make Shahi tukra! In fact, Shahi Tukde tastes best when made using stale bread.
- Quick Recipe: This mouthwatering easy Indian dessert will come together in 20 minutes! And it will taste so good that your guests will think you spent hours in the kitchen making it!
- Kid-friendly Dessert: Does your child only like chocolate or ice cream for dessert? If you are among the many parents who want their children to try new desserts, then you are in luck. Soft, sweet, and tender pieces of fried bread dipped in a rich milk ‘rabri‘: your children will enjoy this dish as much as you!
Ingredients
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- Bread: my authentic recipe uses 14 slices of stale white bread. The best type of bread for this is plain white. If you want to make it a little healthier, use whole-wheat bread instead.
- Milk: This is a bread and milk pudding dessert. Milk is boiled till it thickens to a sauce like texture and becomes thick and rich.
- Egg yolks: The bread slices are dipped in an egg yolk and sugar mixture, almost like a French toast, to give it a richer and denser taste.
- Sugar: Sugar is essential to sweeten the dessert.
- Garnishing: I love to garnish with dry fruits like almonds and pistachios. You can also add saffron strands to the milk as it cooks.
To view quantities, read the recipe card below.
Instructions
Here are the detailed instructions to make this authentic Shahi Tukre recipe:
Egg Yolk Mixture
Begin by preparing the egg yolk mixture for the bread. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and 2 cups of milk using a hand mixer until well combined.
- Add the egg yolks to a bowl.
- Add the milk.
- Whisk together well.
Fry the Bread Slices
Next, cut the bread slices in half. I cut them vertically, but you can cut them diagonally or horizontally if you please.
- Cut the bread slices in half.
- You can cut horizontally or diagonally.
Next, dip them in the egg yolk mixture.
- Dip the bread in the egg yolk mixture.
- Soak well on both sides.
Heat oil, or ghee if using, in a frying pan and shallow fry the bread slices in batches. Fry them until they are golden brown in color, flipping them over after a minute.
- Add oil to a frying pan.
- Fry the bread till golden brown on both sides.
Remove the bread slices from the pan and place them on a paper towel to remove excess oil.
Prepare the Milk Rabri
In a separate large pot, boil 3 liters of milk over medium heat for about half an hour, stirring occasionally.
- Boil the milk till it thickens, about 30-40 minutes.
Boil the milk until it reduces and thickens.
Add some yellow food color to the thickened milk and mix well. You can also add saffron strands to the milk as it boils.
- Add yellow food color to the thickened milk.
- Combine the food color into the milk rabri.
Layering and Cooking the Bread and Rabri
Next, evenly arrange the fried bread slices in a deep pot, also called a lagan. A lagan is a deep, wide, flat-bottomed pan, usually made of copper.
- Layer the fried bread in a lagan pan, or large and flat-bottomed pan.
Pour the thickened milk rabri over the bread slices, reserving 1 cup of milk for later use.
- Pour the thickened milk onto the bread, reserving 1 cup.
- Make sure all the bread slices are dipped in the milk to soak it up.
Now, cook the milk and bread on a medium flame. Spoon the milk mixture continuously over the bread slices for even soaking and cooking.
- Cook it on a low flame.
Let the bread and milk cook for a further 30 to 40 minutes.
- Let it cook for 30 minutes.
- Continuously spoon the milk over the bread.
Cooking with Sugar Syrup
Next, add the sugar to the reserved milk rabri. Cook the milk and sugar till it is completely dissolved.
- In another pan, pour the reserved milk.
- Add the sugar to the reserved cup of milk.
- Cook the milk and sugar mixture.
- Allow the sugar to dissolve in the milk.
Pour this sweetened milk mixture over the bread slices in the pot.
- Cook the bread and milk further.
- Let it cook till the milk mixture has thickened further.
Keep cooking it until the milk becomes thick, creamy, and almost dry.
- Continuously spoon the cooked sugar and milk mixture onto the bread to allow even soaking.
- Cook it further, over a low heat.
- Once the mixture has thickened and is almost dry, Shahi Tukra is ready.
Garnish and Serve the Shahi Tukre
Once the Shahi Tukde is cooked and the milk is dry and creamy, remove the pan from the heat and allow it to cool.
- Allow it to cool down. Then refregirate it till chilled.
- Garnish it with slivered almonds and pistachios. Finally, serve the Shahi Tukda chilled.
Garnish it with chopped pistachios and almonds.
This dish is best served cold. Refrigerate until chilled, then serve Shahi Tukre.
Lastly, enjoy this decadent dessert with family and friends!
Hint: To give the dish an authentic taste, fry the bread pieces in desi ghee.
Additionally, if you don’t have a lagan dish, don’t worry, you can make this delicious and creamy egg yolk and bread dessert in any wide and large pan.
Using stale bread is a great option for Shahi tukra, but if you have fresh bread, let it dry in the sun for a few hours or place it in your toaster to reduce moisture.
Variations
If you want the best of both worlds and want to make this recipe healthier, here’s what you can do.
Instead of frying the bread slices in ghee, you can toast them in your toaster or shallow fry them in just a tablespoon of ghee or butter.
Equipment
Here is a list of the equipment I used to make this delicious Shahi tukra recipe:
- A large frying pan.
- A large pot for cooking the milk and bread, called lagan.
- A small pan for making the milk and sugar syrup.
- A large serving dish.
- Measuring spoons.
Top tips
- This is a great recipe for using up stale bread. Stale bread produces the best results.
- If you have fresh bread, leave it in the sun for a while, or toast it in your toaster to remove moisture.
- Fry the bread in ghee for an authentic flavor.
- If you make this recipe healthier by not frying the bread, you don’t need to make the sugar syrup separately. Pour the milk mixture over the slightly toasted bread.
FAQ
This popular recipe uses stale white bread fried in ghee. We soak the bread in sugar syrup. We simmer the milk to a thick custard-like consistency, and the bread is left to soak up the milk. The best way to serve Shahi Tukra is by chilling it. You can also add chopped nuts.
Shahi tukra is a famous Pakistani and Indian dessert. It is like a rich bread pudding.
In India and Pakistan, Double ka Meetha is another name for shahi tukra.
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This sweet recipe looks pretty delicious! Got to try it really soon! Can’t wait!
Thank you! I hope you enjoy making and savoring the sweet recipe! It’s definitely worth the anticipation!
I’d never heard about Shahi tukra before but this does looks like a yummy dessert. Thanks for sharing your tips and recipe!
I’m glad you found it intriguing! Shahi tukra is indeed a delightful dessert. Enjoy trying out the recipe and savoring its flavors!