This traditional Middle Eastern drink is a dessert by itself, it is rich, creamy and downright decadent. I’ve lightened it up a bit, by making it less starchy and less sweet, but it’s still just as homey and delicious.
It is definitely Winter, at least in this half of earth. It was super cold in the eastern coast and thank God, this storm did not reach us here in Colorado, we’ve had some days already and it was time for a break.
Each time I call my mom I find her under blankets, all sorts of covers, heated and non heated, her bones are aching, her shoulders are tight … poor thing. It has been raining and gloomy in Egypt for almost this whole entire week, and when it is raining there, it is a mess. Most streets get muddy and the traffic goes crazy – as if it is not already 😳.
When it gets that cold in Egypt we think of soups and hot drinks, specially the widely spread Lentil soup, the spicy Halabessa and this traditional Arabic drink Sahlab .
Sahlab is widely spread all over the region, I have not got to its origin yet, but I am sure of one thing, it is energetic, sweet and 😋delicious.
Sahlab is usually sold as powder, you just buy it and mix it with milk, heat until bubbly and thick. Here in Colorado I find prepackaged sahlab mostly with rose water flavor added which does not appeal to my family, hence we had to make our own sahlab powder and give it a try, and I’m glad I’ve done this, much better, less sweetened and with no strange ingredients.
I’ve made mine less thick and less sweetened, so feel free to add more of the powder for a more thickened one or add more sugar to your cup for more sweetness. Sahlab should be enjoyed with lots of nuts, raisins and cinnamon on top, but if you do not like any then skip it, it is your cup anyways:☕.
Here is a short and quick video on how to make homemade sahlab.. I hope you’ll give it a try and come back to tell me what do you think?… Enjoy!!!
- 1 c dry powder milk.
- 1 c powder sugar.
- 1 c unsweetened coconut flakes.
- 1 c rice - preferred short grain.
- 4 Tbs corn starch .
- 1/2 tsp vanilla powder.
- 1 Tbs mastic.
- 2 tsp cinnamon powder.
- 1/2 c toasted sesame seeds.
- Your favorite nuts more cinnamon and raisins.
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Grind the rice until fine powder, grind the mastic as well.
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Add all the ingredients together - except for the ones for serving- and mix well.
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Store in an air tight container until you are ready to use.
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In a sauce pan over medium heat, add 2 cups of milk to 6 Tbs of the powder you've made, and mix well.
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Keep stirring until the mixture gets thick and bubbly.
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Pour into serving cups, garnish top with nuts, cinnamon and raisins.
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Enjoy!!!
If you want your sahlab a little sweeter you can add more sugar to it while it is cooking on the stove top.
If you are used to a super thick sahlab then add more of the powder you've made until you reach your preferable thickness.
Salamat Amira, can i usepackaged rice flour instead of grinding the rice ?
Mona, sure thing. I am all in for shortcuts hehehe.
Lovely outcome, even though I don’t have the mastic! Made it for my friends here in New Zealand.. they all love it! Thanks Amira 🙂
Noha, Thank you for trying the sahlab recipe and I am glad that you and your friends liked it. I was about to say “Wow Sahlab in July!!” then I realized you are from New Zealand hehehehe. I hope your winter is not very bad. Does it snow often there?
Looks delicious Amira. Like a dessert sort of.
I’ll try it soon.
BTW I wanted to thank you for the lovely recipes you are sharing here and so many from Egypt, a great way for me to teach my little one more about this country…He is Egyptien by his dad!
Love to you and your family.
I hope I can give an honest image of Egypt through dishes and stories. Thanks Marie for your sweet comment.
I love a combination of textures when eating / drinking and this drink definitely delivers that, just got to get a hold of that unusual ingredient – mastic and then I’m good to go
It is a super drink that is more than red bull hahahaha, this drink gives a huge amount of energy to me. I hope you’ll find mastic soon .. may be you can try it without this ingredient first until you have it. Thanks for the comment
So much better than the packaged stuff for sure. And really mastic in there, I have some…somewhere. Sounds like a great drink the the presentation with toppings is beautiful!
Thanks Eve, it is indeed an awesome creamy dreamy drink :), hope you’ll find the mastic soon.