Jigarhanda Juice is an Indian summer drink that cools you, Inside out! Not your normal chilled juice or summer drink for sure.
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Been grown up in TN I remember the first time I had this drink as a kid and the last time before moving on to a new place.! Then I had this sudden cravings in a peak summer and in nowhere around south, I had to make this drink said my inner voice.
Recipe -wise making this drink from scratch is a bit Laborious, but its worth the effort when your family loves it!
Aha, but I have shortcuts too! Who doesn’t want to make life easy right?
Jigarthanda and Summer
If you have been to Tamil Nadu, you would be already familiar with this drinking dessert.
Yes, Jigarthanda is a dessert drink recipe kind. This drink glorified the origin as the name tag reads as ‘Madurai Jigarthanda’. the most popular StreetSide juice shops sells this drink and mostly you can find them in summer and around madurai.
If you are already familiar with Tamil. Then you know, this ‘Jigar Thanda ‘ word is not even in Tamil. Intrigued, I explored a bit about this super summer drink and here goes the menaing of Jigarthanda ‘Jigar‘ means Liver and ‘thanda’ stands for Cold in Urudu.
Incase, you wondering by the word ‘jil jil’ its a tamil word with meaning cold. See, I got you all covered! 😉
Really? that triggered my curiosity more and my ‘detective shambu’ got satisfied after reading a bit more about the history of Jigarthanda
Why is Madurai Jigarthanda so special?
The specialty of Madurai jigarthanda is based on milk and milk based ingredients and some local but important ingredients. However, later below these ingredients, I have also my suggestions to make your look- alike, fool proof jigarthanda recipe. so, you will never miss one because of unavaiable ingredients. hang on there.
Jigarthanda Ingredients
1. Nannari Sarbath Sarsaparilla root extract
This is another main ingredient in this recipe. Growing up, nannari sarbath is extract has been a part of our summer drinks and the sheen memories of you serving the guests with juice and receiving the same, while you are the guest is Nostalgia.
You can source them online. Alternatively, get the roots of sarsaparilla from any Ayurvedic Indian shops and make the extract on your own.
2. Badam Pisin / Almond Gum / Gond Katira:
Also known as Tragacanth Gum, this Almond gum look like gem stones. It’s a basic ingredient used in this recipe. once soaked they lose their structure and turn like a shredded clear rubber. Use limited amount of Badam pisin for soaking, as they absorb water and expand in size.
if you are thinking of Edible gum (Gond gum) the one consumed in winters with ladoos as Almond gum then you are wrong. Avoid Edible gum in this recipe as they are water soluble. Also, they have extremely opposite characteristics by nature.
You can source this ingredient from Indian Ayurvedic Shops and through online.
3.Icecream from reduced milk
The third most important step is making homemade icecream from reduced milk. Although this step can be susbstituted by any store bought ice creams, this adds a unique flavour.
Another important fact is that, this homemade icecream from reduced milk doesn’t have any stabilizers naturally to hold its shape longer and melts faster giving you the creaminess in every spoon.
4. Colour of Jigarthanda
Compared to the first 3 ingredienst, it may not be that important. but, ‘aankhon se pyaar ho jata hai’ (We start loving with our eyes ). So the color adding ingredient here is caramelization of sugar along with the syrup. so try adding this step too.
5.Koya
you can use store bought sweetened koya (palkova) or unsweetened koya. Just be conscious with the sugar syrup you mix while adding caramalized sugar to the recipe.
Use full cream milk for this step, and reduce the milk to the half of its total quantity.
Jigarthanda Juice from scratch
1.First of all, Soak Badam Pisin a over night. You will need 20-25 small pieces of them for serving two. Soaking it for overnight or around eight ours it blooms.
2. In a saucepan, heat sugar in medium to low heat. When the sugar melts and caramalises add warm water of 1/4 cup.
3. Reduce full fat milk to its half quantity by constantly stirring and adding the cream formed on the sides of the vessel back into it. You can skip this step and add basundi if you have at your home.
4. The next step is to add sugar in this reduced milk, followed by koya. and continue to cook for 2 more minute.
5. Blend fresh cream, sugar syrup and add this reduced milk mixture from step 4 . Save some sugar syrup for serving
6. Now, Save half of this quantity in refrigerator and freeze the remaining half overnight.
7. Finally for serving, use a tall glass.
For serving :
Add the badam pisin drizzled with sugar syrup and Nannari sarbath in a tall glass. Add thick full fat milk one fourth and refrigerated reduce milk .
To the top of it add one scoop of jigarthanda ice cream we freezed overnight, drizzled with nannari sarbath. Serve them immediately with a spoon.
Easy Method for making Jigarthanda juice (Alternative method)
As promised, here is my shortcuts, to make this recipe easy. I have combined all possible alternatives that would make this drink almost similar in taste. But, to be frank, this would definitely wouldn’t taste exactly same like traditional method skipping multiple ingredients, yet it’s delicious.
Badam pisin can be substituted with Agar Agar. Though Other Gond substitue is soluable in nature, and doesn’t guarantee the structure. Agar Agar when shredded gives the similar structure and has the same cooling property as Almond gum early days, this drink has also been known as kadarpasi (a tamil name for Agar agar) drink.
If using Agar agar powder, Add 2 tsp of Agar powder to 2 cup warm water. Let it set in room temperature and shred the almond gum in this recipe.
Ice cream from reduced milk can be substituted with vanilla Ice cream store-bought, this saves you pre preparation time.
Use condensed milk on the place of reduced milk in this recipe or basundi from Indian sweet shops would also be a best substitute
The next alteration is for Nannari sarbath. Though, I dont recommend substituting it. Butterscotch Essence with syrup acts as the best substitute enhancing the colour and flavour to the drink. You are likely to hit to mangoes in a stone if using this alternative! (he he..)
Madurai Jil Jil Jigarthanda Juice
Equipment
- Saucepan
Ingredients
- 1 Litre Milk
- 8 tbsp Nannari sarbath (Sarsaparilla Extract)
- 2 tbsp Sugar
- 100 ml Khoya
- 500 ml Cream
- ¼ cup Water
- 20-25 pieces Badam Pisin / Almond Gum
For sugar syrup
- 4 tbsp sugar
Instructions
- Soak Badam pisin overnight or a day before and store in refrigerator. It blooms and grows in quantity after soaking.
Sugar syrup
- For sugar syrup, Heat sugar in a saucepan between medium to low heat. When sugar melts and starts caramelizing , add warm water of 1/3 cup.
Base of Jigarthanda
- Boil 1 liter milk and keep stirring in-between. Keep adding the cream sticked on the sides of the vessel back to it.
- Let it reduce to half the quantity. till then repeat the above steps. or just replace this step with 500 ml basundi.
- Now, add sugar and koya to the reduced milk, give it a stir and continue cooking for 2 more minutes.
- Switch off the stove. Let it come to room temperature.
Jigarthanda Ice cream
- Blend fresh cream, prepared sugar syrup and the jigarthanda base prepared from previous step. *Save some sugar syrup for final drizzling too*
- Separate the blended mixture into half quantity. One section goes into the freezer for ice cream and the other into the refrigerator for the rich, creamy base.
Layering / serving
- Take a tall cup to hold all the layers.
- Layer the bottom most layer with badam pisin / Almond Gum.
- Add sugar syrup and nannari sarbath to it.
- Now, add the reduced milk we refrigerated overnight.
- Add a Scoop of Jigarthanda icecream above milk layer, from the freezer.
- Drizzle it with sugar syrup finally and serve immediately.
Cheer's to Happy summers!
TIps to make Jigarthanda drink at its best
- Try to use the same Madurai Jigarthanda ingredients for the authentic taste. Sticking to alternative with Sarsaparilla root extract also works the best.
- Pre-prepare the Jigarthanda Icecream and basundi to avoid fuss.
- Excess Badam pisin can be stored in refrigerator in an airtight container for future use or substitute them in mango shake.
- Avoid adding water to the recipe as this wouldn’t taste better. Also add ice cubes only at the time of serving.
- Immediately serve Jigarthanda after adding Jigarthanda Icecream scoop.
- You can store the prepared jigarthanda upto 3 days in refrigerator.
- In some Jigarthanda shops they add Tutti Frutti, Sabja seeds (Basil seeds) however the original version does not include them. Adding them to your tall glass of Jigarthanda drink is also not bad.
- Avoid adding normal or chilled water, while making sugar syrup. As the sudden change in temperature will shock the sugar caramelization process and it will become a hard candy.
