Indian cooking
Indian cooking / Dishes / Tulasi Sherbet
Tulasi Sherbet (Sweet Basil Seed Sherbet)

Tulasi Sherbet

Sweet Basil Seed Sherbet
VegetarianOrigin AwadhPrep 20 minutes, plus soaking and cooling time

A fragrant, cooling milk drink textured with plump basil seeds. Scented with kewra or rosewater, it offers a gentle sweetness and a soothing, refreshing quality.

Ingredients

01
Basil seed · Sabja
40 g4 tablespoons
nut/seed
02
Granulated sugar · Cheeni
120 g
sweetener
03
Screwpine water or rosewater · Kewra water or rosewater
5 g1 teaspoon
liquid
04
Milk · Doodh
517 g500 ml
dairy

Method

  1. Place 4 tablespoon basil seeds in a bowl with 750 ml water and leave them to soak for around 1 hour until fully swollen, then pour off any remaining liquid.
  2. Combine 120 g granulated sugar with 1 litre water in a heavy saucepan set over low heat, stirring until completely dissolved, then remove the pan from the stove and let the syrup cool thoroughly.
  3. Stir the plumped basil seeds into the cooled syrup, followed by 1 teaspoon kewra water or rosewater and 500 g milk, blending everything evenly before serving.

Don't have something?

Basil seed
  • Sago

    Soak in water until soft; use about 70% of the weight. Gives small pearls but a softer, starchier texture, not the same gel.

  • Poppy seed

    Use the same weight for look only; it does not swell into a gel. Best as a garnish.

Granulated sugar
  • Jaggery

    Use equal weight; grate or shave finely so it dissolves rapidly, giving a warm, caramel-like sweetness and slightly darker sauce.

Kewra water or rosewater
  • Rosewater

    Use equal volume; replaces the grassy, pandan-like kewra aroma with a sweet floral note.

  • Green cardamom pod

    Crush seeds from 2 pods per teaspoon of floral water and add to the simmering gravy; provides sweet aromatic lift without floral perfume.

Milk
  • Whole milk

    Use equal weight; provides the standard rich dairy fat and body expected in creamy Indian bases.

  • Single cream

    Dilute 3 parts cream with 1 part water to match the weight; yields a richer, glossier gravy that resists curdling.

  • Plain yogurt

    Whisk thoroughly and use equal weight; adds extra body and a mild pleasant acidity, best added off the heat.