Kulfi
Matka Kulfi
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| Alternative names | Qulfi, Khulfi |
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| Type | Ice cream |
| Course | Dessert |
| Place of origin | Mughal Empire |
| Region or state | Indian Subcontinent |
| Main ingredients | Milk |
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Kulfi /kʊlfiː/ is a popular frozen dairy dessert from the Indian Subcontinent. It is often described as "traditional Indian ice cream". It is popular throughout India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Nepal, Burma (Myanmar), and the Middle East, and widely available in Indian restaurants in Australia, Europe, East Asia and North America.
As popularly understood, Kulfi has similarities to ice cream in appearance and taste; however it is denser and creamier. It comes in various flavours. The more traditional ones are cream (malai), rose, mango, cardamom (elaichi), saffron (kesar or zafran), and pistachio. There are newer variations such as apple, orange, strawberry, peanut, and avocado. Unlike Western ice creams, kulfi is not whipped, resulting in a solid, dense frozen dessert similar to traditional custard-based ice cream. Thus, it is sometimes considered a distinct category of frozen dairy-based dessert. Due to its density, kulfi takes a longer time to melt than Western ice cream.
The word "kulfi" is derived from the Persian word for a covered cup. The dessert likely originated in the Mughal Empire (northern India), in the 16th century. The mixture of dense evaporated milk was already popular in Hindu sweet dishes. During the Mughal period, this mixture was flavoured with pistachios and saffron, packed into metal cones and immersed in slurry ice, resulting in the invention of Kulfi. Ain-i-Akbari, a detailed record of the Mughal emperor Akbar's administration, mentions use of saltpeter for refrigeration as well as transportation of Himalayan ice to warmer areas.
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