Cornflour Oud (Halwa)
This rich and glossy Parsi sweet, known as Oud, combines the smooth texture of cornflour with the tropical richness of fresh coconut milk and ghee. The dessert is slow-cooked to a perfect gelatinous consistency and infused with a fragrant blend of rosewater, cardamom, nutmeg, and vanilla. Served as delicate squares, it offers a melt-in-the-mouth texture that is both comforting and elegant.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces Cornstarch (Cornflour) (Originally '0.5 lb Brown & Polson's Cornflour'.)
- 1 pound Granulated sugar (Originally '1 seer clean sugar'.)
- 8 ounces Ghee (Originally '0.5 lb pure sweet ghee'.)
- 2 ounces Almonds (Originally '5 tolas fresh almond seeds'. Blanched.)
- 3 cups Whole milk (Originally '1.5 seer pure milk'. Preferably buffalo milk for richness.)
- 1 1/2 medium Fresh coconuts (Used to extract coconut milk.)
- 4 cups Cold water (Originally '2 seers'. Used for extracting coconut milk.)
- 1 tablespoon Cardamom and Nutmeg powder (Originally '1 tola crushed cardamom and nutmeg mixed'.)
- 2 tablespoons Rosewater (Originally '0.5 pasher pure rosewater'.)
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract (Originally '1 small spoon vanilla essence'.)
Instructions
- 1Peel the almonds (blanch them first if needed). Crush them very finely with a small amount of the rosewater to create a paste.
- 2Grate the coconuts. Take the cold water and divide it into three parts. Wash and rub the grated coconut thoroughly with the water in three separate batches to extract all the milk. Combine the extractions.
- 3Dissolve the sugar into the extracted coconut milk. Add the whole milk (buffalo milk) to this mixture and strain everything through a clean cloth to ensure it is smooth.
- 4Gradually mix the cornflour into the liquid mixture, ensuring absolutely no lumps remain. Add the almond paste and ghee. Place the mixture on the stove over a slow fire.
- 5Stir continuously without stopping, as cornflour settles to the bottom quickly. Cook until the mixture is not completely hard but becomes thick and dense (ghat). Just before removing from heat, mix in the cardamom, nutmeg, vanilla, and any remaining rosewater.
- 6Pour the mixture into a tray (khumcha) that has been greased with ghee. Allow it to cool and set. Once set, make square cuts and lift the pieces carefully using a flat spatula.