Sweet Corn Basundi

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Sweet Corn Basundi is a rich, creamy, and absolutely flavorful Indian dessert. Made with very few ingredients like milk, sweet corn, and sugar this recipe is very easy and a definite crowd-pleaser.

Basundi is a traditional Indian sweet popular in Maharashtra, Gujarat, and some parts of Karnataka. It is one of the most popular sweets during the festive season. Made with thickened milk and sugar with some flavor enhancers like cardamom and saffron, it is not just delicious but beautifully aromatic too.

What is Basundi?

Basundi is made by cooking the milk on low flame for a long time with occasional stirring in between so that it reduces to half and thickens. Later sugar and flavor enhancers are added to elevate the richness of the basundi.

This popular dish is made for most festive occasions like Holi, Diwali, Raksha Bandhan, Eid, and more.

The rich creamy dessert with some thick malai that tantalizes your taste buds is absolutely divine and irresistible.

I have made Basundi a lot of time and loved the flavors. However, experimenting with my ingredients has always been what drives me to be creative and cook something unique and delicious. One such experiment in my food lab is what led to the making of Sweet Corn Basundi.

I had some sweet corn in the fridge and no one wanted to roast and eat them so I made some soup but still had a few left.

I thought instead of going the regular way and making some appetizer out of it why not make it into a dessert. I had read somewhere that pureed vegetables can be used as thickening agents in gravies. So instead of adding the puree to gravies, I decided to add it to the milk and make my own version of Basundi.

I pureed the boiled kernels of sweet corn and used them to make my Sweet Corn Basundi. Using sweet corn paste reduced my cook time and also brought in some excellent new flavors to the Basundi.

If you love Basundi but want to make it in a shorter time then this recipe is for you.

If you like milk-based desserts and would like to try something new then this recipe is for you.

If you want to surprise your friends and family with something new then this recipe is for you.

Believe me, Sweet Corn Basundi is a perfect dessert for any occasion, and it has always surprised my guests.

Lets talk about the ingredients for Sweet Corn Basundi,

• Milk - Always use full-fat whole milk.

• Sweet Corn - Always use fresh corn. Get a corn cob and using a knife slice the corn off it. Never ever use frozen corns, they will have excess water content and would not have the required fresh and sweet taste.

• Sugar - Granular sugar

• Cardamom - Use best quality cardamom. Use fresh green color pods instead of pale dried ones. The fresh green colored ones would have nice and black or dark brown seeds much like coffee beans. Make a powder of those cardamom seeds.

• Saffron - Use original saffron with fragrance, color and taste to yield best results.

• Nutmeg powder - This is an optional ingredient. Nutmeg not only imparts good flavor but also helps in easy digestion.

• Ghee - Use fresh homemade ghee or any good quality cow ghee available in market. Do not replace it with oil or butter.

• Almonds and pistachios - Either roasted in ghee or soaked, peeled and sliced.

Step by step instructions for Sweet Corn Basundi -

1. Cooking the corn

Take 1 and ½ cups of sweet corn kernels and cook them in a pressure cooker for 2 to 3 whistles. Alternatively, you could steam them in a steamer for 7 to 9 minutes.

Keep about 2 to 3 tablespoons of cooked corn aside for garnish.

Grind the remaining corn in a grinder and make a smooth paste. Add a couple of tablespoons of water if required while grinding.

Using a sieve strain the paste. This is a very important step to remove all the skin/shells of corn and have a smooth paste. Throw away the scraps.

Take a nonstick pan or any saute pan, add 2 teaspoons of ghee to it and let it heat up. Add the strained corn paste to the pan and cook it on medium-low heat. Cook for about 5 to 7 minutes or till the ghee starts separating. Once cooked set the pan aside for later.

2. Cooking the milk/Boiling the milk for sweet corn basundi-

Take 1-liter milk or 4 and ¼ cups of milk in a saucepan. Keep the heat on a medium and bring the milk to a boil. Now reduce the heat to low and let the milk cook further. Keep stirring in between and scraping the sides and bottom to avoid burning. Continue to cook the milk till it reduces to ¾th. You will also see a slight change in color. (Approximately 20 minutes)

3. Adding rest of the ingredients -

Once the milk has reduced to ¾th add ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons of sugar, the cooked corn paste, ¼ teaspoon of cardamom powder, 8 to 10 strands of saffron, and mix everything together. You can also add ⅛th teaspoon of nutmeg powder to the sweet corn basundi.

Cook it for another 5 to 10 minutes on medium-low heat. Let it simmer and infuse with the color of saffron and flavors of sweet corn and cardamom.

Add roasted nuts and the corn kernels that were kept aside on the top of the sweet corn basundi. Let it cool down and then refrigerate it for a couple of hours before serving.

While serving add some chopped nuts on top. Enjoy the delicious sweet corn basundi with friends and family.

If you like making desserts also check out some of my other desserts like Cadbury chocolate panna cotta, Kaju katli, new york style cheesecake, and besan ladoos.

DO DROP A COMMENT BELOW IF YOU HAVE TRIED THE RECIPE. I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCES. ALSO, REACH OUT TO ME IF YOU HAVE ANY CONCERNS OR QUESTIONS. I WOULD BE HAPPY TO HELP.

Post a photo on my Facebook page or tag me on Instagram with #prajakta_food_lab you can even pin it on Pinterest with the tag #p3foodlab.