Kulfi Overnight Oats (Saffron Cardamom)
Creamy no-cook kulfi overnight oats with bloomed saffron, green cardamom, and pistachios. Half evaporated milk gives that reduced-milk kulfi richness without standing over a pot.
Equipment
- Mixing bowl or glass mason jars
- Whisk or spoon
Ingredients
For the kulfi oats
- 1 cup rolled oats old-fashioned; certified gluten-free if needed
- 1/2 cup evaporated milk
- 1/2 cup milk of your choice whole dairy or unsweetened oat or almond milk
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- saffron strands 12 to 15, plus extra for garnish
- 1/4 teaspoon green cardamom powder or freshly crushed from 2 to 3 pods
- 3 tablespoons raw unsalted pistachios shelled, lightly toasted, chopped
- 1 tablespoon sweetener sugar, honey, or maple; adjust to taste
- pinch salt
- 1/2 teaspoon rose water optional
- 1 scop vanilla protein powder optional
Instructions
Bloom and mix
- Warm 2 tablespoons of the evaporated milk until just steamy, not boiling. Crumble the saffron in and steep 10 to 15 minutes until tinted gold and fragrant.
- In a bowl or jar, combine the remaining evaporated milk and an equal amount of your milk of choice. Whisk in the bloomed saffron milk, cardamom, salt, protein powder and sweetener until fully combined. Taste and adjust; it should be a touch sweeter than you want, since chilling mutes sweetness.
- Stir in the rolled oats and chia seeds until everything is coated. Let sit 5 minutes, then stir again so the chia does not clump at the bottom.
- Fold in most of the chopped pistachios, reserving some slivers for topping.
Chill and serve
- Cover and refrigerate at least 6 hours, ideally overnight, until thick and spoonable.
- Give the oats a stir, loosen with a splash of milk if needed, and top with reserved pistachios, a few saffron strands, and an extra drizzle of sweetener if you like.
Notes
Half evaporated milk is the key to kulfi flavor; regular milk alone tastes like saffron oats, not kulfi.
Prep up to 3 to 4 days ahead; keep pistachio topping separate so it stays crunchy.
Vegan swap: use full-fat coconut milk instead of evaporated milk and plant milk for the other half.
Warm gently on the stove with extra milk for a kheer-like porridge on cold mornings.
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