Recipe for Mishti Doi | Bengali Sweet Yoghurt | Meetha Dahi

Recipe for Mishti Doi | Bengali Sweet Yoghurt | Meetha Dahi – Step wise Recipe for Mishti Doi to make rich, creamy & decadent sweet yogurt fermented in earthen pots.The sweetness is lent from lightly caramelised sugar.

You are all set to throw a party and listed down an impressive menu but a dessert is missing. I have an idea for you…just whip up some Mishti Doi!! An extremely addictive dessert option, which has minimum preps and requires minimum effort. You just need to be lucky enough for the yoghurt to set…and you are done!! It can be prepared a day in advance, and stays quite good in the refrigerator for a few days. Perfect to serve Mishti Doi at a dinner party or for a weekend post-meal treat. So friends, today I’m here to share a Recipe for Mishti Doi, which is a signature Bengali sweet dish.

The traditional way of making Recipe for Mishti Doi is simple but time consuming. Rich, creamy and decadent sweet yogurt with a hint of cardamom emanates a distinct earthy aroma that makes it so unique. Doesn’t calling it sweet yoghurt sound underwhelming? If you are not aware of the real taste of Mishti Doi, it would sound like some sugar dissolved in yoghurt. But trust me it’s not that simple to get the velvety texture.

Setting this deliciously rich pot of mishti doi was not an easy task because of the prevailing weather conditions. You need a warm temperature for the yoghurt to set. I somewhat managed to get the yoghurt set, but the texture was not very firm but it tasted awesome. That was anyways not my fault….I can’t change nature!!

I love this Recipe for Mishti Doi because it has a slight hint of tartness rather than being too sweet. You can of course serve this on its own, but it looks pretty when topped with pistachios or with any fruits. A cool sweet yoghurt or Mishti Doi on a hot summer day is thirst quenching, refreshing and a treat to the sweet tooth.

How to make Mishti Doi?

Though only 2 or 3 ingredients are required, what you really need is patience to make this scrumptious sweet because of it’s lengthy process. Milk is boiled, till it is reduced to a creamy consistency, and then sweetened with caramelised sugar or jaggery and traditionally fermented in earthen pots. The pores of the earthen ware help in losing the moisture and thus help in making the yogurt creamier. Don’t bother if you do not have a supply of earthen ware, any oven safe dish will do.

In case you can’t find a warm place at home, use the oven for the yoghurt to set. Preheat your oven at 170F/80C. Turn it off. Now place the bowls inside the oven to set the yogurt. If the surrounding temperature is too low keep the oven light on. The warm oven will serve as an incubator.  Don’t disturb until the yogurt is completely set, otherwise it will break the structure. If you are in India you can set it in a cool dry place in your kitchen as the kitchens are warm enough for i to set. It takes 5 to 8 hours for the Mishti Doi to set.

Once set, take it out and chill in the refrigerator. It is very important to cool the yogurt into the refrigerator once it is set. This way your yogurt won’t be too sour as the cool temperature of refrigerator will inactivate the bacteria.

Valentine’s day is just round the corner….I’m not a big fan of this day but it’s a very special week for us since it is our anniversary week!!….Sweeten your Valentine’s day with this scrumptious dessert!!

Off to the Recipe for Mishti Doi!!

Recipe for Mishti Doi:

The process involves 3 simple steps:

1. Reducing milk
2. Caramelising sugar
3. Mixing both and fermenting milk to yoghurt

First you will need:

1. Reducing milk:

• Start the process with boiling milk in the heavy bottom pan over medium heat. Let it come to a boil.

• Reserving half the quantity of the sugar for caramelising and add the rest to the hot milk.
• Let the milk boil and reduce to half the quantity. Turn off the heat.

2. Caramelising sugar:

• In the mean time caramelise sugar. Heat reserved sugar in a pan on low heat.
• Keep stirring until the sugar is caramelised to nice golden brown colour. Turn off the heat.
• Now to that add 1 tablespoon of water and stir with a spoon so that it doesn’t harden.

3. Mixing both the above and fermenting milk to yoghurt:

• Add this caramelised sugar to the reduced milk and stir until well blended.
• Let the milk cool just until it is warm (but not hot).

• Now add the yogurt to the caramelised milk and mix well.

• Add cardamom powder (optional) and mix well.
• Pour into serving dishes/ pots and set overnight in a warm place.

• Once the yogurt is firm, put it in the refrigerator for few hours before serving.
• Serve chilled topped with some coarsely crushed pistachios or any fresh fruits of your choice.

You must be wondering what’s in the spoon in all pics!!…I also tried to steam a batch (bhapa doi) just in case I do not succeed in setting the yoghurt. But I must tell you I preferred the yoghurt that set naturally compared to the steamed one.

Print Recipe

Recipe for Mishti Doi | Bengali Sweet Yoghurt | Meetha Dahi

Step wise Recipe for Mishti Doi to make rich, creamy & decadent sweet yogurt fermented in earthen pots.The sweetness is lent from lightly caramelised sugar.

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time35 minutes mins

Total Time40 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Indian (Bengali)

Servings: 4 to 6

Author: Padma

Ingredients

• 4 cups whole milk
• 1 cup Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Plain Yogurt whisked
• 1 Tablespoon Water
• Few shelled & chopped pistachios for garnishing optional
• Some fruits of your choice for garnishing optional

Instructions

• Reducing milk:
• Start the process with boiling milk in the heavy bottom pan. Let it come to a boil.
• Reserve half of the sugar for caramelising and add the rest to the hot milk.
• Let the milk boil and reduce to half the quantity. Turn off the heat.
• Caramelising sugar:
• In the mean time caramelise the reserved sugar. Heat sugar in a pan over low heat.
• Keep stirring until the sugar is caramelised to nice golden brown colour. Turn off the heat.
• Add a tablespoon of water to the caramelised sugar so that it doesn't harden.
• Mixing both and fermenting milk to yoghurt::
• Add this caramelised sugar to the reduced milk and stir until well blended.
• Let the milk cool just until it is warm (but not hot).
• Now add the yogurt to the caramelised milk and mix well.
• Add cardamom powder (optional) and mix well.
• Pour into serving dishes/ earthen pots and set overnight in a warm place.
• Once the yogurt is firm, put it in the refrigerator for few hours before serving.
• Serve chilled topped with some coarsely crushed pistachios or any fresh fruits of your choice.

Recipe Video

Notes

• The prep time does not include the overnight incubation time.
• Mishti Doi taste’s best when served in earthen pot but it’s optional. It really comes out very creamy when yoghurt is set in earthen pots.
• Using the warm oven is optional, if the weather is really hot just put the pot in a cool dry place and let them set overnight. If the weather is very cool then opt for oven method to set the yogurt.
• If you want to flavour the yogurt using cardamom or saffron, go ahead. You can also omit caramelising step if you don’t want clash of flavours.
• Before adding yogurt into the milk for setting, make sure the milk is not too hot or too cold, just lukewarm.
• Adding water to the caramelised sugar prevents from hardening.

This is my last recipe to the blog hop theme Bengali cuisine. Btw…have you checked out my recipes for luchi and dhonepata fulkopi…if not, click on the links and have a look.

Below are some popular Milk & Yoghurt based DESSERTS from Blog:

• Rasmalai
• Milk powder Burfi
• Kalakand Sweet
• Khoya Gulab Jamun
• Kala Jamun 
• Caramel Basundi
• Kesar Badam Kulfi
• Mishti Doi (Another Variation)
• Mango Lassi
• Frozen Mango Yoghurt

And many more to come!!…..Stay Tuned!!

Hungry for more? Never miss a recipe!!…Subscribe to MasalaKorb and have posts delivered straight to your inbox! And connect with me on Facebook, Google, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest  for all of the latest updates.

Do subscribe to my YouTube Channel  for latest video alerts!! 

Did you make a recipe? Make sure to tag your photo with this hashtag:  #masalakorb

Happy Cooking 

Cheers!!