Badam haalu, kaju Mysore pak and holige: the nuts in Karnataka’s festive kitchen

We do not make sweets. We sell the nuts that go into them, and people cooking in Bangalore often ask us which nut suits which dish. Here are the three dishes they ask about most.

How to make badam haalu at home

Badam haalu is served hot on a cool Bangalore evening, chilled in the summer, and by the glass at weddings and festivals across the state. Homemade, it tastes of almonds rather than of flavouring.

For about three glasses:

• 15–20 badam, soaked overnight
• 500 ml full-fat milk, plus a little extra for grinding
• 3–4 tablespoons sugar, to taste
• 2 green cardamom pods, seeds crushed
• A few strands of saffron, if you have them
• A pinch of grated nutmeg (optional)

1. Peel the soaked almonds. The skins slip off easily after a night in water.
2. Grind them with three or four tablespoons of milk to a fine paste. If it stays coarse, the drink will be gritty.
3. Bring the milk to a boil, stir in the paste, and simmer on a low flame for 8–10 minutes, stirring so it does not catch.
4. Add the sugar, cardamom and saffron, and simmer for two more minutes.
5. Serve hot, or cool it and chill it. It thickens as it cools.

Regular Badam is what most homes use, and it does the job well. Mamra Badam gives a richer, slightly sweeter drink, at a much higher price. Our guide on Mamra versus Californian almonds sets out the difference. For the cardamom, green elaichi ground fresh smells far stronger than a ready powder.

Mysore pak, and where kaju comes in

The classic Mysore pak has no nuts at all. It is besan, ghee and sugar, cooked until it foams and sets, and it keeps its name for a reason. If your family’s recipe has no nuts in it, it is not missing anything.

Cashew comes in through the variations home cooks make. Some replace part of the besan with finely ground cashew for a softer, richer piece. Others make a kaju version with no besan at all, which is really closer to a cashew burfi cooked the Mysore pak way. A few simply press a sliver of badam or pista on top.

For any of these, buy broken cashew (kaju tukda). It is the same kernel as whole kaju, just broken, and it costs less. Once it is ground to powder, nobody can tell. Grind it in short bursts, because long runs heat the cashew and turn it into paste.

Obbattu fillings at Ugadi

Obbattu, or holige, is the dish most Karnataka homes make at Ugadi. The two classic fillings are bele obbattu, with chana dal and jaggery, and kayi obbattu, with coconut and jaggery. Neither traditionally uses nuts. Cardamom and a little nutmeg are what give them their smell.

If you want to add nuts, a small amount goes a long way. A tablespoon of finely chopped cashew or badam in a batch of coconut filling adds some bite without making the holige tear when you roll it. Keep the pieces small. Large pieces break through the thin dough.

Kesari bath, payasa and the fried kaju

The nut most used in Karnataka cooking is not in any of the dishes above. It is the handful of kaju and kishmish fried in ghee and stirred into kesari bath, shavige payasa and pongal. Fry the cashew first on a medium flame until golden, then add the raisins for a few seconds until they puff. Kishmish burns quickly, so take the pan off the heat as soon as they swell.

Buying for a festival batch

For a household’s Ugadi or Dasara cooking, 250 g of badam, 250 g of kaju tukda and 100 g of kishmish is usually plenty. Everything is on our almonds shelf and the shelves beside it. Orders reach Bangalore in 3–5 days, so order a week before the festival. Delivery is free on orders over ₹1,000. Below that, a delivery charge is added at checkout. See today’s dry fruit prices in Bangalore for current rates.

Questions people ask