I have mentioned lassis to you before… I shared with you my version of a mango lassi earlier. But after having lassis in India during my past trip there, I realized my version of lassi is not that authentic.
Lassi is a yogurt-based drink very typical to India. It is made out of plain yogurt churned with some fruit, typically mango, but I learned that it can be done with other fruits too. But the fruit is minimal, because all the lassis I had during this trip are white and do not take on the color of the fruit being mixed in.
Lassis are typically drunk as an appetizer before a meal… I drank them also during the meal to help cool of my taste buds of all the spicy Indian food. I even had it as an afternoon snack… when everyone at the hotel bar was ordering drinks after taking in the sights of the Taj Mahal, I ordered myself a lassi. The server laughed but found it endearing and as a sign of us embracing of Indian culture. He also thought I was Indian…
I learned there are 2 versions of lassi – salted or sweet. I only knew the sweet versions, which was preferred by everyone I asked. I got to try the salted version during our 1st breakfast in Agra. Nothing special, just imagine a liquid yogurt sprinkled with salt. It only helped me to cool down the spiciness of the dosas and chutneys I had that morning… other than that, I will continue ordering sweet lassi.
Also, lassis are made with a churner, like the one you see below, instead of a blender, like I do… I guess that was why the lassis would take a little while every time I ordered them.
So, for a more authentic version of lassi… you can still follow my recipe, just add a tiny bit of fruit, to maintain the white color of the yogurt. and you can add some pistachios on top… to resemble the one I had at the ITC Agra Hotel… super chic indeed.
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