Gothambu Kachiyathu is a Malabari drink recipe made with milk extracted from wheat and coconut which is gently cooked flavoured with cardamom. A tempering of ghee fried mini shallots, nuts and raisins adds richness and aromatic flavour to this otherwise boring drink. Served warm or chilled, this delicious drink is a staple in every Malabari home during Ramadan.
A Ramadan favourite, this wheat and coconut milk drink can be made ahead and served warm during Iftar or after night prayer.
Like Thari kachiyathu, recipe, gothambu kachiyathu too calls for fried shallots along with the nuts and raisins. The fried shallots impart a very unique flavour to these hot drinks that I highly recommend trying it.
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What is Gothambu kachiyathu?
I struggled to come up with a short English title for this post and "Wheat and Coconut Milk Hot Drink" does not justify the characters present in "Gothambu Kachiyathu". So let me explain it in long sentences. 🙂
Gothambu is the Malayalam word for wheat and Kachiyathu means tempered. Now, this doesn't do justice to the other main characters that make this custard drink. Actually, this is a three-milk hot drink; wheat milk, dairy milk and coconut milk, while coconut milk is entirely optional. Tres Milk Hot Drink would have been a fancy title for this very popular staple Malabari custard!
Ingredients
Not a lot of ingredients but all the right ones!
- wheat berries (husked or skinned whole wheat)
- grated coconut
- milk
- sugar
- cardamom
- ghee
- cashews
- raisins
- mini shallots
How to make it?
Apart from the soaking time, the preparation hardly takes time if you have a good mixer grinder. Grind, grind and grind to extract the maximum milk out of wheat and grated coconut. Next, stand by the pot and keep stirring continuously until it boils and then it is done in no time. If you miss stirring in the beginning stage, the milk mixture curdles and causes lumps...we don't need that. Finish it off with the ghee-fried shallots cashews and raisins.
Three stages for making gothambu kachiyathu:
Extracting
Firstly, you will have to soak the wheat berries in water for at least 6 hours. Then, grind the drained wheat berries and grated coconut with milk until smooth. Extract the milk by passing the mixture through a sieve into a saucepot. Make sure to press the mixture with wooden spoon to extract maximum milk. Grind the residue with more milk or water and extract again.
Hint: What to do with the residue or wheat spent? You can discard it or use in sourdough baking experiments.
Cooking
Once you have all the milk extracted to a saucepot (use non-stick if beginner), cook on low stirring constantly until it boils. Add a pinch of salt, sugar and a cardamom pod in it and continue to cook until it thickens. You can adjust the consistency as per your liking. Switch off when the wheat milk has reached your desired consistency. Note that Gothambu Kachiyathu will thicken as it cools so make sure to switch off when it is in pouring consistency so you can drink.
Hint: The amount of water and milk to cook the mixture will depend on the type of wheat used.
Tempering
Fry some sliced mini shallots, cashews and raisins in ghee. Stir everything into the milk mixture in saucepot and keep covered. This process is called tempering or 'tadka' or ‘Kaachal' in our hometown.
Substitutions
Milk: You can use dairy-free milk instead of the regular milk used in this recipe. Or you can skip it totally and add water or more wheat or coconut milk.
Wheat berries: In a pinch, you may use broken wheat or even pearl barley. If confused, buy packs that are labelled as Harees or Jareesh wheat. This is the same wheat you use to make Aleesa.
Grated coconut: You can use frozen or fresh. You can also replace it with ¾ cup desiccated coconut soaked in ¼ cup water for 5 to 10 minutes
Variations
This recipe is similar to Ooral, again a Malabari custard recipe but a sweeter version that is served chilled.
Equipment
A grinder that can process the soaked wheat.
Storage
Any leftover Gothambu kachiyathu has be to refrigerated in closed container for not more than 2 to 3 days. To reheat, bring to room temp and reheat on low stirring until starts to steam. You may make a fresh tempering to bring out the flavours.
Top tip
Do not step away from the pan as wheat milk can easily stick to the pan and get burnt. Stir using a wooden ladle making sure nothing gets stuck in the bottom.
Related
Looking for more drink recipes?
- Red Seeds Milk Drink (Aliv seeds)
- Masala Chai with Whole Spices
- Aval Milk | Rice Flakes Milk | Poha Milk
- Chai for Two
📖 Recipe
Gothambu Kachiyathu
Equipment
- Mixer Grinder
Ingredients
For wheat and coconut milk
- ¼ cup wheat berries
- 1 cup grated coconut
- 2 cup milk (see notes)
- 1 to 2 cups water
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 2 green cardamom
- salt to taste
For tempering
- 1 tablespoon ghee
- 2 to 3 mini shallots
- 6 to 8 whole cashews
- 2 tablespoon golden raisins
Instructions
Extracting
- Soak the wheat berries in water overnight or for 6 to 8 hours. Wash and drain off the water. Grind the soaked wheat and grated coconut with little milk at a time until almost smooth.¼ cup wheat berries, 1 cup grated coconut, 2 cup milk
- Pass the mixture through a fine sieve into a deep saucepot. Use a wooden ladle to press down and squeeze the mixture to extract all of the milk.
- Grind the residue once again with little water to extract the maximum milk. Strain to the saucepot and discard the spent.1 to 2 cups water
Cooking
- Place the saucepot on a low-medium heat and cook until it starts boiling, making sure that you stir the mixture continuously using a wooden spatula.
- Next, add a pinch of salt, sugar, crushed cardamom pod and cook this over a low flame until sugar dissolves. Stir continuously until the mixture starts to thicken. Switch off when it reaches your desired consistency. Gothambu Kachiyathu will get thicker as it sits.⅓ cup sugar, 2 green cardamom, salt to taste
Tempering
- Heat ghee in small pan (tadka pan) and fry the sliced mini shallots until golden, remove and keep aside. Next, fry the cashews until golden and remove and keep aside. Lastly, fry some golden raisins until puffed.1 tablespoon ghee, 6 to 8 whole cashews, 2 tablespoon golden raisins, 2 to 3 mini shallots
- Keep a few fried items aside for garnishing (optional) and add the remaining along with the ghee to the saucepot. Stir well and close the lid. Serve immediately or warm or chilled. Refrigerate any leftovers and consume within 2 to 3 days.
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