Lassi

Lassi is a popular and traditional Indian drink originating from the Punjab region. It is made by blending yogurt with water, salt, pepper, ice and spices until frothy. Traditional lassi is sometimes flavored with ground roasted cumin. Lassi is also available as sweet with sugar.

Yogurt sweetened with honey is used in rituals. Less common is lassi served with milk and is topped with a thin layer of Devonshire cream. Lassis are enjoyed chilled as a hot-weather refreshment, mostly taken with lunch. The most traditional form of lassi is only available in villages of Northern India and part of Pakistan; it contains raw milk and is made manually by women. With a little turmeric powder mixed in, it is also used as a folk remedy for gastroenteritis. .

Variations

A cool glass of Lassi

Sweet lassi

Sweet lassi is a form of lassi flavored with sugar, rosewater and/or lemon, mango, strawberry or other fruit juices. Saffron lassis, which are particularly rich, are a specialty of Sindh in Pakistan and Jodhpur and Rajasthan in India. Makhaniya lassi is simply lassi with lumps of butter in it (makhan is the Punjabi, Hindi, Gujarati and Urdu word for butter). It is usually creamy like a milkshake.

Mango lassi

In various parts of the world, mango lassi is a cold drink consisting of sweetened kesar mango pulp mixed with yogurt, cream, or ice cream. It is served in a tall glass with a straw, often with ground pistachio nuts sprinkled on top.

Bhang lassi

Bhang lassi is a special lassi that contains bhang, a liquid derivative of cannabis, which has effects similar to other eaten forms of marijuana. It is legal in many parts of India and mainly used for religious purposes, particularly during Holi, when pakoras containing bhang are also sometimes eaten. Rajasthan is known to have licensed bhang shops, and in many places one can buy bhang products and drink bhang lassis.

On his No Reservations television program, celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain visited a "Govt Authorised" Bhang Shop in Jaisalmer Fort, Rajasthan. The proprieter offered him three varieties of the drink: "normally strong, super duper sexy strong, and full power 24 hour, no toilet, no shower."

Chaas

• In Gujarat region, a drink like lassi is drunk but without the mango flavoring. This is called Chaas. Salt and Jeera is normally added for taste.

Ayran

A drink in Turkey is similar tasting to Lassi called Ayran. It is made with yogurt and water and bland compared to Lassi.

Cultural References

A 2008 print and television ad campaign for HSBC tells a tale of a Polish washing machine manufacturer's representative sent to India to discover why their sales are so high there. On arriving, the rep investigates to a Lassi parlour, where he is warmly welcomed, and finds several machines being used to mix Lassi. The owner tells him he is able to "make ten times as much Lassi as I used to!"

See also

• Ayran
• Doogh
• Cacık
• Kumis
• Dahi (Yogurt)
• Sambaaram

External links

• "Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations Travel Guides - Highlights From Rajasthan". Retrieved 2008-01-19.