Mouhalabieh
Milk set with cornflour, perfumed with rose and orange blossom, and scattered with pistachio. Barely sweet, eaten cold, and the whole thing takes fifteen minutes.
Photograph credit: Mahalabia by Miansari66 · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons
How to Make Mouhalabieh
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Whisk the cornflour into 200 ml of the cold milk until completely smooth with no lumps.
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Heat the remaining 800 ml milk with the sugar until steaming but not boiling.
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Pour the cornflour slurry into the hot milk in a steady stream, whisking constantly.
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Bring to the boil over medium heat, stirring without stopping. Once it bubbles, keep it there for 2 full minutes — it will thicken sharply.
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Take off the heat and stir in the rose water and orange blossom water. Taste, and add more only a few drops at a time.
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Pour into six glasses or a shallow dish and press cling film onto the surface if you dislike a skin.
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Chill at least 180 minutes, until set and completely cold. Serve scattered with pistachios, rose petals and a thread of honey.
Related guide: Prep, cook and total time.
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Notes for Getting It Right
- It must actually boil for two minutes, or it will not set.
- Flower waters off the heat. Boiling drives them off.
- Add the rose water cautiously — strengths vary wildly.
Serving Suggestions
- Arabic coffee
- Fresh dates
- Sweet tea
Keeping and Reheating
Refrigerated for 3 days, covered. It does not freeze — the starch weeps on thawing.
Mouhalabieh: Questions and Answers
How long does Mouhalabieh take to make?
10 minutes of preparation and 15 minutes of cooking, plus 3 hours of chilling until set, so allow 3 hours 25 minutes from start to finish. The recipe serves 6.
Nutrition per Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.
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Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked. Found a mistake? Tell us.
First published ; last changed .