Rukmini Iyer’s shahi tukra bread and butter pudding recipe

“Shahi tukra is a rich Mughal dessert, where crisp butter-fried bread is soaked in a cardamom and saffron-infused milk,” explains Rukmini Iyer.

“In the interests of speed (and greed), I decided to convert it into a brioche bread and butter pudding, so you get a crisp topping along with the wonderful flavours of saffron and cardamom within the dish. Blackberries and pistachios are my left-field addition.”

Rukmini Iyer’s shahi tukra bread and butter pudding recipe

Prep: 15 minutes. Cook: 25–30 minutes

Ingredients
(Serves 6-8)

50ml milk (whole or semi-skimmed)
3 medium free-range egg yolks
85g caster sugar
300ml single cream
400g sliced brioche, cut into quarters
150g blackberries
Handful chopped pistachios
Clotted cream, to serve
Generous 1⁄2tsp good saffron threads
6 cardamom pods, seeds ground

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 150°C fan/170°C/gas 3. Heat the milk in a small saucepan and add the saffron. Turn off the heat and let it infuse.

2. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks with the caster sugar, single cream and ground cardamom seeds. Arrange the sliced brioche and blackberries in a buttered roasting tin or flan dish and pour over the eggy custard.

3. Use the back of a teaspoon to mash the saffron into the milk (this will release more colour), and then carefully drizzle this all over the pudding. Scatter with the pistachios and then transfer to the oven to bake for 25–30 minutes until golden brown and crisp on top. Serve immediately with clotted cream.

Note: Do use the best saffron you can find. I find the Belazu brand consistently good and wonderfully aromatic, but other supermarket brands of saffron less so.

India Express: Fresh And Delicious Recipes For Every Day by Rukmini Iyer is published by Square Peg, priced £22, photography by David Loftus. Available now.