Pakistani Mango Recipes
Mango shrikhand, strained yoghurt dessert
The simplest mango dessert in Pakistani cuisine. Done in 10 minutes.
5 min read · published 12 June 2026
What shrikhand is
Shrikhand is strained yoghurt (chakka) folded with sugar and aromatics. Mango shrikhand, sometimes called amrakhand, adds mango pulp to the base. It's eaten as a dessert spoonful, with puris on a thali, or as a topping for kulfi.
Pakistani Memon and Gujarati Muslim households in Karachi treat it as everyday food, not special-occasion dessert. It's the lassi's denser cousin.
Straining the yoghurt
Start with 1kg full-fat natural yoghurt, not Greek, which is already strained too much and goes grainy when sweetened. Set yoghurt or 'Pakistani-style' yoghurt is ideal.
Tip the yoghurt into a muslin cloth (or a clean tea towel) set over a bowl. Tie and hang from a tap or cupboard handle, with the bowl below to catch whey. Leave 8 hours, ideally overnight. You'll end up with ~400g thick chakka and ~600g whey (save the whey, it's brilliant in dough and bread).
Folding in mango
In a wide bowl, whisk the chakka with 100g caster sugar (or to taste) until silky. Fold in 250g ripe Chaunsa pulp, ½ tsp ground cardamom, and a pinch of saffron soaked in 1 tsp warm milk.
Don't whisk hard at this stage, gentle folding keeps the marbled mango streaks visible, which is the visual signature of mango shrikhand.
Chilling and serving
Chill for at least 2 hours. Shrikhand needs to be cold to taste right; warm shrikhand reads as a runny mess.
Top with chopped pistachios, a few extra saffron strands, and a drizzle of cold mango pulp. Serve in small bowls, 80g is a generous portion. It's denser than ice cream and richer than mousse.
Frequently asked
- Can I use Greek yoghurt to skip straining?
- It works but the texture is grainier and the tang is wrong. If you must, use 600g of 10% Greek yoghurt as a shortcut substitute for 400g chakka.
- How long does it keep?
- 3 days refrigerated in an airtight container. The mango pulp will weep slightly on day 2, stir back in.
- Is it suitable for pregnancy?
- Yes, fully cooked? No, but it's safe. Ripe mango and pasteurised yoghurt are both pregnancy-safe; avoid only if you're using unpasteurised home-set yoghurt.
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