Double ka Meetha is a Hyderabadi-style dessert made using bread slices, sugar syrup, and reduced milk (rabdi). It is popularly made for the festival of Eid and other special occasions. Here is how to make it.
Here are some more Indian desserts that you may like – Mango Burfi, Gulgule, Kesar Malai Ladoo, Churma Ladoo, Paneer Kheer, and Malpua.
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About This Recipe
Double ka Meetha is a very popular Hyderabadi sweet made using white bread slices, sugar syrup, and reduced milk (rabdi). It is an Indian bread pudding and is popularly made for the festival of Eid.
You must be wondering why DOUBLE? White Bread is called Double Roti in some parts of India and because this dessert is made using white bread as its base, it is called double ka meetha.
It is also called bread ka meetha or dabal ka meetha.
To make this Hyderabadi sweet, bread slices are fried in ghee until crispy, poured with sugar syrup, topped with rabdi and dry fruits, and then baked. The crispy bread slices soak up the sugar syrup and become soft and melt-in-your-mouth delicious.
If you don’t have an oven, you can make it in a pan over the stovetop too. I have shared the method in the post below.
You can serve this dessert warm or chilled. The recipe can also be doubled or tripled if you are making it for a bigger group of people or halved if making it for just your family.
Ingredients
This is an indulgent dessert and will not taste as good when made with less ghee or whole-grain bread. I suggest eating it in smaller portions than improvising the recipe to make it healthier.
You will get all the ingredients in any Indian grocery store.
Rabdi – A thin rabdi is made to top the double ka meetha. You will need whole (full-fat) milk and khoya (reduced milk solids) to make the rabdi.
Add some saffron and cardamom powder to make it more flavorful.
Bread – Use only white milk bread! No other bread will taste as good as white bread.
Also try to use fresh bread as the stale ones will leave a lot of crumbs in ghee while frying and after a few batches, the black burnt crumbs will start getting attached to the slices making them look unappetizing and taste burnt.
Ghee – Fry bread slices only in ghee and never in oil.
Sugar Syrup – Just sugar and water are required to make the sugar syrup. You can add some cardamom powder and saffron to make it even more special.
Nuts – Garnish the dessert with chopped almonds and cashew nuts.
How To Make Double Ka Meetha
Make The Rabdi
Start by making the rabdi. It will take approximately an hour for it to thicken. While it is cooking, you can make the other parts of the recipe.
Heat 1 liter whole (full-fat) milk in a non-stick pan over medium-high heat. Keep stirring while heating to avoid scorching.
Once the milk comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and add 200 g of crumbled khoya.
Cook for approximately an hour until the milk has reduced to half and becomes thick. Keep stirring frequently to avoid scorching.
Remove the pan from heat and keep it aside.
Fry The Bread Slices
Cut 10 white bread slices into half diagonally. There is no need to remove their ends.
Heat 2 cups of ghee in a wide pan over medium heat.
Once the ghee is hot, add a few slices in the hot ghee and fry from both sides until lightly browned. Do not over fry the bread slices. Keep in mind that will keep browning from the residual heat.
Drain on a plate lined with paper towels. Fry all the bread slices in the same manner and set them aside.
Make The Sugar Syrup
Add 1 cup granulated sugar and 1 cup water in a saucepan and heat on medium-high heat until the mixture comes to a boil. Keep stirring at regular intervals.
Cook for 6-8 minutes until the syrup has thickened slightly.
Remove the pan from heat and set it aside.
Prepare The Nuts
Mix 10-12 crushed almonds and 10-12 crushed cashew nuts with 2 teaspoon ghee and keep aside. Mixing the nuts with little ghee will make them very flavorful once roasted in the oven.
Assembly
Preheat the oven to 360 degrees F (180 degrees C).
Arrange the crispy bread slices on a deep oven-safe baking dish. Choose the dish in which you want to serve the dessert.
Pour the sugar syrup on top of the bread slices.
Pour the rabdi on top.
Sprinkle the nuts over the rabdi.
Keep the dish in the middle rack of the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until slightly browned from the top.
Remove the dish from the oven and cool slightly.
Garnish with dried rose petals and slivered pistachios and serve warm or chill it for a few hours before serving.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you don’t have an oven, you can make this dessert in a pan over the stovetop too. Prepare all the components as mentioned in the recipe below. Take a deep and wide pan and add half of the reduced milk to it. Top with fried bread slices. Now pour the sugar syrup and top with the remaining reduced milk and nuts. Cover the pan with a lid and cook on low heat for 20-25 minutes or till the milk is absorbed by the bread. Use a heavy bottom pan, otherwise, the milk will burn at the bottom. You can lightly stir it once or twice in between.
You can make the rabdi using condensed milk. It will reduce the cooking time slightly. Heat ½ liter milk over medium heat for 20 minutes. Now add 1 cup of condensed milk to it and cook for another 10 minutes. Now use this rabdi to make the shahi tukda.
The preparation and ingredients of Shahi Tukda and Double Ka Meetha are almost the same, but there is a slight difference in both which changes the taste and texture of these two desserts.
In both the sweets, bread pieces are cut diagonally, fried, and then topped with reduced milk. To make double ka meetha, the reduced milk is prepared with milk and khoya, whereas in shahi tukda it is only prepared with milk along with saffron, rose water, and sugar.
In double ka meetha, the dessert is baked at the end, whereas in shahi tukda, it’s not baked.
Yes, you can toast the bread instead of deep-frying. Brush the slices with ghee and toast them until browned and crispy. The dessert will not taste the same as a deep-fried one but it will still be delicious.
Storage Suggestions
It will last in the refrigerator for 3-4 days when stored in an air-tight container. Serve it chilled or warm in a microwave for a few seconds before serving.
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Recipe Card
Double Ka Meetha Recipe
Ingredients
For The Rabdi
- 1 litre whole (full-fat) milk
- 200 grams khoya (reduced milk solids) (crumbled)
For The Bread
- 10 white bread slices
- 2 cups ghee
For Sugar Syrup
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
For Garnishing
- 10-12 crushed almonds
- 10-12 crushed cashew nuts
- 2 teaspoons ghee
Instructions
- Make The Rabdi
- Start by making the rabdi. It will take approximately an hour for it to thicken. While it is cooking, you can make the other parts of the recipe.
- Heat whole (full-fat) milk in a non-stick pan over medium-high heat. Keep stirring while heating to avoid scorching.
- Once the milk comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and add crumbled khoya.
- Cook for approximately an hour until the milk has reduced to half and becomes thick. Keep stirring frequently to avoid scorching.
- Remove the pan from heat and keep it aside.
Fry The Bread Slices
- Cut bread slices into half diagonally. There is no need to remove their ends.
- Heat ghee in a wide pan over medium heat.
- Once the ghee is hot, add a few slices in the hot ghee and fry from both sides until lightly browned. Do not over fry the bread slices. Keep in mind that will keep browning from the residual heat.
- Drain on a plate lined with paper towels. Fry all the bread slices in the same manner and set them aside.
Make The Sugar Syrup
- Add sugar and water to a saucepan and heat on medium-high heat until the mixture comes to a boil. Keep stirring at regular intervals.
- Cook for 6-8 minutes until the syrup has thickened slightly.
- Remove the pan from heat and set it aside.
Prepare The Nuts
- Mix almonds and cashew nuts with ghee and keep aside. Mixing the nuts with little ghee will make them very flavorful once roasted in the oven.
Assembly
- Preheat the oven to 360 degrees F (180 degrees C).
- Arrange the crispy bread slices on a deep oven-safe baking dish. Choose the dish in which you want to serve the dessert.
- Pour the sugar syrup on top of the bread slices.
- Pour the rabdi on top.
- Sprinkle the nuts over the rabdi.
- Keep the dish in the middle rack of the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until slightly browned from the top.
- Remove the dish from the oven and cool slightly.
- Garnish with dried rose petals and slivered pistachios and serve warm or chill it for a few hours before serving.
