# Muhalabiya with Milk and Mastic

> Muhalabiya is a dessert made of **milk, starch, and sugar** thickened on the stove with rose water. The secret to the silky texture is to **dissolve the starch in cold milk** before adding it, and to let the mixture **boil for two full minutes** after it thickens — this boiling removes the raw starch taste.

**Syrian Cuisine · 25 min · 6 servings · 210 kcal per serving**

Muhalabiya is one of the simplest and most widespread desserts in the Levant, Egypt, and Turkey. It has only three ingredients, which is why any small mistake shows immediately — and the details are everything.

## Ingredients

- 1 l — full-fat milk
- 80 g — cornstarch
- 120 g — sugar
- 2 tbsp — rose water
- 1 tsp — blossom water
- 3 clove — mastic ground with sugar
- 60 g — crushed pistachios
- 2 tbsp — shredded coconut, optional
- 1 tbsp — heavy cream, optional

## Method

1. **Dissolving the Starch** — Take **one cup of cold milk** and dissolve the starch completely in it until there are no lumps. **The starch must be dissolved in cold milk** — if you put it in hot milk, it will lump instantly and there is no way to fix it afterward except by straining.
2. **Heating the Milk** — Heat the remaining milk with the sugar over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves, just **before boiling**. Do not let it boil — it will form a skin.
3. **Incorporating the Starch** — Stir the starch mixture again (it settles to the bottom quickly), and pour it **in a thin stream** into the hot milk with **continuous whisking using a wire whisk**. Continuous whisking here is not optional — any pause creates lumps.
4. **Thickening** — Continue stirring over **medium heat** until the mixture thickens and starts to bubble — **5-7 minutes**. When it starts making slow, large bubbles, reduce the heat and continue for **two full minutes** while stirring. These two minutes remove the raw starch taste.
5. **Flavoring** — Turn off the heat and add the **rose water, blossom water, and ground mastic**, and stir. Add them after the heat because high temperatures evaporate the aromatic oils — this is the most common reason for a muhalabiya with no aroma.
6. **Pouring** — Pour the mixture into the cups **while hot** through a **strainer** (a final guarantee against any lumps). And if you want to avoid a skin, cover the top with plastic wrap **touching the surface directly**.
7. **Chilling and Garnishing** — Let it cool at room temperature for **30 minutes**, then refrigerate for **at least 4 hours** or overnight. Garnish it with crushed pistachios and coconut just before serving — if you put them on early, they will get soggy.

## Tips

- Dissolve the starch in cold milk — the most important step to prevent lumps.
- Continuous whisking without stopping while pouring.
- Two minutes of boiling after thickening to remove the raw starch taste.
- Rose water and mastic after turning off the heat.
- Pour it through a strainer as a final guarantee.

## FAQ

### The muhalabiya has lumps — what do I do?
Strain it through a fine sieve while it is hot, or blend it with an immersion blender. For next time: dissolve the starch in cold milk, and pour it in a thin stream with continuous whisking without stopping.

### It tastes like starch — why?
You didn't boil it enough. After it thickens, it must stay on the heat for **two full minutes** with stirring. The starch needs this time to fully gelatinize and lose its raw taste — this is the most common mistake in the recipe.

### It didn't thicken enough — the solution?
Return it to the heat and add a tablespoon of starch dissolved in a quarter cup of cold milk, stir until it thickens, and boil it for two minutes. The guaranteed ratio: 80 grams of starch per liter of milk for a firm consistency that holds its shape when unmolded.

### What is the difference between muhalabiya and rice pudding?
Muhalabiya is thickened with starch, has a completely smooth texture, and contains no grains. Rice pudding contains rice grains that release their starch through long boiling. And muhalabiya is much faster — fifteen minutes versus an hour.

---

Source: https://hanakoleah.com/en/syrian-cuisine/muhalabiya-with-milk-and-mastic
Edited by: Marwa Mohamed
Last updated: 2026-10-23