Life in Multan - Sohan Halwa

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Mar 22

While I was enjoying just wandering around Hussain Agahi Bazaar taking photos I was also on the lookout for a special shop – Hafiz Ka Multani Sohan Halwa. This is a family run store that has been making halwa for over 80 years. In 1930 Hafiz Ahmed Din taught the Quran and made halwa for his students. Others soon started asking for the sweets and so a business was started. It is still a family run store with award winning sweets that are highly sought after.

Of course, I bought some halwa and patiently waited, unlike like me, until I got home to try some. So delicious! The sweets come in bright tins that are beautiful too. Now I realise that you might not be able to travel to Pakistan, let alone get to Multan. It would be a little mean of me to talk about a delicious sweet that you might never get to taste. So, I have included a recipe for halwa. Unfortunately, this is not the award winning recipe from Hafiz Ka Multani but still very delicious. Enjoy with a cup of chai (see my other blog – Life in Lahore – Chai - for that recipe too).

Sohan Halwa Recipe

Ingredients

1 cup cornflour

1 cup almonds

½ cup pistachios

1 tbsp lemon juice

3 cups sugar

½ cup milk

8 tbsp ghee

2 tbsp ground cardamom

Method

1. Blanch nuts in hot water for 5 minutes, drain, peel, and slice finely.

2. Dissolve sugar in 2 cups of water and boil for 5 minutes. Add milk and boil for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and strain through a muslin cloth.

3. Dissolve cornflour in 2 cups of water and add to sugar/milk mixture.

4. Cook on medium heat until it forms one lump, add lemon juice.

5. As the mixture starts to stick to the bottom of the saucepan stir in small amounts of ghee.

6. When all the ghee has been added stir in the ground cardamom and two thirds of the nuts.

7. Press the mixture into a greased tin and decorate with remaining nuts.

8. Cool in fridge.

9. Cut into squares and enjoy!