Fruit Custard (Indian Fruit Salad)

🍊🍓🍌 Get Refreshed with a Delicious Indian Fruit Custard! 🍍🍇🥭

Fruit custard (Indian fruit salad) is a delightful dessert that combines the goodness of fresh fruits with a saucy custard base. Packed with a medley of seasonal favorites, this dessert is guaranteed to be a hit at your next gathering.

Indian fruit salad or fruit custard is a popular Indian dessert made with seasonal fruits, custard powder, milk, and sugar.

A generous amount of chopped seasonal fruits is added to a saucy custard base. It makes a refreshing dessert fit for family gatherings, dinner parties to festivals from Holi to Diwali.

It is vegetarian and gluten-free.  There is a vegan option.

This is a classic, nostalgic Indian dessert that I grew up having very often growing up at family gatherings.  My mom also had it growing up in India.  

Indian fruit custard is a delightful twist on traditional fruit salad recipes – don’t confuse it with Fruit Chaat, a tangy, lighter fruit salad that is also delicious!

Bursting with the goodness of fresh fruits and a creamy custard base, this dish is sure to become a favorite among your family and friends. Mango custard is similarly beloved among Indian desserts.

It uses custard powder, but the consistency isn’t a thick custard – it is a saucy, slightly runny consistency. It provides a delicious contrast to the varying textures of the fruits.

 Don’t worry if you don’t have custard powder on hand. You can easily make a DIY custard powder at home.

Ingredient Notes

Don’t worry, no fancy ingredients are needed!

Below are ingredient notes for this delicious dessert. Full ingredients and directions are in the printable recipe card at the end of the post. 

Milk: Whole dairy milk (full-fat milk) provides the richest taste. 

To make it vegan you can try substituting a plant based milk.  I would try oat milk.

Custard powder: The base of Indian fruit custard is a thick and smooth custard sauce. 

Traditionally, custard powder is used to create the sauce by mixing it with milk and sugar. The custard powder imparts a velvety texture and a subtle vanilla flavor to the dessert

You can easily make custard powder at home if you don’t have any in your pantry.

Sugar: White sugar provides a bit of sweetness to the dessert.  Depending on the fruits you choose, you can adjust up or down the amount needed.

Fruits: Fresh fruits are the star of this dish!  You can use whatever fruits you like based on the season.  

Three particular favorite fruits to use are: mango, banana, and pomegranate arils

Consider texture, flavor, and sweetness when picking.  Many people choose to avoid citrus fruits- I’m one of those people!

Making The Custard Base

 Let’s dive into the simple steps to create this heavenly treat:

1.Start by preparing the custard mixture. In a small bowl, whisk the custard powder with 1/4 cup of cold milk, ensuring there are no lumps. Set it aside.

2.Take a heavy bottom pan and pour 4 cups of milk into it. Place it over medium heat and stir. In about 2-3 minutes add the sugar and whisk to combine.

Heat the mixture another 3-4 minutes until you begin to see bubbles forming.

3. Gradually add the custard powder slurry (step 1)  to the simmering milk while stirring continuously. This will help thicken the custard base.

Keep stirring until the custard thickens to a creamy consistency. This process usually takes about 5-7 minutes. Make sure to stir consistently to prevent any lumps from forming.

4. Turn off the gas and remove it from the heat. Place the mixture in the fridge.

Be sure not to place the fruits in hot milk! Make sure the custard milk mixture has cooled down for best taste.

Making It

Now comes the exciting part—preparing the fruit salad! 

Wash and chop the fresh fruits into bite-sized pieces. Feel free to experiment and use a variety of fruits, including citrus fruits and berries, to add vibrant colors and flavors.

In a large serving bowl, combine the chopped fruits and pour the cooled creamy custard sauce over them. Gently mix until all the fruits are coated with the luscious custard.

Refrigerate the Indian fruit custard for a couple of hours to allow the flavors to meld together.

 This chilling time also enhances the custard’s texture, resulting in a delectable dessert that is perfect for hot summer days.

The creamy custard sauce beautifully complements the fresh fruits, making it a dessert that satisfies both your taste buds and your sweet tooth!

Variations On This indian fruit custard recipe

For flavor variations, you can add in:

• Chopped dry fruits
• 1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder
• Sprinkle coconut flakes on top

Explore different seasonal fresh fruit

Storing

 Indian fruit salad can be stored in an airtight container for 3-4 days in the fridge for later use.

If making it for a party – it is perfect to make and refrigerate the night before.

🍍🍓🌞Have you tried this Indian fruit salad recipe? If so, I would greatly appreciate it if you could leave a comment and rate it with stars. It would mean a lot to me to hear how it turned out. If you’re on Instagram, please tag me so I can see your creation. Thank you for your support!