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Basil seed drink, Nam Manglak

Prep: 15 minCook: 1 minServes: 2thai

Basil seed drink aka Nam Manglak is Thailand's summer drink made with thai basil seeds & honey. Learn how to make a healthy beverage with sweet basil seeds.

Basil seed drink,  Nam Manglak

Basil seed drink, Nam Manglak

Prep: 15 min
Cook: 1 min
Total: 16 min
Serves: 2
Easythai

Ingredients

5
2 servings

Instructions

  1. 1

    Soak the basil seeds in luke warm water for 10 mts or till they swell.

  2. 2

    In a pitcher, add chilled water, add honey or prepared sugar syrup, rose syrup and mix well.

  3. 3

    Add the bloomed basil seeds along with the water to the pitcher and mix.

  4. 4

    Pour into tall glasses, add ice cubes and serve.

Chef's Tips

  • You can add honey or palm sugar instead of sugar.
  • You can a tbsp of lemon juice also.
  • You can use any syrup of your choice like khus khus syrup, litchi syrup, pomegranate, grape, orange, mango, strawberry and more.
  • You can make your favorite fresh fruit juice and add soaked basil seeds to it too.

About This Recipe

Basil seed drink – Nam Manglak, a healthy beverage from Thailand

basil seed drink
Basil seed drink

During the summer months, I usually make a large pitcher of healthy drinks that are refreshing and tasty like chaas or buttermilk, lassi, shikanji, iced tea and more. Today, I made a basil seed drink, Nam Manglak, which is a popular healthy beverage of Thailand. Super simple drink to put together with minimal ingredients.

thai basil seedsthai sweet basil seeds
Sweet basil seeds

Sweet basil seed or sabja is the key ingredient to the drink. Basil seeds when soaked in water begin to swell and form a thin transparent layer on the outside. They are crunchy on bite with a bland flavor. You can add the bloomed seeds to almost any drink, juice or dessert of your choice. Since soaked basil seeds have a bland flavor, you can flavor the basil seed drink with any flavor of your choice like rose syrup, litchi syrup or mango syrup. I have used rose syrup, simple sugar syrup and basil seeds. During the summer months, buy a pack of sweet basil seeds (known as sabja in India) and make healthy drinks like nam manlak or basil lemonade to beat the heat.

nam manglak
Nam Manglak – Thailand’s healthy beverage

Follow the instructions below to learn how to make basil seed drink or Nam Manglak