Nannari Sarbath (Indian Sarsaparilla and Lemon Cooler)
نناری شربت (ہندوستانی سارساپریلا اور لیموں کا ٹھنڈا مشروب)
Nannari is the root of Indian sarsaparilla, and its syrup has a sweet, herbal, slightly vanilla-like flavour. In Tamil Nadu and Kerala it's mixed with fresh lime juice, cold water and basil seeds to make *nannari sarbath*, the roadside summer cooler sold from carts piled with limes. It's a little like a herbal lemonade, and in spirit it's the South Indian cousin of Pakistan's shikanjvi and Rooh Afza.
- ⏱ Total: 5 min
- Prep: 5 min
- Easy
- Serves 2
Method
Tap a step when it is done.
Soak the basil seeds in water for 15 minutes until they swell.
Mix the nannari syrup, lime juice and black salt in a jug. Add the cold water and stir.
Put ice and a spoon of basil seeds in each glass, pour in the sarbath and serve.
Kitchen notes
Nannari syrup is sold in Indian grocers and online. To make your own, steep crushed dried nannari root in hot water overnight, strain and boil with sugar into a syrup.
Soda water makes a fizzy 'nannari soda', popular at Tamil roadside stalls.
Add milk instead of water and lime for 'nannari milk'.
A roadside cooler of the south
In Chennai, Madurai and across Tamil Nadu and Kerala, nannari sarbath sellers set up carts with glass bottles of dark syrup, piles of limes and bowls of soaked basil seeds. A glass is mixed in seconds and costs very little. It’s one of the most popular summer drinks in the region, along with rose milk and buttermilk.
The root
Nannari roots are dried and steeped to make a syrup that’s been used in traditional medicine for generations as a cooling tonic. Its flavour is unique: sweet, earthy and fragrant, somewhere between vanilla and liquorice.
Lime and basil seeds
Fresh lime juice balances the syrup’s sweetness, and soaked basil seeds add a cooling, jelly-like texture, just as tukh malanga does in Pakistani sharbats.
Serving
Serve very cold. Nannari syrup is also the key flavour in jigarthanda. For other herbal coolers, try bel sharbat and kokum sharbat.
Questions people ask
What does nannari taste like?
Sweet and herbal, with a vanilla-like, slightly earthy aroma, a bit like root beer without the fizz.
Is nannari the same as American sarsaparilla?
No. Indian sarsaparilla (Hemidesmus indicus) is a different plant, though the flavour is similar.
Nutrition (estimate, per serving)
- Calories
- 90
- Protein
- 0 g
- Fat
- 0 g
- Carbs
- 23 g
