A Hot Winter Drink From The Middle East

The first time I encountered saklep (also known as sachlav, sahlab, sachlab, salep and several more) was about 20 years ago visiting Israel during my school break. My then boyfriend (now husband) was studying abroad in Jerusalem at Hebrew University and I was visiting for a week. We spent the entire week eating our way through Israel (not much has changed, I was a foodie even then). I remember my first kosher Kentucky Fried Chicken and kosher McDonald’s plus hidden gems like The Waffle Lady, who would hand out hot Belgian waffles from a storefront in Jerusalem that was the size of a walk-in closet. But one of my most interesting food experiences that trip was discovering a hole in the wall in the Old City on a cold February afternoon where I ordered a hot Saklep. It was a memory I will never forget. Aromatic and soothing and filling with texture and a rich creaminess that I can still picture 20 years later.

For many years it remained a wonderful memory but I never heard of it again. A little before I moved to Israel, on a cold winter day in NY I remembered this drink and tried to make it my own.

I’m not sure why it happened, perhaps it was the cold temperatures that plunged New York City into a deep freeze at the time, but I finally decided to try and recreate the memory at home after seeing it appear in Jerusalem: A Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi, and in addition to a delicious recipe I also learned that a chilled version is actually Malabi (which we already have on this site), so now I have a treat for the summertime.

Since that time this drink became a bit more popular around the web and now that I live in Israel I find different versions of this amazing drink all around the country. From stands in the shuk to coffee shops and cafes, you can find and try a saklep every day.

Saklep is a popular winter drink throughout the Middle East with endless regional variations. The main thickening agent should come from an orchid tuber and you can still sometimes find it in the shuk in Jerusalem, but for the rest of the time, corn starch can be a pretty good substitute.

To make saklep, thicken your milk of choice. I use almond milk, mix in some rose water (some people also like orange blossom water), a little sugar and top with cinnamon, nuts and raisins to taste. I even made a version with a tablespoon of pumpkin puree mixed in — not so authentic, but delicious!

Then, it’s time to consider the toppings! I like chopped walnuts, cinnamon and shredded coconut and I love serving with a cinnamon stick, but we also made another version where everyone topped their own and we even allow chocolate chips.

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Try our updated Sachlav recipe or here is my Saklep recipe, let me know if you give it a try.

Comments

Ronnie Fein

Dec 23, 2013 at 10:38 pm

Don’t remember seeing this on any trip to Israel but I guess I wasn’t looking too hard. But I have my own food memory of a first from Israel: shwarma. oooh, how I would love some now. I will never forget that first bite.

Jamie Geller

Dec 12, 2013 at 12:41 pm

Tamar — When I first made aliyah you told me about this drink and I decided to try it right away – pretty easy considering it’s on just about every menu in Israel. I was surprised that I didn’t LOVE it — I think it was the rosewater. I would like to try your recipe with orange blossom water (and pumpkin!!!) thanks for posting and pretty pict!