Lacchi is undoubtedly one of the most loved drinks in Bangladesh. It reaches peaks of popularity in summer and Ramadan. Everyone cherishes a glass of lacchi on a hot summer day. A sip of cold lacchi on a hot summer day refreshes a person instantly and alleviates all the exhaustion of the whole day.
Lacchi is a very popular item in the drinks section of restaurants in Bangladesh. You can find it in pretty much every restaurant and cooling corner in our country. Street food carts also sell lacchi. They are even available in every departmental store nowadays. Various companies now sell bottled lacchi but the taste of bottled lacchi is not as good as a freshly prepared one. Apart from drinking in restaurants or food courts, lacchi is also served to the guests at home. Especially in summer, it is a very good option to serve the guests. Lacchi is equally popular across the whole Indian sub-continent not just in Bangladesh. It may have different names in different regions but is loved equally irrespective of region.
Lacchi is usually made up of yoghurt, water, sugar/sugar syrup, and lemon squash and is served with ice but depending on the taste of the consumer, various other ingredients are also used. Chocolate syrup, ice cream, rooh afza, flattened rice (chira), banana, mango, ground almonds, salt etc. are used to enhance the taste of lacchi and bring new tastes into it.
When we talk about lacchi, it would be a crime not to talk about the lacchi of puran Dhaka (Old Dhaka). It is also known as dhakaiya lacchi. It is the best kind of lacchi out there. It is a brand in itself. Dhakaiya lacchi has the ability to leave a mark on your mind. If you are in Old Dhaka, don’t miss the chance to drink a glass of good old dhakaiya lacchi.
The most famous lacchi shops are found in the old town. They are known as the most famous lacchi shop in the whole of Bangladesh. Lacchi is served there to people for an incredible 100 years and is still on top of its game but even if we are not located in Dhaka, we find the best lacchi shop in our area and we go there regularly. Admit it, there is always a shop in our locality that makes the best lacchi in our area and we go there no matter how far it is.
Lacchi has various health merits. Since it is a milk-based drink, it is rich in protein elements. It is also rich in calcium and potassium and it helps us with dehydration. Adding other ingredients enhances its food value as well but people with ulcers or kidney diseases are advised not to drink lacchi. Potassium is harmful to kidney patients. Moreover, salt has bad effects on hypertension and kidney patients.
Lacchi is such a drink that it will never lose its popularity in Bangladesh. People from all walks of life enjoy drinking a glass of lacchi, a drink with unparallel taste, anyway.
So dear readers, with so many types of lacchi available, how many types of lacchi have you tasted so far?