Mansoor Ahmed is the founder of Heritage Kulfi, an all-natural ice cream brand that marries premium quality with unique South Asian flavors reminiscent of his childhood. Born and raised in Manhattan, New York by a traditional Pakistani family, Ahmed grew up on the incredible South Asian flavors that are now featured in his brand’s kulfi, a staple dessert in Pakistan, India, and other parts of South Asia. Whereas other children in New York may have grown up enjoying strawberry milk, Ahmed was stirring rose water into his milk, crafting a traditional beverage with a sweet and fragrant taste that would later inspire one of Heritage Kulfi’s most popular flavors.
Jules: Tell us about your heritage.
Mansoor: I am a New Yorker, and my parents immigrated from South Asia. I am proud to bring my experiences and curiosity to bear on something that brings so many of us joy and comfort: ice cream! I have many years of experience in the ice cream world, having previously worked with other South Asian makers of kulfi and having successfully run another company focused on the same community in the greater New York area. But as with almost everything in 2020, I found my priorities and interests shifting.
While listening to the customers, shop owners, and community members over the years, I noticed a pattern. They were seeking higher quality, locally made products that spoke to their experiences and also suited their dietary needs. I thought that, with my own personal and professional experience, I could meaningfully engage those desires while also enjoying a creative process of interpretation. I started thinking about how to translate classic South Asian flavors and the creaminess of traditional kulfi into excellent, local, delicious ice creams for a broad audience.
Several years ago, my brilliant wife and I moved to Princeton for her career. Before coming here, I didn’t realize Princeton was such an important ice cream destination (it is!). As a result of being a part of this local community, I am able to continue to gain so much creative inspiration. At the same time, I am able to remain connected to the South Asian community here in New Jersey.
After a long year of intensive development, sampling, and sourcing the very best ingredients, our full flavor line launched in winter 2021. I am proud of our ice creams and hope you enjoy them as much as we do.
Jules: Share your experience in the world of South Asian Makers of Kulfi.
Mansoor: I feel like it is an exciting time to show up with anything authentically South Asian on the food scene, let alone scrumptious kulfi ice cream. I look forward to sharing my culture through the Heritage Kulfi line with the world.
Jules: What led you to launch Heritage Kulfi.
Mansoor: With Heritage Kufli, my goal was to bring to something innovative, unique, and delicious to the world of ice cream. I spent over a year intensely developing each flavor. This was a monumental task because I had to make every aspect of the brand and ultimately the packaged ice cream from scratch.
Premium saffron threads steeped in sweet cream
Jules: Heritage Kufi is described as combining the creaminess of traditional kulfi with local, delicious South Asian Flavors. Tell us about your nostalgic flavors.
Mansoor: Ice cream making and flavor formulations are a science and being able to balance the milk, cream, sugar, and the fruits, nuts, or spices is what will make good ice cream. I added another layer of complexity by developing new methods to use these ingredients as they have been traditionally in South Asian food, for example, actually steeping saffron, cardamom, our black tea leaves and not relying on extracts or flavorings, as is common practice in commercially produced ice cream. This proprietary steeping process of ours allows a particular ingredient to infuse directly in the ice cream mix, resulting in a bold flavor profile.
Bright and fragrant rosewater sweet cream
Jules: Do you have a favorite?
Mansoor: I do; it’s Pistachio. It was always so difficult to find an authentically pistachio ice cream, so I went the easier route and just made my own. I must add that the Rosewater and Saffron flavors are also very close to my heart.
Salted California pistachios in pistachio cream
Jules: The Northeast has taken notice of Heritage Kulfi. Where can we find your premium ice cream?
Mansoor: It has been very exciting to make Heritage Kulfi more widely available. We are constantly adding new locations, almost daily at this point, where you can find our pints. We have a detailed listing on our website of these retail partners. I generally prioritize having our ice creams available at local family-owned and independent grocery stores. For example, we are in South Asian grocery stores like Patel Brothers and Apna Bazar, natural gourmet markets like Westside Markets and Citarella, as well as specialty stores like Kalustyan’s and Sahadi’s. You can currently find us in the Northeast and we are working on expanding our availability to the Mid-Atlantic region as well. Our Alphonso Mango flavor has taken the lead, with Pistachio, Rosewater, Saffron, and Cardamom Chai all in the running for second. Every week, I’ll notice different flavors outselling each other so I think our fans are being adventurous and enjoying all our offerings.
Jules: Any plans for offering holiday flavors?
Mansoor: feel like ice cream is a treat no matter what time of year you have it. Having said that, I think our Cardamom Chai flavor is the perfect holiday flavor. I developed a proprietary steeping process for this flavor, and it brings you the same comfort of a homemade cup of chai, so I would definitely recommend that flavor for those of us in the Northeast who like to snuggle up with some ice cream on a colder day.
Jules: What has been the most rewarding part of building your premium brand?
Mansoor: The most rewarding part has been the creative process. It begins with abstract ideas for flavors and ingredients, then after several months of intense development, you have churned out a uniquely new flavor. All our current 8 flavors have been a hit and I’ll often receive messages from our fans saying Heritage Kulfi is their new favorite brand or how they are now obsessed with one of our flavors, and that is incredibly motivating for me.
Jules: Where can people learn more about Heritage Kulfi?
Mansoor: You can find a lot of information about the brand on our website (www.heritagekulfi.com) and our Instagram (@heritagekulfi). I would say that the best way to learn about us would be to try our ice creams. There was a lot of thought and passion put into each flavor, so I hope more and more people will find them enjoyable!
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