Salep substitutes

The standard substitute worldwide and the base of nearly every commercial sahlab mix. It thickens milk to exactly the right spoon-coating, drinkable-but-substantial consistency that salep is prized for.

Best for

salep drink, sahlab, milk puddings, thickening hot milk

It gives you the body and none of the aroma, so on its own it tastes of warm sweet milk with a slightly chalky, starchy finish. Fix that with a quarter teaspoon of vanilla, a few drops of rose water and a heavy dusting of cinnamon per cup. Whisk it into cold milk before heating, then simmer a full two minutes while stirring, or the raw starch taste stays and the drink is grainy.

The best match for salep's most distinctive quality, which is a slightly stretchy, elastic body rather than a plain thickness. Tapioca thickens into something glossy and faintly chewy that pulls on the spoon.

Best for

salep drink, recreating the stretch, puddings, ice cream bases

It is stronger than cornstarch so use a little less, and it can turn stringy or slimy if you boil it hard, so bring it just to a simmer and pull it off the heat. It also sets much firmer as it cools, meaning a cooled cup goes gluey, so make it to order. No aroma of its own, so flavour it the same way as the cornstarch version.

What the great majority of shops and cafes actually serve. These mixes are typically cornstarch or rice starch with milk powder, sugar, vanilla and sometimes a little orchid flavouring.

Best for

salep drink, sahlab, the easiest accurate result, puddings

This is the most reliable way to get the flavour and body people expect, because the milk powder adds richness that plain starch cannot. Read the panel: if it lists sugar first, cut any additional sugar in your recipe. Most mixes are already vanilla-scented, so add rose water and cinnamon rather than more vanilla, and whisk into cold milk to avoid lumps.

The homemade version of a boxed mix, and a real improvement over starch alone. The milk powder adds body, sweetness and a cooked-milk depth that makes the drink taste rich rather than merely thick.

Best for

salep drink, sahlab, milk puddings, the best homemade result

Whisk both into cold milk together, then heat slowly, stirring constantly, since milk powder scorches easily on a hot base. Finish with a quarter teaspoon of vanilla, a few drops of rose water or orange blossom water, sugar to taste and cinnamon on top. This is as close as you will get to a good cafe salep without orchid powder.

Traditional in some Levantine sahlab recipes and worth knowing, since rice flour gives a soft, silky, slightly opaque body that suits a drink you sip slowly.

Best for

sahlab, milk puddings, thicker spoonable versions

It thickens less powerfully than cornstarch so you need more, and it needs a longer cook, about five minutes at a simmer, to lose its raw cereal taste. The result is duller and less glossy than a cornstarch version and can feel faintly sandy if undercooked. Use fine white rice flour, not the coarse or glutinous types, which behave quite differently.

Both thicken quickly and clearly and will give you a hot, glossy, drinkable cup in a couple of minutes.

Best for

quick salep drink, gluten-free thickening, last-minute versions

Both are unstable to prolonged heat: they thicken fast, then thin out again if you keep them simmering or reheat them, so a pan you leave on the stove will slacken and look watery. Add them at the end, heat just until thick, and serve straight away. Neither reheats well the next day. Flavour is neutral, so the vanilla, rose water and cinnamon are doing all the work.

The honest answer for ice cream is that no kitchen substitute reproduces salep. Salep is what makes Maras dondurma so chewy you can eat it with a knife and fork, and starch alone will not do it.

Best for

Turkish-style stretchy ice cream, chewy milk puddings

Crushed mastic gives the authentic resinous aroma and a little chew, and a small amount of guar gum adds elasticity, so together they get you a dense, slow-melting, mildly stretchy ice cream. It will still be noticeably less elastic than the real thing. Use both sparingly: too much mastic tastes medicinal and too much gum turns the ice cream rubbery and slick.