Gurbandi almonds, explained by the house that graded them.
Gurbandi badam is the small, dark, high-oil Afghan almond that Indian households buy for soaking and winter kitchens. SS Lucky has traded it wholesale from Khari Baoli, Old Delhi since 1992 — and helped write the grading vocabulary the market still uses.
What Gurbandi almonds are
Gurbandi is an almond varietal from the Gurband region of Afghanistan. The kernel is smaller and denser than a California almond, with a deeper brown skin, a slightly flattened shape and a distinctly rich, buttery taste. Its defining trait is oil: a Gurbandi kernel carries far more natural almond oil than commodity table almonds, which is why it is the almond of choice for soaking overnight, for daily consumption and for cold-pressed badam oil.
In Indian markets you will hear it called Gurbandi badam, Afghani badam or simply "the small almond". Buyers who ask for Mamra badam are usually chasing the same high-oil character — see our Mamra vs Gurbandi comparison.
Why high oil content matters
- · Flavour: oil carries taste, so a high-oil kernel eats richer and sweeter.
- · Soaking: Gurbandi softens well and the skin peels cleanly after an overnight soak.
- · Oil extraction: tree nut oil pressers buy Gurbandi precisely for yield per kilo.
- · Trade-off: high-oil almonds are naturally more perishable, so storage and honest stock rotation matter more than with dry commodity almonds.
The SS Lucky Gurbandi range
- · Malai Gurbandi Giri — best seller. Cream-toned kernels, soft milky character.
- · Jumbo Gurbandi Giri — most premium. Largest hand-selected kernels, deepest oil.
- · Shirin Gurbandi Giri — entry level. Naturally sweet, delicate finish.
All three are available in 250g and 500g retail packs and in wholesale cartons, with a 10kg minimum order quantity.
Understanding the grades: AB, KD and 5A–15A
Unshelled Gurbandi is sold by grade. Hard-shell grades run 5A, 9A, 7A and 15A, moving from entry level up to the most premium selection; soft-shell is sold as Sitarbai Paper (premium, softer shell) and Sitarbai Regular. Grade reflects size, appearance and how selectively the lot has been sorted — not a different species of almond. SS Lucky was among the first houses in Khari Baoli to brand its packs and to standardise the AB and KD terminology now used across the trade.
Buying Gurbandi almonds wholesale
We are a wholesale-first house: 30+ people, 100+ retailers, three decades of repeat buyers. Households can locate a nearby stockist through Find a Retailer; retailers, distributors and oil extractors should send a wholesale enquiry for grade-wise rates out of Khari Baoli. Read more on buying bulk almonds in Khari Baoli.