What is Kheer?
Kheer is a creamy Indian milk-based dessert. It is made in every Indian household, and we all grew up eating different versions of it. Rice kheer is a creamy Indian rice pudding. In hindi it is popularly known as Chawal ki Kheer. In Tamil Nadu, this rice pudding is famously known as Paal Payasam or Rice Payasam. The rice is roasted in ghee, until beautifully aromatic. Then it is slow-cooked in milk until the milk thickens. Then it is sweetened with sugar or jaggery and perfumed with cardamom and rose. Nuts are added to the rice pudding, which gives a beautiful crunch into a deliciously creamy kheer.
When was Kheer First Made?
Kheer is believed to have first originated from Jagannath Temple in Orissa, almost 2000 years ago. As per my understanding, I believe kheer was served in the temples, and offered to gods, across the Hindu religion.
How to Make Delicious Kheer at Home?
I believe making Kheer is a beautiful and very therapeutic process. I like my kheer best when it is slow-cooked because it brings out beautifully creamy rice kheer. We make different versions of Kheer, across India. My mom used to make kheer to celebrate every big or small win. I love homemade kheer. You can adjust the consistency, and sweeten it as per your liking. There are a few different varieties of kheer you can make at home, but rice kheer is the most popular one. But, my favorite is Seviyaan Kheer. If you haven’t tried it yet, I have the recipe for Seviyan kheer here. Every kheer is made with roasting rice in ghee. When the rice is aromatic, I add warm milk to the rice. I like to stir it often because I don’t want the milk to stick to the bottom of the pan. Then, I like to add nuts and raisins (sultanas), along with freshly ground cardamom and a little bit of rose water. You can sweeten this Indian Rice Pudding with sugar or jaggery.
Is Kheer Healthy?
I like to practice healthy portion sizes, and positively cook and eat different food groups. Kheer is popularly made with rice, milk, and sugar. The starch in the rice has amino acids that help healthy gut function, and provide cooling effects to the body. I would like to think, that if you have a sweet tooth, you must try making kheer with makhana or brown rice, with lots of nuts, and sweeten it with jaggery. Because I don’t personally prefer eating white sugar as often.
Can You Make Rice Kheer Vegan?
I love making vegan rice kheer with almond milk and jaggery. In my recipe, you start with roasting rice in ghee, but you can replace it with coconut oil or vegan butter.
Make Rice Kheer with Cooked Rice
If you have leftover rice, and craving kheer, I got you. It is very easy to make rice kheer with cooked rice. For every 2 cups of cooked rice, you will need 4 cups of Milk and ¼ cup of sugar. In a pot add 1 Teaspoon of ghee, then add cooked rice and milk to it. Let it start to simmer, stirring often. You will notice the milk starts to thicken. Then add sugar, nuts cardamom powder, and rose water. Your instant kheer is ready!
Ingredients to Make Chawal ki Kheer (Rice Kheer)
Ghee - All Indian desserts are incomplete without ghee, so ghee is the MVP of the recipe that adds nutty flavors to the rice. If you wish to make it vegan, substitute ghee with coconut oil or vegan butter. Rice - I like to use an aromatic variety of rice which is also naturally gluttonous. The starches make the kheer extra creamy. Jasmine rice and Basmati rice varieties are my favorites to use to make rice kheer. Milk - Plain full-fat milk is used for this recipe. If you wish to make it vegan, kheer tastes best with almond milk or coconut milk. Sugar - I have used castor sugar in this recipe. Nuts - I like to add nuts because they give a beautiful crunchy texture which compliments perfectly with a creamy kheer. Cardamom - Indian desserts without cardamom, no way. So we use freshly ground cardamom to beautifully perfume the kheer! Rose Water - You can skip it, but I like the beautiful flavor rose water adds to the recipe! Garnishes - I love to garnish kheer with nuts, dried rose petals, and saffron strands.
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