Paal Payasam Recipe | Rice and Milk kheer/pudding

Paal Payasam / Rice Kheer is a South Indian sweet made with rice & milk usually prepared during festivals. Rice is first roasted and then cooked in milk until it’s soft and then sweetened with sugar or condensed milk to make a thick creamy pudding. This pudding is a delicious Indian recipe served as a Dessert which is very famous in South regions(Tamil Nadu and Kerala). It’s very easy kheer/pudding recipe. Make this delicious rice pudding during festivals or pooja.
I have used basmati recipe for this recipe, you can use normal cooking rice too.

Here’s paal payasam recipe-

Rice – ¼ cup(I used basmati rice)
Full fat milk – 1 liter
Sugar – ½ cup
Ghee – 1 tspn + 1 tbspn

TO Garnish-
Saffron strands
cashews
Raisins

Method of preparation:-

1. Heat 1 tspn of ghee in a deep bottomed pan. Roast rice until it gives out nice aroma, but do not brown the rice.

2. Grind the rice coarsely in a blender(Pulse blender once or twice to break the rice). You can avoid this step and use whole rice as it is to cook.

3. Boil ½ liter milk in a deep bottomed pan or pressure cooker. Add broken rice into the boiling milk and cook until rice is fully cooked and soft. I used pressure cooker to cook the rice until 3 whistles. After 3 whistles switch off flame and wait for the pressure to settle down.

4. Open pressure cooker and mash rice until it’s smooth.

5. Now add remaining ½ liter milk and sugar, mix well until all ingredients are combined well and no lumps are present.

6. Place the pudding back on low flame and simmer for 10 mins. Keep stirring in between to avoid lump formation. You will continue this until a thick creamy payasam consistency is reached.

7. Payasam will thicken up as it cools down. So swtich off the flame accordingly.

8. This pudding/payasam tastes divine either hot or cold. So serve as per your choice, along with garnish. Enjoy!