Rice Kheer (Indian Rice Pudding)
May 21, 2019, Updated Jun 02, 2022
Classic Indian Rice pudding made with rice, sugar, milk and flavored with cardamom, nuts and touch of rose water. This creamy pudding is one of the most popular Indian desserts!
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Creamy and aromatic Rice Kheer aka Indian Rice Pudding is made with basic ingredients, and is the quintessential Indian dessert that every Indian grows up eating.
Flavored with cardamom, nuts & rose water, it’s the best way to finish off an Indian meal.
I can’t believe it took me so long to share a basic rice kheer recipe on the blog.
Kheer, a rice pudding is probably the most common dessert that’s made in every Indian household.
It’s one dessert that I grew up eating on a regular basis. Whenever there would be a celebration or a festival or just because we felt like eating a dessert, kheer was what mom always made.
What is Kheer
Kheer is Indian rice pudding made with only three basic ingredients- rice, milk and sugar. And I think that’s the reason it is so commonly made in India because the basic ingredients are so readily available everywhere.
My recipe calls for more than 3 ingredients but those are all optional and add ons. A simple rice kheer that my mom made was always made with only rice, sugar and milk.
In India when we use the word kheer, we are usually referring to the kheer made with rice.
However kheer can be made with other things as well like tapioca pearls, carrot, almonds etc. I love all variations but if you are looking for a classic Indian dessert, then it doesn’t get better or more authentic that a bowl of rice kheer or chawal ki kheer as we would call in Hindi.
I always prefer using whole milk to make my rice kheer, it makes the kheer more rich and creamy and I highly recommend the same.
Flavoring the Kheer
Like I said, you can make the kheer without any flavor with just the 3 basic ingredients. However, few spices and flavors are often added to the kheer to make it even more delicious!
Cardamom: of course the most common and my favorite. I never make my kheer without it.
Rose Water: a splash of rose water goes a long way in giving the kheer that flowery aroma.
Saffron: this was not used commonly in my home. But if you are making kheer for a special occasion then you can add some strands of saffron. Will give it a nice color and aroma.
Nuts: I personally love nuts in my kheer. I usually add cashews, almonds. I like raisins too but Sarvesh isn’t a fan so I don’t usually add them.
Kewra essence: is an extract distilled from pandanus flowers and used to flavor lot of Indian dishes and desserts. I add it sometimes but completely optional.
Serving Suggestions for Kheer
So should you serve the kheer warm or chilled?
The good news is that you can serve it either way, it’s just a personal preference.
Personally, I have always loved chilled kheer. I remember whenever mom would have kheer, I would take out my portion in a bowl and place it in the freezer to chill.
I always eat my kheer chilled.
On the other hand, many people I know prefer eating it hot straight out of the pan.
Either way, rice kheer is delicious and an easy dessert which you can make quickly with minimal ingredients.
Can you Make Kheer Vegan?
Yes, definitely!
Just swap the regular milk with almond milk and it would taste just as good.
In fact I have a recipe for kheer made with almond milk here.
Also to keep the recipe vegan, skip the step of roasting the rice with ghee in the beginning.
Next time you cook an Indian meal, make sure to finish it off with this lovely kheer. You taste buds will definitely thank you!
Method
1- Rinse the rice until water turns clear. Then soak the rice in enough water for 20 to 30 minutes. Once soaked for around 20 minutes, drain the rice using a colander and set aside.
I used basmati rice here, you can use any other rice as well.
2- Heat a heavy bottom pan on medium heat. Then add 1 teaspoon of ghee to it and then add the soaked & drained rice. Also add 3-4 crushed green cardamom pods.
Toss the rice with the ghee and cardamom for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly until aromatic.
3- Then add the milk to the pan and stir well. Set heat to medium-high.
4- Let the milk come to a boil, this will take around 10-12 minutes. Stir in between so that milk doesn’t stuck to the bottom of the pan.
5- Once the milk has come to a boil, lower the heat to low and let the kheer cook for around 25 minutes on low heat. Stir every 2 minutes or so.
The milk will reduce considerably after 25 minutes and the kheer would look thick and the rice will be completely cooked.
If you want super thick kheer, cook for 15 more minutes at this point.
6- Add in the sugar and mix.
7- Also add in the nuts. I used cashews and almonds.
8- Cook the kheer for 5 more minutes after adding the sugar and nuts. The sugar should dissolve completely. Don’t worry if your kheer doesn’t look very thick at this point.
It will continue to thicken as it cools down.
Remove pan from heat. Stir in rose water (if using). Garnish with more nuts and serve kheer warm or chilled.
I let my kheer chill for 4 to 5 hours before serving.
If you’ve tried this Rice Kheer Recipe then don’t forget to rate the recipe! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram to see what’s latest in my kitchen!
This post has been updated from the recipe archives, first published in 2017.
Rice Kheer
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup rice 50 grams, I used basmati rice or use 1/3 cup for a thicker kheer
- 1 teaspoon ghee also known as clarified butter
- 3-4 green cardamom pods slightly crushed
- 1 liter whole milk
- 4-5 tablespoons sugar 50-62.5 grams, adjust to taste
- 3 tablespoons chopped nuts I used chopped cashews & almonds
- 1.5 teaspoons rose water optional
Instructions
- Rinse the rice until water turns clear. Then soak the rice in enough water for 20 to 30 minutes. Once 30 minutes are up, drain the rice using a colander and set aside.
- Heat a heavy bottom pan on medium heat. Then add 1 teaspoon of ghee to it and then add the soaked & drained rice. Also add 3-4 crushed green cardamom pods.
- Toss the rice with the ghee and cardamom for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly until aromatic.
- Then add the milk to the pan and stir well. Set heat to medium-high.
- Let the milk come to a boil, this will take around 10-12 minutes. Stir in between so that milk doesn't stuck to the bottom of the pan.
- Once the milk has come to a boil, lower the heat to low and let the kheer cook for around 25 minutes on low heat. Stir every 2 minutes or so. The milk will reduce considerably after 25 minutes and the kheer would look thick and the rice will be completely cooked. If you want super thick kheer, cook for 15 more minutes at this point.
- Add in the sugar and mix. Also add in the nuts.
- Cook the kheer for 5 more minutes after adding the sugar and nuts. The sugar should dissolve completely. Don't worry if your kheer doesn't look very thick at this point. It will continue to thicken as it cools down.
- Remove pan from heat. Stir in rose water (if using). Garnish with more nuts and serve kheer warm or chilled. I love mine chilled and serve it after chilling it in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 hours.
Notes
- Use whole milk to make the kheer. It makes it so much creamier.
- You can flavor the kheer with saffron. For that, crush saffron strands and add to 1-2 tablespoons of warm milk. Once you see a nice yellow color, add it to the milk after the kheer has cooked for around 20-25 minutes.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
The green cardamon gets lightly crushed so the seeds still remains inside? Do you remove the cardamom after kheer is cooked?
You use just the seeds and no you don’t need to remove it from kheer. If you don’t want them, just use cardamom powder
Very tasty, and got compliments from my Nepali and Pakistani student workers – gave them a welcome taste of home.
glad to know!
Can I use Jasmin rice or Japanese rice? That’s what I have.
you can try with jasmine rice
So disappointed. Followed this recipe perfectly. Used the 1/4 cup rice and 4 cups milk (converted liter to cups). Made it last night. Put in fridge overnight. Did not thicken at all. So wasteful!!
Hi Sarah, sorry it didn’t work. But there’s no way the kheer won’t thicken after cooking the milk for more than 30 minutes. Kheer is a very basic Indian recipe which was made almost every month by my mom and I also make it very very often. So, I am very confident that this recipe is just fine. I think your intensity of heat was too low , maybe try medium-low for your gas next time. Also, as I mention in the recipe card, use 1/3 cup for thicker kheer if that’s what you prefer. This is how kheer is made traditionally, you do need very little rice compared to milk. This isn’t supposed be super thick like American rice pudding. Also everyone has a different preference when it comes to the texture of kheer.
The kheer turned beautifully. Superb and perfect recipe,.Thank u so much
welcome Gopa!
Did you cook uncovered? Must be uncovered to reduce. I would use more rice than 1/4 cup, personally, but since I detest American Rice Pudding that is super thick (gelatinous, even!), I prefer something looser like this.
Can you use brown sugar
you may
Hi, can we use butter instead of ghee? Thanks!
sure!
I’ve tried this recipe before and I love it! I like it warm – is it ok to reheat the next day?
absolutely ok, you might need to add little milk while re-heating as it thickens a lot
This kheer is among my favorite things ever. I have made it several times and love the texture and the flavor, it’s heavenly. I prefer the rice pudding to be on the thicker side so I use 1/3 cup rice and cook it for an extra ten minutes, but that’s just based on your texture preference, it’s great no matter how you make it. Also, the rose water is not optional in my opinion, I love it’s flavor and the way it combines with the cardamom, I always add a full two teaspoons. Thank you for this amazing recipe!
Welcome Laila 🙂 glad you like kheer 🙂
Any chance you can make this with leftover basmati rice that’s already been cooked? Trying to find stuff to make with leftover rice. Also, you should mention how good this is to dip Naan in! My local Indian restaurant owner got me hooked on that! 😉
Hmm I would cook the milk first alone until it thickens and then add the cooked basmati to it. Try it and let me know!
I suspect this is how restaurants prep this, but without the starch from the rice, it may not thicken as much. Maybe add a touch of starch to the milk?
we don’t use cornstarch in kheer at all, that’s not hot traditionally kheer is made and mine thickens a lot as is 🙂
So delicious and very tasty
glad to know Gemma
I used your kheer recipe this today and it got really delicious! So simple and easy and good.
Thanks for the recipe! ☺️
Glad to know Lotte!
Kheer is very tasty I do cook for my India boss here in Nigeria
Hi, I followed this recipe it is very nice but I have a problem with the rice it is still uncooked. Can you suggest anything I could do?
Ahh I am not sure what’s going on. It’s strange for the rice to remain uncooked after being cooked for so long (more than 30 minutes in this case). Which rice did you use? Did you soak it like mentioned?
Can you use ground cardamom instead
absolutely, use 1/2 teaspoon and go from there
Stunning! I made this back in January and it turned out far better than I could of anticipated. I’m making it again this weekend 😋 a new favourite.
glad to know Emma! 🙂
I followed the recipe exactly and cooked extra the time, and it was runny even after being chilled overnight. I would have liked it more if it had more of a pudding consistency. Should I put it back in a pot and keep cooking or is it too late?
you can put it back and cook some more. Kheer isn’t always super thick. It’s a very personal preference. Our homemade kheer which mom made was never like a thick pudding.
Followed this recipe to the last detail. Even made my own ghee which turned out great!
Smelt amazing and tasted good.
However, consistency turned out as a runny slop despite simmering for 45 minutes and waiting for it to thicken and the milk to reduce. Just did not happen 😔.
I can make rice pudding , but this recipe just did not turn out as it should have. Will not make again.
Hi Debbie, sorry you had trouble. I am unable to understand how milk would not thicken after simmering for 45 minutes. This has nothing to do with my recipe but just basic cooking. If you cook the milk for 45 minutes, it will thicken no matter which recipe you follow.
At what point should we add rosewater, if we are using it?
at the very end so that you get the maximum aroma
This was so good! I was worried that it would be too thin, so I made it with 1/2 cup of rice and that was a little too much – maybe 1/3 cup? I like things not to be too sweet and I also like a lot of rosewater so I added 2 tsp rosewater and only 3 tbsp sugar, which I think worked well. Overall, it was delicious and I will definitely make again.
What’s 1 serving size ?
around 1/4 to 1/3 cup
I was a little worried when I saw that this recipe needed 1 litre of milk for what I thought was so little rice—but I’m glad I trusted the process because this kheer turned out BEAUTIFULLY! Absolutely delicious ❤️ It’s seriously good with any spice on top—cinnamon, nutmeg, almonds, anything. Thank you!
Welcome Megan, glad you liked it!
Mine turned out bit runny so I think my stove’s “low” might have been too low but the flavor was phenomenal! I did add some saffron. Thank you Manali!
glad you like it! it thickens a lot as it cools down