Rice kheer aka chawal ki kheer was one dessert that my mom made in our home on a regular basis growing up. No celebration or festival was complete without a bowl of kheer. In fact, whenever we wanted to have dessert, we would beg mom to make either atta halwa or rice kheer. It is the quintessential Indian dessert that every Indian grows up eating because it needs only a handful of ingredients. Flavored with cardamom, nuts & rose water, kheer is the best way to finish off an Indian meal.
A lot of Indian desserts are made with milk and milk products. In fact, if you take any of the popular Indian sweets like rasmalai, burfi, or kheer, they all have milk products in them. The reason is that milk was very easily available to the common Indian population and so people used them in several forms to make treats. My grandmother would cook the milk for hours and make peda and kheer whenever we visited her during our summer vacations.
Kheer is Indian rice pudding made with rice. However kheer can be made with other things as well like tapioca pearls, carrots, 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 it in Hindi.
Common Flavor Additions
A simple rice kheer that my mom made was always made with only rice, sugar and milk. But there are many ways to flavor it, in fact my recipe also uses some of these flavor enhancers.
- Cardamom: it is the most common spice added to flavor the kheer and also 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. Add it towards the end for the aroma to linger on.
- 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. It will give the kheer a floral and sweet aroma and flavor/
- Nuts: I personally love nuts in my kheer. I usually add cashews and almonds. I like raisins too, but my husband isn’t a fan so I don’t usually add them.
- Kewra essence: it’s an extract distilled from pandanus flowers and used to flavor lot of Indian dishes and desserts. I add it sometimes, but it is completely optional.
- Vanilla extract: this wasn’t traditionally used but I like using it in my kheer sometimes.
Type of rice to use
I have made this kheer with basmati rice since that’s what I usually have in my pantry. In my home, kheer was made with a short grain rice called “kala namak”, it’s a popular rice variety in eastern Uttar Pradesh, where my family is from.
Some people prefer kheer only with short grain rice like gobindobhog, so it comes down to a personal preference. If you prefer short grain rice and only have basmati rice in hand, mash some of the rice with the back of your spoon or use a spice grinder to crush it a little.
My recipe makes kheer in the traditional way, on stove top. It takes some time to cook kheer the traditional way, but the result is worth it. A quick and easy way to make kheer is using the Instant Pot where you dump everything in the instant pot and let it cook on the porridge mode. There are also some hacks to make kheer quickly like using cornstarch to thicken it or using condensed milk.
Let’s Make Rice Kheer
- Soak the rice before tossing in ghee
Wash the rice until the water turns clear and then soak it in water for around 20 minutes. Toss it with a little ghee and green cardamom pods after draining the water.
- Boil the milk
Keep stirring at regular intervals so that milk doesn’t get stick to the bottom of the pan. Remember to use a heavy bottom pan else the chances of milk getting burnt is high.
- Cook the kheer on low heat before adding sugar
After the milk comes to boil, I lower down the heat and let the kheer cook for around 25 minutes on low heat until it becomes creamy and the rice is completely cooked. Then add the sugar as per your taste.
- Stir in nuts and flavoring agents
Add nuts of choice and any flavoring agent that you like at this point. The commonly used ones are rose water, kewra extract, cardamom powder, and vanilla. You can server kheer hot or cold, I personally love it chilled, straight from the refrigerator.
Manali’s Tips
- To make this kheer vegan, swap the regular milk with almond milk or oat milk and follow the rest of the recipe as it. Also skip the step of sauteing the rice with ghee. Or you can use nondairy butter for this step.
- Use whole milk to make the kheer, it makes the kheer richer and creamier. I would not recommend using low-fat milk for this recipe.
- This kheer recipe uses ¼ cup of rice for 1 liter of milk. You can use 1/3 cup of rice for a thicker kheer. Keep in mind that kheer thickens considerably as it cools down so adjust the consistency and ratio of rice and milk accordingly.
- Use a heavy bottom stainless steel pot to make this kheer recipe. Kheer tastes better when made in a steel pot and the thick bottom prevents the milk from sticking to the bottom.
Kheer Recipe (Indian Rice Pudding)
Ingredients
- ¼ cup rice, 50 grams , I used basmati rice or use ⅓ 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 cups
- 4-5 tablespoons sugar, 50-62.5 grams , adjust to taste
- 3 tablespoons chopped nuts, I used chopped cashews & almonds
- 1 & ½ teaspoons rose water, optional
Instructions
- Rinse ¼ cup basmati rice (50 grams) until water turns clear. Then soak the rice in 1 & ½ cups of water for 20 to 30 minutes. Once 30 minutes are up, drain the water using a colander and set the rice aside. You can use 1/3 cup of rice if you prefer a thicker kheer.
- Heat a heavy bottom pan on medium heat. Then add 1 teaspoon ghee to it and then add the soaked & drained rice to the pan. Also add 3-4 green cardamom pods (crushed).
- Toss the rice with the ghee and cardamom for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly until aromatic. Then add 1-liter whole milk to the pan and stir well. Set heat to medium-high.
- Let the milk come to a boil, this will take around 10 to 12 minutes. Keep stirring in between with a spatula so that the milk doesn't stick 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 will look thick, and the rice will be completely cooked. If you want super thick kheer, cook for 15 more minutes at this point.
- Now, stir in 4-5 tablespoons sugar (according to taste) and mix. Also add 3 tablespoons nuts (chopped).
- Cook the kheer for 5 to 10 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 the pan from heat. Stir in 1 & ½ teaspoons rose water (if using). Garnish with more nuts and serve the kheer warm or chilled. I love mine chilled and serve it after chilling it in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 hours.
Instant Pot Kheer
- To make the kheer in the Instant Pot, add ¼ water to the instant pot followed by milk, rice, sugar and cardamom pods. You can also add saffron or vanilla if you like. You can also stir in the nuts now or sauté them in ghee in a separate pan and add later.
- Close the lid (make sure the rings is completely clean else milk might curdle). Press the porridge button and cook on high pressure for 20 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally.
- Open the lid and give the kheer a stir. Add rose water (if using). Press the sauté button and let the kheer simmer on sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. It will continue to thicken as it cools down. Serve hot or chilled.
Notes
- Leftover kheer and can kept in the refrigerator for 2 days. Reheat on stovetop as it might become too thick after sitting in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
