Sweets recipes | Havyaka

Akki paayasa | Rice kheer

By Leena Hegde, Puttanamane

Ingredients A quick look Step by step Notes

Akki paayasa or rice kheer is a traditional creamy and indulgent sweet dessert made with rice, whole milk, jaggery, and some dry fruits and nuts. This super tasty Akki paayasa is made by slow cooking the main ingredients rice, milk, and jaggery together until the rice is soft and tender. Though it does not require much of efforts, it requires attention while simmering and you need to keep stirring at intervals.

Flavorings to this typical Akki paayasa include certain spices like cardamom, saffron, etc. Dry fruits and nuts are added as per the taste. The rice used in this recipe is unpolished regular rice which is tastier. However, any rice of your choice can be used for Akki paayasa, provided rice gets cooked to the softer texture.

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

45 mins

Cool off time

0 Total time

1 hr 5 mins

Course

Sweets

Diet

Vegetarian

Difficulty level

Moderate

Servings

5 bowls

Ingredients

1/4 cup unpolished rice
1 tablespoon husked and split Bengal gram (kadle bele or chana dal)
1 litre whole milk
4 tablespoons jaggery or as required
5 cardamoms
10 to 15 cashews
30 golden raisins (dry grapes)
1/4 teaspoon salt
15 saffron strands (optional)
1 tablespoon ghee (optional)

Cookware / Utensils

Thick and wide pan or vessel
Spoon or Ladle
Mortar and pestle (optional)

Instructions

Preparation

Rinse 1/4 cup unpolished rice (or any other rice that cooks well) 3 to 4 times or until clean and soak in enough water for 10 to 20 mins.
You can even cook rice without soaking. Soaking speeds up the cooking process.
Take 1 tablespoon husked and split Bengal gram (kadle bele or chana dal) and rinse well until it is clean and soak in enough water.
Take 1 litre whole milk in a large and heavy pan and keep it on low or medium heat. Keep an eye while milk is heating. You can even stir the milk at intervals.
While the milk is heating, take 5 cardamom and 4 to 5 cloves and make a fine powder using Mortar and pestle.
I prefer making a fresh cardamom powder. If you already have cardamom powder you can use the same.
Take and rinse cashews and raisins a couple of times. Chop cashews in to pieces, cover and keep aside.
Once the milk is hot, take 1 tablespoon of milk in a small bowl. Let it become warm. Add a few saffron strands to the milk. Cover and keep aside.

Cook Rice

After the milk begins to boil, drain water from the soaked rice and add it to the boiling milk.
Mix very well and cook the rice on low heat. Stir at intervals.
Once the rice is half cooked (50% cooked), drain all the water from soaked split Bengal gram (kadle bele or chana dal) and add it to the rice. Mix well.
When the rice is almost cooked, add 4 tablespoons jaggery or as required. Mix well in the milk.
Continue to cook on low or medium heat till the rice grains soften and have completely cooked. Stir at intervals.
When the paayasa (kheer) thickens and the rice grains soften completely, add the saffron milk and mix well. Continue to cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
Below picture shows completely cooked soften rice grains.
Then, add cardamom and cloves powder. Mix well.
Switch off the heat. Scrape the milk cream from the sides of the pan and mix with paayasa.
After 5 minutes, add 1/4 teaspoon salt and mix well.
Then, add cashews and raisins and mix well.
Serve Akki paayasa hot, warm, or at room temperature.
Akki paayasa can also be served with fresh ghee.

Step by step guide

How to make Akki Paayasa (Rice Kheer)

Preparation

1. Rinse 1/4 cup unpolished rice (or any other rice that cooks well) 3 to 4 times or until clean and soak in enough water for 10 to 20 mins.
You can even cook rice without soaking. Soaking speeds up the cooking process.

2. Take 1 tablespoon husked and split Bengal gram (kadle bele or chana dal) and rinse well until it is clean and soak in enough water.

3. Take 1 litre whole milk in a large and heavy pan and keep it on low or medium heat. Keep an eye while milk is heating. You can even stir the milk at intervals.

4. While the milk is heating, take 5 cardamom and 4 to 5 cloves and make a fine powder using Mortar and pestle.
I prefer making a fresh cardamom powder. If you already have cardamom powder you can use the same.

5. Take and rinse cashews and raisins a couple of times. Chop cashews in to pieces, cover and keep aside.

6. Once the milk is hot, take 1 tablespoon of milk in a small bowl. Let it become warm. Add a few saffron strands to the milk. Cover and keep aside.

Cook Rice

1. After the milk begins to boil, drain water from the soaked rice and add it to the boiling milk.
Mix very well and cook the rice on low heat. Stir at intervals.

2. Once the rice is half cooked (50% cooked), drain all the water from soaked split Bengal gram (kadle bele or chana dal) and add it to the rice. Mix well.

3. When the rice is almost cooked, add 4 tablespoons jaggery or as required. Mix well in the milk.

4. Continue to cook on low or medium heat till the rice grains soften and have completely cooked. Stir at intervals.

5. When the paayasa (kheer) thickens and the rice grains soften completely, add the saffron milk and mix well. Continue to cook for 3 to 4 minutes.

6. Below picture shows completely cooked soften rice grains.

7. Then, add cardamom and cloves powder. Mix well.

8. Switch off the heat. Scrape the milk cream from the sides of the pan and mix with paayasa.

9. After 5 minutes, add 1/4 teaspoon salt and mix well.

10. Then, add cashews and raisins and mix well.

11. Serve Akki paayasa hot, warm, or at room temperature.

Note that the Akki paayasa or rice kheer thickens more on cooling.

12. Akki paayasa can also be served with fresh ghee.

Notes

Akki paayasa thickens more and more on cooling. If you are keeping it for long hours, you can use additional 1/2 litre of milk beside 1 litre milk. I.e. 1.5 litre milk can be used for this recipe.
If you are in short of milk (less than 1 litre), you can cook rice in water and add milk when rice is half cooked or almost cooked.
If the Paayasa has become very thick, add required milk and reheat on low flame.
Use fresh jaggery. If jaggery is sour milk curdles.
If the jaggery is fresh but slightly sour, cook rice in water with jaggery and salt and add milk after switching off the heat. Or you can cook the rice in milk and add jaggery and salt after switching off the heat. In both the cases taste would be slightly different from the original.
You can also add more nuts like almonds and pistachios to Akki paayasa according to your preferences.
Salt is added to all havyaka paayasa recipes. Without salt paayasa would taste bland. In havyaka language this taste is called Soulu.
Depending on the season, Akki paayasa remains good for 8 to 12 hours at room temperature.