Cook Yummy Kheer For Pleasing The Appetite Of Your Children
Kheer is a traditional dessert that is very popular in all Indian families. It is a milk product that is prepared by adding rice or vermicelli to the boiling milk, along with many other ingredients for flavour. It can be served hot or cold, as this sweet dish tastes great in all conditions. People make kheer to celebrate special occasions, like birthdays of their family members, marriages, and religious festivals. It is different from pudding due to its vegetarian ingredients and Indian cooking procedure.
Interesting details about the delicious kheer recipe
Sago, tapioca, parboiled broken wheat, carrots, and sweet corn are also used for making kheer, apart from the popular forms of rice and vermicelli kheer. Any of these ingredients can be fried lightly in ghee and added to the milk at boiling temperature. Usually, raisins, roasted cashew nuts, almonds, pistachios, saffron, and cardamoms are added to complete kheer preparation. Sugar or jaggery is added at last to the milk, which can be replaced by sweetener for diabetic patients.
Aromatic rice varieties are preferred for cooking kheer, among which Basmati is the most popular one for its pleasing fragrance. However, many local rice varieties may also be used for making kheer in those regions. When jaggery is used instead of sugar, it should be freed from all impurities by dissolving in water and filtering it.
It is also called Payesh in Bengal and Payasam in South India. The word ‘kheer’ is believed to originate from the Sanskrit word ‘Ksheera’, meaning ‘milk’. The mention of this cuisine in many ancient Sanskrit books shows its long association with the Indian culture. Due to its white colour and divine taste, it was offered while worshipping many Hindu deities, which is still followed diligently in the temples of Varanasi.
People believe that Firni in Kashmir and Sheer khurma in the Middle East are the adopted variations of kheer. Both these dishes are made by boiling rice powder and vermicelli in the milk respectively and these sweet foods are served as desserts in these regions. It is known as Khiri when offered to God in the famous Jagannath Temple of Puri. When kheer turns brown because of the addition of jaggery, it is called Rasiya that is a popular dessert in Gujarat.
Due to the uses of different ingredients, the kheer recipe may differ from one region to another. However, care should be taken not to overcook the given ingredients in the milk and thus, it is best to cook only at a low flame. Moreover, the milk should be allowed to simmer all through the cooking process so that the milk does not overflow while boiling. It should be stirred all the time while on the flame, to avoid the formation of lumps or burning of ingredients. Thus, a palatable kheer can be made within a very short time.
