Kheer
A comforting Indian dessert built around basmati rice, green cardamom pods and ghee β roughly 55 minutes start to finish, and rated medium to make. You'll find the full ingredient list (with a scaler to change the servings), 6 steps of method, substitutions, and ideas for what to serve alongside.
You'll mainly reach for pan and saucepan. At medium difficulty across 6 steps, it's manageable with a little attention. As written, it's meat-free.
What you'll need
Shopping list (7)
Pantry staples (you likely have these)
π Unit converter
How to make it
- Rinse the rice well, then soak it in cold water for 20 minutes while you crush the cardamom seeds to a fine powder.
- Warm the ghee in a small pan and lightly toast the almonds, pistachios and raisins until golden and plump, then set aside.
- Bring the milk to a gentle boil in a heavy-bottomed pan, then add the drained rice and lower the heat to a steady simmer.
- Cook for 35 to 45 minutes, stirring often and scraping the sides, until the rice is completely soft and the milk has thickened and reduced by about a third.
- Stir in the sugar, cardamom and saffron and simmer for a further 5 minutes until the sugar dissolves and the kheer coats the back of a spoon.
- Fold in most of the toasted nuts and raisins, then serve warm or chilled, topped with the remaining nuts.
You'll use: Pan Β· Saucepan
Ingredient substitutions
- Milk
- any unsweetened plant milk Β· Β½ cup evaporated milk + Β½ cup water
What to serve with Kheer
- Aloo Gobi Vegan
- Butter Chicken Chicken
- Chana Masala Vegan
- Dal Tadka Vegetarian
Tips & common questions
How long does Kheer take to make?
About 55 minutes from start to finish β an estimate based on the 6 steps and 9 ingredients. Times vary with your kitchen and how much prep you do ahead.
What can I use instead of milk?
Try any unsweetened plant milk. See the substitutions section above for more swaps.
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes β use the servings control above the ingredients and every quantity rescales automatically (fractions included). Cooking times stay roughly the same; very large batches may need a little longer.
Is Kheer vegetarian?
Its ingredients contain no meat or fish, so it's suitable for vegetarians. Check any cheeses for animal rennet if that matters to you.
Related recipes
Kheer is an original Indian recipe developed in-house by Consomee. Photo: Taler Kheer.jpg by Sumit Surai, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons. We add the serving scaler, ingredient tools, timing and structure on top β how we source recipes.