Rice slowly simmered in milk until thick and creamy, sweetened with sugar and perfumed with cardamom, saffron, and nuts. India's classic festive rice pudding, served warm or chilled at celebrations and temples alike.
An ancient pan-Indian milk-and-rice pudding eaten at festivals and temples; the name derives from Sanskrit kshira (milk), and it appears in early Indian texts.
Silky, milky, and lightly sweet, with tender rice grains suspended in a fragrant cardamom-saffron cream. Bites of pistachio and almond add gentle crunch. It tastes like warm comfort and celebration in equal measure.
Long, gentle simmering bursts the rice starch and evaporates water, thickening the milk while concentrating its sweetness through light caramelization of milk sugars. Cardamom and saffron release fat-soluble aromatics into the creamy base.
Variations
Phirni (ground-rice, set in clay bowls), sevai kheer (vermicelli), makhana kheer (fox nuts), Bengali payesh
On the Palate
Where Kheer Indian sits in the Indian flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 6
How it's made
8 steps · 10 min
- 120 min
Rinse basmati rice well and soak it for about 20 minutes, then drain.
- 28 min
Bring full-fat milk to a boil in a heavy pan, stirring to prevent scorching.
- 32 min
Add the drained rice and lower the heat to a gentle simmer.
- 430 min
Cook slowly, stirring often and scraping the sides, until the rice softens and the milk thickens.
Watch outSimmer low and stir often, scraping the sides so nothing catches — the milk should slowly thicken and turn creamy; a scorched bottom taints the whole pot.
- 53 min
Stir in sugar and dissolve it fully.
- 62 min
Add cardamom, saffron soaked in warm milk, and chopped nuts.
- 75 min
Simmer a few more minutes until creamy and slightly reduced.
Watch outStop while it's still a touch looser than you want — kheer keeps thickening as it cools, and it turns stodgy if you reduce it too far now.
- 82 min
Serve warm or chilled, garnished with extra nuts.
