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Kheer
Kheer.jpg
A bowl of kheer
Alternative namesPayasam, Payesh and Ksheeram
Place of originSouth Asia
Main ingredientsRice, milk, sugar, cardamom, jaggery, saffron, pistachios or almonds
VariationsBarley kheer, Kaddu ki kheer, paal (milk), payasam, payesh, chhanar payesh (payesh made with chhana or paneer)
Food energy
(per serving)
249 kcal kcal

Kheer, also known as payasam, is a sweet dish and a type of wet pudding popular in the Indian subcontinent, usually made by boiling milk, sugar or jaggery, and rice, although rice may be substituted with one of the following: daals, bulgur wheat, millet, tapioca, vermicelli, or sweet corn. It is typically flavoured with desiccated coconut, cardamom, raisins, saffron, cashews, pistachios, almonds, or other dry fruits and nuts, and recently pseudograins are also gaining popularity. It is typically served as a dessert.[1][2]

Etymology

The word kheer is derived from the Sanskrit word for milk, kshira (क्षीर). Kheer is also the archaic name for sweet rice pudding. The word pāyasam used in South Indian circles is related to the Sanskrit payas, 'rice'.

Origin

Kheer topped with dried fruits and nuts
Kheer topped with dried fruits and nuts
Vermicelli Payasam
Vermicelli Payasam

Kheer was a part of the ancient Indian diet.[1][better source needed]

According to the food historian K. T. Achaya, kheer or payas, as it is known in southern India, was a popular dish in ancient India. First mentioned in ancient Indian literature, it was a mixture of rice, milk and sugar, a formula that has endured for over two thousand years. Payas was also a staple Hindu temple food, in particular, and it is served as Prasāda to devotees in temples.[2]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Kheer: The Quintessential Indian Milk Affair". 27 July 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
  2. ^ a b "A truly international dessert". Hindustan Times. 3 October 2009.
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