I love making desserts and the reason is HI, he is the one who has got sweet tooth in our family. So in order to keep him happy and satisfied I tend to try different kind of sweet dishes every now and then. From Souffle to Panna Cotta, Chocolate cups to Gulab Jamuns; I have tried it all. But Kheer usually doesn’t even qualify to be a part of my thought process while deciding the course and I don’t know why, seriously! May be because it is too mainstream… Lol.
By the way I love kheer since I was a child, it becomes a perfect combination when coupled with Biryani… my mouth is watering now :p. The reason kheer made it to my kitchen this time was my in-laws. They were coming to visit us and being elderly people they usually don’t like the contemporary desserts so I played safe and ended up with Zaafrani Kheer.

Sharing the easy peasy recipe below.

About kheer: Rice pudding made with milk, sugar and other ingredients. It doesn’t have any specific origin but it is believed to have begun in India during the Mughal empire and made its way across the world. However, there are several accounts of the same dessert being made in different countries under another name.

Rating:  

Cuisine: Pakistani/Indian/Desi

Course:  Dessert

Serves:	6-8	Ease Level:
Prep Time:	15 mins	Quickness:
Cooking Time:	90 mins	Sweet Level:

 Above ratings are out of 5, with 5 being the ‘most’.

GET:

Cooking spoon
Bowl
Cooking pot
Wooden mixer spoon

SET:

Milk 2 litres
Rice 100 gms (about 1/2 cup)
Sugar 200 gms (1 cup)
Cardamoms 7-8
Saffron 6-7 strands dipped in small amount of milk
Dry fruits crushed/sliced
Raisins

GO:

Soak rice in water for about half an hour and crush them coarsely using your hands afterwards.
Boil milk.
Add crushed rice to milk once it is boiled.
Cook on medium to low heat until rice becomes tender, for about 20-25 minutes.
Pour in sugar and mix.
Throw in the cardamoms and keep stirring the mixture on low heat until it thickens.
Now add and mix saffron, raisins and dry fruits.
When the mixture starts to simmer, it is almost done. Keep stirring until you get the desired consistency.
Dish out in a serving bowl and garnish with dry fruits.
Refrigerate and serve chilled.

MY TWO CENTS:
Cook the kheer on low flame/heat and keep stirring with wooden mixer spoon. This is the only ‘trick’ that will help you in getting those heart winning compliments. Patience is the key with this recipe.
Adjust the sweetness to suit your taste buds.
Avoid ignoring while it is in process or it will result in sticking at the base which in turn will give burnt smell to kheer that is why I  am emphasizing on ‘stirring’ the most.
You can use any kind of dry fruits, I only had pistachios at that moment.
You can crush the rice coarsely in blender with little water too.
The consistency depends on you, I like my kheer to be more on the thicker side so I cooked it for longer period. Do keep in mind that it gets more thick upon chilling.
You can add a little ‘rabri’ to it when it is done that will turn it into ‘Rabri Kheer‘ 😉

Hope you’ll enjoy trying it out.
I’d love to get your feedback. Feel free to drop a comment below about your experience.

Now go and win the hearts of your in-laws!
All the best