Kheer, also known as payasam, is a sweet dish and a type of wet
pudding popular in the
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...
, usually made by boiling milk, sugar or
jaggery, and
rice
Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...
, although rice may be substituted with one of the following:
daals
In Indian cuisine, ''dal'' (also spelled ''daal'' or ''dhal''; pronunciation: , Hindi: दाल, Urdu: ) are dried, split pulses (e.g., lentils, peas, and beans) that do not require soaking before cooking. India is the largest producer of pu ...
,
bulgur wheat
Bulgur (from tr, bulgur, itself from fa, بلغور, bolġur (bolghur)/balġur (balghur), groats ), also riffoth (from biblical he, ריפות, riffoth) and burghul (from ar, برغل, burġul ), is a cracked wheat dish found ...
,
millet,
tapioca
Tapioca (; ) is a starch extracted from the storage roots of the cassava plant (''Manihot esculenta,'' also known as manioc), a species native to the North and Northeast regions of Brazil, but whose use is now spread throughout South America ...
,
vermicelli
Vermicelli (; , , also , ) is a traditional type of pasta round in section similar to spaghetti. In English-speaking regions it is usually thinner than spaghetti, while in Italy it is typically thicker.
The term ''vermicelli'' is also used to ...
, or
sweet corn. It is typically flavoured with
desiccated coconut
The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the f ...
,
cardamom
Cardamom (), sometimes cardamon or cardamum, is a spice made from the seeds of several plants in the genera ''Elettaria'' and ''Amomum'' in the family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to the Indian subcontinent and Indonesia. They are r ...
,
raisin
A raisin is a dried grape. Raisins are produced in many regions of the world and may be eaten raw or used in cooking, baking, and brewing. In the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia, the word ''raisin'' is reserved for the ...
s,
saffron
Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of ''Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent in ...
,
cashews,
pistachios,
almonds, or other
dry fruits and nuts, and recently
pseudograins are also gaining popularity. It is typically served as a
dessert.
[
]
Etymology
The word ''kheer'' is derived from the Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
word for milk
Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digest solid food. Immune factors and immune-modula ...
, ''ksheer
Ksheer is a Sanskrit word for milk. Ksheer is also the archaic name for sweet rice pudding, kheer. Ksheer is used and perceived differently from normal milk, which is commonly known as Dugdha in Sanskrit. Ksheer is variably used for any liquid or w ...
'' (क्षीर). Kheer is also the archaic name for sweet rice pudding
Rice pudding is a dish made from rice mixed with water or milk and other ingredients such as cinnamon, vanilla and raisins.
Variants are used for either desserts or dinners. When used as a dessert, it is commonly combined with a sweetener such ...
.
Origin
Kheer was a part of the ancient India
According to consensus in modern genetics, anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. Quote: "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by m ...
n diet.
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
According to consensus in modern genetics, anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. Quote: "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by m ...
. 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
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
temple food, in particular, and it is served as ''Prasāda
200px, Prasad thaal offered to Swaminarayan temple in Ahmedabad ">Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Ahmedabad">Swaminarayan temple in Ahmedabad
Prasada (, Sanskrit: प्रसाद, ), Prasadam or Prasad is a religious offering in Hinduism. Most o ...
'' to devotees in temples
A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...
.
See also
* Porridge
* Khira sagara
Khira sagara ( or, କ୍ଷୀର ସାଗର) is an Odia sweet dish that literally translates to ''ocean of milk'' in the Odia language. The sweet has depiction in the Hindu mythological scripture about Lakshmi serving Vishnu and Madhusudana w ...
* Shir Berenj or Phirni
References
{{portalbar, Food
Bangladeshi rice dishes
Indian rice dishes
North Indian cuisine
Bihari cuisine
Uttar Pradeshi cuisine
Indian desserts
Nepalese cuisine
Bangladeshi desserts
Odia cuisine
Rice pudding
Telangana cuisine
Hyderabadi cuisine
Punjabi cuisine
Fijian desserts
Kerala cuisine
Tamil cuisine
Indian cuisine
Pakistani cuisine
Sri Lankan cuisine
Indo-Caribbean cuisine