Kheer – Indian Rice Pudding with Cardamom Recipe
Kheer is a slow-cooked Indian rice pudding in which milk reduces around very tender rice, creating a creamy consistency without eggs or added starch. Cardamom seeds perfume the milk, raisins soften and swell, and almonds and pistachios toasted in ghee provide a warm, nutty finish. Rose water is stirred in off the heat so its delicate aroma remains distinct.
Rice kheer, often called chawal ki kheer, is prepared across India for family meals, festivals, religious observances, and celebratory occasions. Recipes vary by household and region: some are plain and milk-forward, while others include cardamom, raisins, nuts, rose water, or combinations of these aromatics.
This kheer develops its body through patient milk reduction and the starch released by tender rice rather than through eggs or commercial thickeners. Removing the cardamom seeds from their husks gives an even floral flavor without leaving tough pod fragments in the pudding, while ghee-toasted nuts add a contrasting roasted note.
Why this version works
- A 45–55 minute simmer gives 1 litre of milk enough time to reduce while allowing the rice to become completely tender.
- Adding the sugar after the rice softens prevents the grains from taking longer to cook in a sweetened liquid.
- A wide, heavy-bottomed pot promotes steady evaporation and distributes heat more evenly than a narrow, lightweight pan.
- More frequent stirring toward the end protects the concentrated milk solids from scorching.
- Crushing only the cardamom seeds provides clean flavor and avoids pieces of papery pod husk.
- Adding rose water off the heat preserves its aroma instead of driving it off during simmering.
Chef's tips
White basmati rice is a good choice here because its floral character complements cardamom and its softened grains remain recognizable in the finished pudding. A pot about 20–22 cm wide encourages useful evaporation without reducing the milk too aggressively. For the best texture, stop cooking when the hot kheer is slightly looser than you ultimately want it to be.
How to serve
Serve the kheer warm for a soft, flowing texture or chill it for several hours for a denser pudding. Scatter the reserved toasted almonds and pistachios over each portion just before serving. If chilled kheer seems very firm, let it stand briefly at room temperature and stir gently before portioning.
Watch out for
- Do not maintain a vigorous boil. It can cause the milk to foam over, scorch at the base, or reduce before the rice is tender.
- Use the clock as a guide rather than the only test. Pot width, burner strength, and rice variety can shift the cooking time by 10 minutes or more.
- The kheer should still flow when hot. If cooked until stiff in the pot, it may become overly dense after chilling.
- After the first half hour, scrape the bottom thoroughly with each stir; simply moving the spoon through the center can leave milk solids stuck around the edges.
- Add the full teaspoon of rose water only after removing the pot from the heat, as prolonged cooking dulls its fragrance.
Substitutions
- Another white rice can replace basmati, but the result will differ: short-grain rice releases more starch and thickens sooner, while firmer long-grain rice may need extra simmering. Judge doneness by whether a grain mashes easily.
- Whole dairy milk produces the richest reduction. Lower-fat dairy milk can be used, although the finished kheer will taste lighter and may require a little longer to develop body.
- Plant milk is not a universal one-for-one replacement. Unsweetened, higher-protein varieties generally thicken more reliably; thin nut-based drinks tend to remain looser, while oat-style drinks can become starchy and scorch more readily. Use a gentle simmer and rely on the spoon-coating cue rather than the stated reduction time.
Ingredients
- rice short-grain or risotto rice - 80 g
- milk cow’s or rich plant-based milk - 1 l
- sugar or to taste - 60 g
- cardamom pods, crushed; you can use ground cardamom - 4 pods
- raisins - 30 g
- almonds chopped - 20 g
- pistachio kernels chopped, optional - 20 g
- clarified butter ghee optional, for flavor - 1 tablespoon
- salt enhances the sweetness - 1 pinch
- rose water optional - 1 teaspoon
Preparation
- Rinse the rice—preferably white basmati—in a fine sieve under cool running water until the runoff is mostly clear, then drain well. Split the cardamom pods, remove the seeds, and crush the seeds finely; discard the fibrous husks. Chop the almonds and pistachio kernels.
- Pour the milk into a wide, heavy-bottomed pot with enough room to prevent it from boiling over. Bring it just to a boil over medium heat, stirring and scraping across the base occasionally.
- Add the drained rice, crushed cardamom seeds, and salt. Reduce the heat until the milk maintains a gentle, uncovered simmer with small bubbles around the edge rather than a rolling boil.
- Cook for 30 minutes, stirring every 3–4 minutes and scraping the bottom and corners of the pot. Stir any milk skin back into the pudding. As the mixture concentrates, shorten the interval between stirring so the milk solids do not catch.
- Add the raisins and continue simmering for another 15–25 minutes. Stir every 1–2 minutes near the end. The rice should be soft enough to mash easily against the side of the pot, and the milk should have reduced by roughly one-quarter to one-third. Expect about 45–55 minutes of simmering before adding the sugar, depending on the width of the pot and the rice variety.
- Stir in the sugar only after the rice is fully tender. The mixture will loosen slightly as the sugar dissolves; simmer for another 5–7 minutes, stirring continuously near the base, until the kheer coats the spoon but still falls from it in a slow, creamy ribbon.
- Meanwhile, melt the ghee in a small pan over low to medium-low heat. Add the chopped almonds and pistachios and toast for 1–2 minutes, stirring, until fragrant and lightly golden at the edges. Remove them promptly so the pistachios retain some color.
- Stir the toasted nuts and ghee into the kheer, reserving a small spoonful for garnish if desired. Remove the pot from the heat, wait 2 minutes, then stir in the rose water. Serve warm, or cool and refrigerate until chilled; the kheer will become noticeably thicker as it rests.
Storage
Store in a glass container; before serving after chilling, you can add 1–2 tablespoons of milk and gently reheat if the pudding has become too thick.
I prefer to remove kheer from the heat while it still forms a slow ribbon from the spoon. After cooling, the rice continues absorbing liquid, leaving the pudding creamy rather than tight or stodgy.
