Paradi Payasa (Paradi Kheer)

Thought of doing some sweet taking a break from raw jackfruit dishes. Wanted to prepare something unusual & tastier. What else could I think of, especially during Deepavali festival. Paradi payasa is a special kind of kheer prepared with rice.

My mother-in-law prepares this every year on the Lakshmi Pooja day ( Amavasye, the day after Naraka Chaturdashi). The procedure to prepare this is a little complicated, but I prepare a simpler & yet a tastier version :))

This is also served as prasadam in many south canara temples. Again a authentic south canara recipe.

Ingredients:
1 cup thick coconut milk
1.5 cups jaggery/bella
1.5 cups very thin coconut milk or even normal water would do.
1 cup rice flour.
1 pinch of salt
1/2 cup water.
1 pinch cardamom/yelakki powder
1 tsp raisins/ona drakshi
1 tsp cashewnuts/kaaju/godambi
1.5 tsp ghee/clarified butter/tuppa

Method:

• Mix the jaggery & thin coconut milk (normal water) & bring it to a boil.
• Meanwhile, mix the rice flour, a pinch of salt & the 1/2 cup water & prepare a batter similar to a dosa batter.
• When the jaggery & thin coconut milk starts to boil, add this rice flour to the jaggery water. But, the procedure to add the paste is quite different. Have a look at the below picture to understand how to add the batter. Take a grater (the one using which we grate carrots), turn it upside down. Pour the batter on it & ensure the batter fall through the eyes of the grater (This will form small rice like lumps & these should directly fall on the boiling jaggery water).

• Cook this for 2-3 minutes.
  
• Add the thick coconut milk & cardamom to it.
• Allow it to boil
• In a separate pan, heat ghee. When ghee is hot, add raisins, cashew nuts.
• Add this cashew nuts, raisins to the payasa prepared.
• Serve hot.

PS: If you use black jaggery the payasa becomes brownish in color. You can use black or normal jaggery.

Here is a bowl of paradi payasa to you. Also, have a wonderful & a memorable Deepavali celebrations.

I'm sending this payasa to Festival Jihva at Cooking 4 all seasons, "Festive Food-Diwali Celebration" at Indian Khanna, "FIC-Brown" at Tongue Tickelers