Kheer

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Kheer
Kheer.jpg
A bowl of kheer
Alternative namesksheeram, doodhpak, meetha bhat (sometimes misunderstood as mayasam)
TypePudding
CourseDessert
Place of originAncient India
Main ingredientsRice, milk, sugar, cardamom, jaggery, saffron, pistachios or almonds
Variations Vermicelli (semiya) kheer, Barley kheer, kaddu ki kheer, paal (milk) payasam, payesh, chhanar payesh (payesh made with chhana or paneer)
Food energy
(per serving)
249  kcal (1,040  kJ)
  • Wikibooks-logo-en-noslogan.svg Cookbook: Kheer
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Kheer, khir, payesh, fenni or payasam is a pudding or porridge (specifically rice pudding) popular in the Indian subcontinent, usually made by boiling milk, sugar or jaggery, and rice. It can be additionally flavoured with dried fruits, nuts, cardamom and saffron. Instead of rice, it may contain cracked wheat, vermicelli (sevai), sago or tapioca (sabudana). [1]

Contents

In Northern India, it is made in various ways. The most popular versions are the ones made with rice and vermicelli (semiya). [2] In Nepal, it tends to be thicker and uses less ingredients. [3]

Etymology

The word kheer is derived from the Sanskrit word kshira (क्षीर), which means milk or a "milk-based dish". [4] [5] Kheer is also the archaic name for sweet rice pudding. [6]

The word payasam used in South India for kheer originates from the Sanskrit term pāyasa (पायस), which means "milk" or a dish made from milk. This term evolved into various regional languages, including Malayalam (പായസം, pāyasaṁ), Telugu (పాయసం, pāyasaṁ), and Tamil (பாயசம், pāyacam). [7]

Origin

A story from Kerala titled "The Legend of Chessboard", holds that an old sage, who was Krishna in disguise, challenged the king of Ambalapuzha (chess enthusiasts) to a game. To motivate the sage, the king offered anything the old man would name. The sage modestly asked for a few grains of rice but with one condition: the king must put a single grain of rice on the first chess square and double it on every subsequent one.

Krishna, as the sage, won the game and the king started placing the grains. As he stacked them, he was shocked to see the number grow exponentially. In the end, the number came up to trillions. Krishna reveals himself and asks the king to provide kheer to every pilgrim who comes to what is now the Ambalapuzha Krishna Temple in the Alappuzha District, which still follows this command. [8]

According to the food historian K. T. Achaya, kheer (or payasam, as it is known in South India) was a popular dish in ancient India. First mentioned in ancient Indian literature, it was a mixture of rice, milk and sugar. Payasam was also a staple food in Hindu temples in particular, where it is served as Prasāda to devotees. [9]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Best rated puddings in the world". www.tasteatlas.com.
  2. ↑ "Best rated puddings in the world". www.tasteatlas.com.
  3. ↑ "Have No Fear, You Can Make Kheer Here! – The Wesleyan Argus". 16 September 2025. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  4. ↑ Monier-Williams, Sir Monier (1872). A Sanskṛit-English Dictionary Etymologically and Philologically Arranged: With Special Reference to Greek, Latin, Gothic, German, Anglo-Saxon, and Other Cognate Indo-European Languages. Clarendon Press.
  5. ↑ "Kheer: An Essential Dish | Civilization of India". people.smu.edu. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  6. ↑ "DS group enters dairy market, with 'ksheer' - Hindustan Times". 20 December 2013. Archived from the original on 20 December 2013. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  7. ↑ "payasam". Oxford English Dictionary.
  8. ↑ "History of Indian Food". Haldiram USA. 24 June 2020. Retrieved 25 April 2024.
  9. ↑ "A truly international dessert". Hindustan Times. 3 October 2009.
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