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Brown Rice Kheer Recipe. Vegan Rice Pudding. Indian Kheer for Diwali festival. Brown Rice simmered in almond cashew milk with cardamom, roasted nuts and currants or raisins. Vegan Gluten-free Recipe. Jump to Recipe
Diwali is this weekend! And that means sweets, savories, chivda, lighting oil lamps, prayers for prosperity and happiness and meeting everyone to share wishes.
Kheer is one of the favorite desserts in the festive season. It is easy, delicious with a dash cardamom or saffron and simmered for a long time till the rice is soft and almost dissolving into the milk. One of my aunts makes amazing kheer with soft rice that has soaked up all the milk and flavor, which would be slow cooked, chilled and served. I know rice pudding can be a like or dislike dish depending on memories and flavors. But for me memories around kheer are about all the extended family getting together, celebrating festivals and enjoying thick and fresh Indian Rice Pudding.
More Indian Sweets to make this Diwali
- 15 minute Toasted Coconut Ladoo
- Besan Burfi (chickpea flour fudge bars),
- Kaju Katli (cashew fudge),
- Mango ladoo,
- dairy-free Gulab jamun (doughnut holes),
- Besan Halwa (chickpea flour spoon fudge) or Carrot Halwa
While you are here, read about and catch the screening of Blood Lions.
Blood Lions is a documentary about the realities of the multi-million dollar predator breeding and canned lion hunting industries in South Africa. Captive bred lions are killed in canned hunts and slaughtered for the lion bone trade. Last year alone over 800 captive lions were shot in South Africa, mostly by wealthy hunters under conditions that are anything but sporting. Ian has been following this story since 1999, and he goes onto the breeding farms to witness the impacts that decades of intensive breeding is having on the captive lions and other predators.
Brown Rice Kheer Recipe. Vegan Rice Pudding
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup brown basmati rice, soaked for 15 mins, then drained
- 2.5 cups almond milk
- 3 to 4 tbsp raw cashews
- seeds of 2 pods of cardamom
- a good pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 to 3 tbsp chopped raw nuts like cashews, pistachios
- 2 to 3 tbsp currants or raisins
Instructions
- Combime brown rice with 1.5 cups water and cook over medium heat for 30 minutes. If using white basmati rice, cook for 11 minutes or until al dente.
- Blend almond milk with the cashews until smooth. (Alternatively, blend water with the cashews, use an tbsp more cashews) Add a splash of water to the simmering rice to bring the temperature down. Then add the blended milk to the rice. Add sugar, salt, cardamom seeds and cook for 15 minutes or until the rice is cooked to preference and kheer has thickened.
- In another skillet, toast the nuts in 1/2 tsp oil or on a dry skillet until golden. Add the currants and cook for a minute. Add the nuts and currants to the simmering kheer.
- Taste and adjust sweet if needed. Continue to simmer until the brown rice is tender to preference and thickened to preference. 10 to 20 mins
- Serve warm or chilled. Garnish with almond slivers or pistachio slivers.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I made this recipe for a Diwali celebration last year at the home of my friend who is from northern India. She loved it. It was delicious and creamy. The pistachios and currants were so good, but I’m sure the recipe would be just as delicious without them.
fun
Can I make this with brown rice that has already been cooked? Often I have leftover rice.
I don’t see why not – simply jump to Step #2 to make the sauce and add the rice in the last 5 minutes of 20.
Had to make this with white risotto rice and ground cardamom but it was still absolutely delicious.
Has anyone tried the grain free version with carrots? If so could you share your experience of the flavor and texture? Interested in making it for my toddler to get more veggies in his diet. He won’t eat carrots if he can see and distinguish them as carrots so I thought the grain free version might be nice.
yes heres my carrot pudding https://www.veganricha.com/2017/04/carrot-pudding-with-cardamom-carrot-kheer-recipe.html
You can probably start with a mixture of rice and carrots, so that the color and flavor is not too pronounced and if he like it, keep increasing the carrots 🙂