Recipe: Bethica's Aam Payesh

One kind or another of rice pudding is cooked up in homes on the Indian subcontinent.

Down south it is payasam, which is generally richer, might use coconut milk or coconut and has several avatars, because each variety of rice creates a new taste.

In the north, kheer is often slightly more plain, although nuts and rose water may be utilised.

If you travel east, into Bengal and Bangladesh, chaler payesh is made, a thicker creamier version of kheer.

Food blogger Bethica Das has opted to mango-fy her payesh, incorporating ripe aam in it, preferably Himsagar.

For her Bengali-style Aam Payesh, she opted for the popular Bengali rice grain -- gobindo bhog. It's a special aromatic short-grain rice.

Have her payesh at room temperature or chilled, as part of your main khaana or as an after-meal dessert. "Relish it as a side dish with puris or parathas," she says. "It is simply wholesome and very satisfying," says Bethica.

Aam Payesh

Serves: 3-4

Ingredients

• 500 ml full-cream milk
• 2-3 tbsp gobindo bhog or any short grain aromatic rice, soaked in water for 30 minutes
• 1-2 tej patta or bay leaves
• 1 tsp ghee
• Sugar to taste, around 3-4 tbsp
• ¼ tsp green elaichi or cardamom powder
• 2 tbsp chopped pistachios, pecans and almonds
• Pinch kesar or saffron
• Pulp of 1 ripe mango
• Pinch salt
• Chopped nuts, dry rose petals and mango cubes, to garnish

Method

• In a saucepan, over medium-high heat, bring the milk to a boil along with the bay leaves, ghee, salt.
  Add the soaked rice and turn the heat down, simmering over low heat.
  Keep stirring occasionally till the rice has cooked.
  Add the sugar, cardamom powder, saffron, chopped pistachios, almonds, pecans.
  Simmer further till the sugar dissolves.
  Take off heat, discard the bay leaves and cool.
  Stir in the mango pulp.
  Transfer into a serving bowl and refrigerate until ready to serve.
  Before serving, garnish with the chopped nuts, dry rose petals and the mango cubes.

Bethica Das is a Sharjah-based food blogger. Please check out her recipes here.

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