Like I
mentioned in my earlier post on carrot halwa, like the halwa this is another
dish that is always a part of any happy occasion. Every happy occasion at least
in my home.
Broken
vermicelli cooked in milk and sugar and garnished with cashewnuts and rasins
fried in ghee-an easy recipe, yet another tounge sweetner - that brings a smile
especially after 24 dish homemade Kerala feast or sadya.
As a child
this is another dish my mom made very often especially on my bday as I love
dishes cooked with milk. Remember my post on paneer?I love to have my semiya
payasam cold with the vermicelli floating in thick cow’s milk with the aroma of
cardamom in every spoonful. Sometimes I would take it out of the fridge to gulp
down some mouthfuls… My mother who would
come over to open the vessel to serve
the payasam to guests chided me often when
she would find it empty -.She would guess without a doubt that
this was a result of my Semiya payasam
sneak and drink Act when she noticed my newly produced milk moustache.
Aniket my son
got up and rubbed his eyes? What was Momma making? He insisted he wanted to
taste some of the newly made kheer on the stove. He loved it too. Now isn’t that
smart way to get kids to drink their daily dose of milk?
I once had
semiya payasam made in coconut milk…I loved that too…hmm I’ve to get hold of that recipe from my mother’s
friend .So watch out for my space for this version of semiya payasam. Till then
enjoy this recipe-:
Ingredients
Vermicelli-1/2 cup or a handful
Sugar-1/2 -3/4 cup (even more according
to your taste)
Milk-1 litre
Chashewnuts-10 nos
Golden rasins-10 nos
Ghee-1-2 tbsp
Cardamom –A pinch-1/2 tsp if cardamom
powder or 3-4 pods
Method
Take a thick bottomed non-stick pan and
heat
the ghee. Over low heat, fry the raisins till they plump up. Remove and keep
aside. In the same ghee, fry the broken cashewnuts till they turn uniformly
golden brown.
Now add vermicelli and keep on stirring until light
golden or golden brown. It takes about 3 - 4 minutes at medium heat. Remove the
pan and set aside.
If you are using
toasted vermicelli, just add them to the skillet and stir for a few seconds so
as to coat it with ghee. If you are using unroasted vermicelli, heat 1 tbsp. of
ghee and roast the vermicelli, over medium heat, till it firsts turns white and
then golden brown. Do not let it brown too much. Remove from the pan and keep
aside.
Meanwhile bring the milk to boil in a
wide, thick-bottomed pan at medium heat stirring occasionally so that the milk
wouldn’t stick to the bottom. Bring down the flame and heat for a few more
minutes.
Add the roasted vermicelli and stir well.
Allow the vermicelli-milk mixture to come to a boil, stirring frequently and
then let it simmer until the vermicelli has cooked well. Cook at medium low heat for about 10
- 12 minutes, stirring in between. You must stir frequently so
that the vermicelli does not settle to the bottom of the pan, clump and burn.
Add sugar. Mix well and continue to
cook at low flame (do not boil) for another 15 - 20 minutes, stirring
occasionally, until the vermicelli turns soft and the mixture begins to thicken.
Add cardamom and
nuts ,rasins .
Let it cool,
stirring occasionally to prevent a skin from forming on the top. Serve warm or
let it chill before serving .
Notes
1.Methods for
cooking vermicelli-:
1. You can fry the vermicelli; boil it together
with milk as milk boils. .Once
milk boils reduce flame .Stir the mixture frequently till vermicelli is cooked.
2. Alternatively
transfer the golden fried vermicelli to a deep pan and add a cup of water. Boil
it for few minutes. When vermicelli becomes soft in a boiling water, add boiled
milk and stir for some time. Let it cook for sometime till the vermicelli
becomes soft.
2. Another option
for adding sugar is once vermicelli is properly cooked in the milk, switch off
flame and add sugar.
3. You can also use saffron (1tsp).
4. The payasam tends
to get thicker as it rests down. So add more milk if you want while serving.
5. Dont
boil the payasam after adding sugar to it.
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