Semiya Payasam or Vermicelli Kheer is a classic, easy-to-make, and popular Indian dessert recipe made with vermicelli (seviyan), milk, sugar, nuts, and cardamom or saffron in less than 20 minutes. This vermicelli pudding is prepared for Indian festivals and special occasions.
Check out the best Indian desserts and traditional sweets for festivals, rice kheer or doodpak.
About Vermicelli Kheer
Vermicelli kheer is a cardamom-flavored Indian dessert recipe that is not only simple and easy to make but is classic and tastes amazingly delicious. It is prepared using vermicelli, sugar, milk, ghee, nuts, cardamom, and/or saffron. Kheer or Payasam is one of the most popular Indian sweets made during occasions and festivals like Ganesh Chaturthi, Holi, Navratri, Diwali, Eid, Onam, Christmas, etc.
This dessert is also called seviyan kheer, vermicelli payasam, shevayachi kheer, shevai doodhpak, or Indian-style pudding. Semiya Payasam is a South Indian term, and Vermicelli kheer is commonly used in North India.
Vermicelli is an English name. It is called semiya in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Sevai in Hindi, Shavige in Kannada, Shevai in Marathi and konkani. This Semiya payasam is very famous in Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
You can also try sheer khurma and mango vermicelli kheer.
Ingredients
Vermicelli: Various kinds of vermicelli are available in the market made with different grains like rice vermicelli, ragi, whole wheat, millet, etc., and each labeled by different brands has Roasted Seviyan, Vermicelli Semiya, Sevaiya, Sevai, Semoi, Sewai, Sevian, etc. All of these are the same and can be used to make vermicelli kheer or semiya payasam.
I generally use roasted wheat vermicelli (semolina). In the picture, I have used red rice vermicelli from Aldi to make this dessert. Bambino brand or MTR vermicelli is used in India to make this kheer.
Ghee: Gives a nutty aroma to your payasam.
Milk: Makes your kheer rich, creamy, and delicious. Whole milk is preferred. If you want to make vegan vermicelli kheer, then use almond milk or coconut milk.
Sugar: Used as a sweetener.
Flavorings: Cardamom and saffron are used to make this dessert.
Nuts: For crunch.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
How to make Vermicelli Kheer?
- Heat 1 tablespoon of ghee in a pan. If you are already using pre-roasted vermicelli, skip this step. Otherwise, add vermicelli or semiya and roast till light golden and aromatic on medium flame. Keep sautéing during the process so that you do not burn them.
- Add whole milk and bring the roasted vermicelli to a boil on medium to low flame. Keep stirring to avoid any burning at the bottom.
- Continue to cook till the vermicelli becomes soft and is cooked through.
- Add sugar (adjust to taste), cardamom powder, and saffron (kesar) and continue to cook on low flame till the sugar has dissolved completely, and the payasam thickens to the desired consistency. Switch off the flame.
- In a small pan, heat 1 tablespoon ghee. Add almonds (and/or cashews, pistachios) and sauté till light golden. Switch off the flame. Add it to the kheer and mix well.
Tips
- Use any vermicelli of your choice.
- I have added only almonds today. Use any dry fruit combination of your choice. I love to add cashews and raisins, too.
- For a rich kheer, use full-fat milk. This kheer thickens as it cools down. You can thin it down with milk to keep the richness, or else use water. In both cases, adjust sugar accordingly.
- Whole milk makes this dessert rich. But you can also use skim milk or fat-free or low-fat milk.
- The time to cook semiya or seviyan varies for each brand. Check the package instructions. Thin vermicelli needs just 1 minute on the instant pot to cook.
- Vary the amount of sweetness as desired.
- Depending on how you want your kheer to be – thick or thin, you can vary the amount of vermicelli or milk in the recipe.
- Also, pasta lovers, feel free to use angel hair or spaghetti pasta instead of vermicelli to make this kheer.
- To make kheer vegan, sauté nuts in vegan butter and use dairy-free milk like almond, soy, or coconut.
How to serve vermicelli kheer?
You can serve Semiya Paysam hot, warm, or cold. It tastes great anyway. It is mainly served during festivals and occasions as a meal dessert. You can garnish with more nuts if desired before serving.
How to store semiya payasam?
Since this is a milk-based dessert, you can store it for only up to 3 or 4 days in the refrigerator. You can reheat the payasam or kheer on very low heat if you want to serve it hot or warm. Make sure you thin it down with water or milk as kheer thickens upon refrigeration.
Recipe FAQS
Some variations of payasam or kheer use condensed milk, making your dish richer and creamier. But if you want to make a traditional Indian kheer dessert, use milk.
Kheer is rich and creamy sweetened milk with vermicelli flavored with saffron and cardamom and garnished with nuts.
More Indian Kheer and Payasam
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Recipe card
Semiya Payasam Recipe | Vermicelli Kheer - Easy Indian Dessert
Equipment
- Pot
Ingredients
- ½ cup Vermicelli (60g) Red rice, wheat, semolina or any vermicelli of your choice
- 2 tablespoon Ghee
- 2 ½ to 3 cups Whole Milk
- ¼ cup Sugar (adjust to taste)
- ½ teaspoon Cardamom powder
- 8 to 10 strands Saffron
- 1 tablespoon Almonds , chopped (you can substitute it with cashews, pistachios or raisins)
Instructions
How to make Kheer or Payasam? (stovetop)
- Heat 1 tablespoon of ghee in a pan. If you are already using pre-roasted vermicelli, skip this step. Otherwise, add vermicelli or semiya and roast till light golden and aromatic on medium flame. Keep sautéing during the process so that you do not burn them.2 tablespoon Ghee, ½ cup Vermicelli (60g)
- Add whole milk and bring the roasted vermicelli to a boil on medium to low flame. Keep stirring to avoid any burning at the bottom.2 ½ to 3 cups Whole Milk
- Continue to cook till the vermicelli becomes soft and is cooked through.
- Add sugar (adjust to taste), cardamom powder, and saffron (kesar) and continue to cook on low flame till the sugar has dissolved completely, and the payasam thickens to the desired consistency. Switch off the flame.¼ cup Sugar, ½ teaspoon Cardamom powder, 8 to 10 strands Saffron
- In a small pan, heat 1 tablespoon ghee. Add almonds (and/or cashews, pistachios) and sauté till light golden. Switch off the flame. Add it to the kheer and mix well.1 tablespoon Almonds, 2 tablespoon Ghee
- Serve and enjoy.
Semiya Payasam instant pot
- Even before you start, make sure your instant pot is clean and dry to avoid milk from curdling. Press the sauté button on the Instant Pot. Add 1 tablespoon of ghee or butter to the steel insert. When it melts, add almonds, and saute till it turns light golden. Transfer this to plate.
- Add another 1 tablespoon of ghee or butter, add vermicelli, and roast till it becomes light golden in color. If already roasted then simply fry for 30 seconds.
- Add 3 cups milk, sugar, cardamom powder, saffron. Press cancel and stir well. Close IP with lid and pressure valve should be in sealing position.
- Press the porridge button and set the timer to 6 minutes. Wait for the pressure to release naturally for 6 minutes then manually release.
- Simmer on sauté mode if you feel the kheer is runny and cook for another 2 minutes. Remember this kheer thickens as it cools down so do not thicken it a lot here.
Notes
- Use any vermicelli of your choice.
- I have added only almonds today. Use any dry fruit combination of your choice. I love to add cashews and raisins, too.
- For a rich kheer, use full-fat milk. This kheer thickens as it cools down. You can thin it down with milk to keep the richness, or else use water. In both cases, adjust sugar accordingly.
- Whole milk makes this dessert rich. But you can also use skim milk or fat-free or low-fat milk.
- The time to cook semiya or seviyan varies for each brand. Check the package instructions. Thin vermicelli needs just 1 minute on the instant pot to cook.
- Vary the amount of sweetness as desired.
- Depending on how you want your kheer to be – thick or thin, you can vary the amount of vermicelli or milk in the recipe.
- Also, pasta lovers, feel free to use angel hair or spaghetti pasta instead of vermicelli to make this kheer.
- To make kheer vegan, sauté nuts in vegan butter and use dairy-free milk like almond, soy, or coconut.
Nutrition
Note: We originally posted this recipe for red rice vermicelli kheer in Aug 2016. It has now been modified in Aug 2023 with Expert Chef Tips, FAQs, Storage Instructions, etc.
Ryan Zofay
I have never tried anything like this before. It's so culturally different than what we can get where I am from. I absolutely loved it though and would recommend everyone to try it. Very fun and easy to make.
Emman Damian
Red Rice Vermicelli Kheer sounds so delicious! I can't wait to try it. So yummy!