Temple Style Nei Payasam | Aravana Payasam

Temple Style Nei Paysam is a popular recipe from Kerala offered as naivedyam or prasadam at Sabarimala. The flavor in this kheer comes from the cooked rice blended with ghee and jaggery, a hint of warmth from the ginger powder. The addition of toasted coconut, nendran banana, and roasted dry fruits enhances the taste of this dish.

Navratri is around the corner. I still remember making nine rice recipes for 9 days of Navratri, as explained in Lalitha Sahasranamam. This year, I plan to post sattvic (satvik) savory and sweet dishes that can be prepared for vrat, fasting, and upvas days. You can check my curated list of NAVRATRI RECIPES here.

Nei Paysam is also referred to as ney payasam, aravana payasam, kadu madhuram or kadu madhura payasam, sakkarai pongal, unakalari payasam, sharkkara payasam, kadum payasam, katti payasam, Ayyappa Payasam or in simple words rice kheer with jaggery 🙂

Traditionally, this kheer or payasam is prepared on firewood and cooked in a heavy brass vessel called uruli. No dal or coconut milk is added during its preparation, and thus, this dish stays fresh for a longer time compared to other payasams.

Temple-style food is always my favorite. When we were kids, one of the main reasons to visit any temple was for the yummy food or prasad 🙂 CHITRANNA, PULIYOGARE, KESARI BATH, are some of my favorite.

Very basic ingredients are used to make this Payasam:

Rice - Kerala Matta Rice, Chema Rice, Red rice, or Njavara is used to make this recipe. Check the video to get better clarity of the rice used. If you are not able to find this rice at your local grocery stores, use regular rice but not basmati. Red rice takes a longer time to cook compared to white rice. Therefore, when cooking red rice, I generally add little extra water to be on the safer side and then drain any water that is left once cooked.

Jaggery - Dark Jaggery is used to make this recipe and gives the signature deep golden color to the final dish. If you are not able to find dark jaggery, you can also use regular jaggery. The best part is you do not have to worry about any string consistency; just add water and jaggery in the pan and heat until jaggery is dissolved completely.

Ginger powder - This is something I love about this kheer. If you are tired of using cardamom powder in all your Indian sweet recipes, you should try this one. I can't explain, but I am drooling just recollecting ginger's taste to the kheer. It is very similar to the warm feeling one gets when eating Fall desserts such as a pumpkin pie - i.e., a subtle spiciness of ginger and cinnamon.

Ghee - Traditionally 1:1 ratio for rice and ghee is used. To cut down on fat, I have added ½ cup of ghee for 1 cup rice. In spite of cutting down the amount of ghee by half, there was absolutely no compromise on the taste. The richness and the nutty taste that the ghee imparts makes this a very addictive dessert.

Toasted coconut - the coconuts chopped and toasted in ghee gives a unique crunchiness to your sweet recipe.

Roasted dry fruits - If you follow my blog, you must be knowing my love for dry fruits and nuts. I love to add it to almost all my sweet recipes, specially kheer, for that crunchiness.

Nendran Banana - Thanks to my husband. He loves Kerala food, and it was his idea to add chopped banana, and he insisted I add this to the recipe. The addition of bananas took the kheer to the next level. If you have tried nei payasam without banana, I recommend you try it with banana next time. If you do not have nendran or ripe plantains, you can also substitute them with other sweet bananas.

Ingredients for TEMPLE-STYLE NEI PAYASAM | ARAVANA PAYASAM

1 cup Matta Rice or Red Rice
500 grams Dark Jaggery (approx 2 ¼ cups)
½ cup + 2 tablespoon Ghee
½ cup Coconut pieces
1 tablespoon Almonds, chopped
2 tablespoon Cashews, chopped
1 tablespoon Raisins
½ to 1 teaspoon Dry ginger powder
2 Nendran Banana, ripe and chopped

How to make Temple-style Nei Payasam or Rice Kheer with Jaggery or Chawal Ki Kheer

Cook the red rice or matta rice in a pressure cooker

In a pressure cooker on medium flame add washed and drained rice and 4 to 5 cups of water and pressure cook for five whistles. The first whistle can be on high flame and but the remaining should be on medium flame. I add extra water while pressure cooking and drain the excess later to prevent the rice from becoming mushy or sticky and avoid it from catching the bottom. If using any other rice, time and water may vary.

Let the pressure release naturally. Once the rice is cooked, drain any extra water. You can even give the water/rice broth to kids or elders in your house, which is considered very healthy.

Toast coconut pieces and nuts

While the rice is cooking, add 1 tablespoon of ghee and chopped coconut pieces to another pan. Saute till golden brown on medium flame. Transfer it to a plate.

Add another 1 tablespoon of ghee, almonds, and cashews in the same pan and saute until golden brown. Add raisins and mix for few seconds. Switch off the flame.

Make jaggery syrup

In a pan or pot on medium flame, add jaggery and 3 cups of water and cook until jaggery is completely dissolved and syrup is formed. You do not have to check for any string consistency, and this should take about 8 to 10 minutes on medium flame.

Making of Kheer with Jaggery or Temple-style Payasam

To the cooked rice in the pressure cooker, strain and add jaggery syrup, banana pieces, Let this come to a boil on high flame. Then add ½ teaspoon ginger powder, and 2 tablespoon of ghee (we will start adding ghee in parts from here in an interval of 8 to 10 minutes till the kheer thickens) and cook on medium flame. Keep stirring during the process. . Check video for more details.

After 10 minutes add another 2 tablespoon of ghee and continue stirring on medium flame. Keep repeating this process every 10 minutes till all the ghee is added and the kheer thickens. Cooking with ghee should take about 30 to 40 minutes.

At this point, add toasted nuts and coconut, another ½ teaspoon of ginger powder if desired. Mix nicely and simmer for 1 more minute and switch off the flame.

Tips:

• The sweetness may vary depending on the jaggery used and the percentage of molasses in that jaggery.
• The amount of water required to cook rice will vary depending on the type of rice. I generally add a little more water than needed, pressure cook, and then drain any excess water. By doing so, you are avoiding the rice from turning mushy or catching the bottom of the pressure cooker.
• I have reduced the ghee by half, but there is no compromise on the taste in doing so. Don't reduce it further.
• You can vary nuts in the recipe as desired.

Video recipe for Temple-style Nei Payasam or Rice Kheer with Jaggery or Chawal Ki Kheer, Aravana Payasam

Detailed step by step recipe for Temple-style Nei Payasam or Rice Kheer with Jaggery or Chawal Ki Kheer, Aravana Payasam

Recipe card

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