Blessings From My Kitchen: Broken wheat payasam/kheer/pudding

I am a little bit obsessed with this subject here. Could it be that's it's served to balance the monumental spread popular to a part of the world I call my own? You know, those times when I spoke of food fit for kings and 15 inch leaves that serve as plates. Or is it special in that it can either be sipped or scooped, eaten hot or cold(?)...both anomalies in the dessert world.

For those of you worried on pronunciation, payasam is pie-uh-sum with not much emphasis on any of the three syllables. It's a type of wet pudding and kind of rolls through the mouth as the word rolls off the tongue. Smooth as silk, you'll see.

Often marked by grandeur, payasam is the cap item of a meal; a cereal/grain staple slow cooked in some kind of milk and the paramount ending to festivities and celebrations alike. Instances on where you'd encounter it could be at a birthday party, wedding, and, no doubt, the event it's commemorating today, Onam, Kerala's most beloved holiday. A tumbler of payasam is as much a part of regional folklore as it is a ritualistic culmination to many a lavish feast.

The harvest merrymaking not only beckons a multitude of condiments, sides and rice, but also a fair amount of payasam, two or three in the least, each occupying a rightful place on curry studded banana leaves.

Crushed grains, burrowed in coconut milk, ghee and drenched in jaggery, finish into the most blissful porridge. Some might think this a glorified bowl of Cream of Wheat, because basically, when the rest of the world boils grains in milk and sugar, it's breakfast. However, the same simmered at length with smidgeons of spice and ghee are duly reminiscent of old world Kerala cuisine, and can be quite unforgettable.

Start to finish, payasam prep and process should not take more than forty minutes using a pressure cooker, even less in the Instant Pot. A notable point to mention is the efficiency rendered by my I. Pot on cooking a montage of curries, rice and a sweet dish, in quick succession, all while I watched the season finale of Stranger Things. Again.

The custard like quality of kheer/payasam is what gives it its universal appeal. Combined with the velvet lush of coconut milk, and nutty flavors cracked wheat yields, sweet nourishment takes on a whole new meaning.

In conclusion, If you're at loss for a lavish dessert, look no further.

So also, if you ever you need to adopt a holiday...you get the point.

Happy Onam folks🌴

May your joy be boundless and your bellies full.

Ingredients:

3 tbsp ghee
2 tbsp frozen coconut slices
2 tbsp cashews
¾ cup broken wheat
3 cups water
350 gms. jaggery, shaved or broken into small pieces
1 can unsweetened organic coconut milk
½ tsp cardamom powder (or 2 cardamoms crushed)

Directions:

Select saute feature on Instant Pot and set to high. Pour ghee into the pot.
Add coconut slices and cashews and lightly brown, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, skim pieces from the ghee and set aside.
Place broken wheat into the same pot and saute using the leftover ghee until slightly roasted, not more than a minute.
Add 2 cups water, and the jaggery. Keep on saute mode until jaggery is melted and it becomes a uniform sauce.
Add remaining 1 cup of water. Turn off saute mode
Secure the lid, close the pressure valve and cook at high (manual) pressure for 10 minutes.
Allow the IP to naturally release steam.
Open the lid, mash and stir until the wheat is slightly crushed and tender.
Pour in coconut milk. Again, with saute turned on, bring everything to a steady boil, continuously stirring, until contents become slightly thick, about 10 minutes.
Once you reach an almost loose pudding consistency, switch off the heat.
Stir in the cardamon powder.
Sprinkle cashews and coconut slices over kheer.
Serve warm or chill in refrigerator a couple of hours and serve cold.

* Optionally, you can add more spoons of ghee- totally depends on what you're feeling for the day- no one's passing judgement and I highly recommend this approach.