Payesh

Bengali homemade rice pudding sweetened with jaggery

Payesh

B

oil the milk along with the bay leaves in a heavy- based pan on a low heat until it thickens and re duces to half its volume. Stir the milk occasionally and ensure it doesn?’t stick to the bottom of the pan. Put in the rice and keep stirring, cooking on a low heat until the rice is cooked and soft. Add the mixed nuts and raisins and remove from the heat. As the pudding cools, mix in the patali gud and ground cardamom. Remove the bay leaves and refrigerate. Serve chilled.

Note: If you don’t have the fragrant govind bhog rice you can substitute it with tukda basmati rice (fine grain basmati rice). Patali gud is a type of molasses only available in Ben- gal during the winter months. An easy substitute would be fine brown sugar.

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In winter months, uniquely flavoured molasses called patali gud arrive in the Kolkata markets, which means that it is time to make payesh for the family. The unique flavour of the gud and bay leaves makes this rice pudding absolute ambrosia.

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¼ cup govind bhog rice, soaked
6 cups milk
¼ cup mixed nuts, finely chopped
4 bay leaves
8 tbsp patali gud
5 powdered green cardamom pods