MANGO PAYASAM – Indulge Yourself

www.insurancerate.com StarBuzz Weekly, Toronto-

A scrumptious Payasam is the perfect way to finish a family meal on a sweet note. This is an old fashioned ‘classic’ recipe with a modern twist by adding ripe Mangoes.

 

This recipe is dedicated to my Dad, on Father’s Day.

“My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me. ”
~ Jim Valvano

Things You’ll Need:

(serves about 30)

• Ripe Mangoes* – 3 (approx 800 grams)
• Jaggery** / Brown Sugar – 2 cup (approx 440 grams)
• Dried Ginger Powder – ¼ tsp
• Cardamom Powder – ½ tsp
• Milk – 8 litres
• Payasam*** Rice – 1 cup (approx 250 grams)
• Cashew Nuts – 25 nos
• Raisins – 40 nos

 

(serves about 8-10)

• Ripe Mangoes – 1 (approx 200 grams)
• Jaggery / Brown Sugar – 140 grams
• Dried Ginger Powder – ¼ tsp
• Cardamom Powder – ¼ tsp
• Milk – 2 litres
• Payasam Rice – 50 grams
• Cashew Nuts – 10 nos
• Raisins – 10 nos

Golden Touch Misc-en Place [5 mins]

• Peel and cut Mangoes.
• Wash Rice in two changes of Water.
• If you are using Jaggery – then boil it with just enough Water to melt it on a medium flame and strain to clear of the impurities.
• Chop the Cashew nuts into small pieces

Golden Touch Preparation [ more or less 1 hour 50 minutes]

Step 1:

• Boil Mangoes with 500 ml Milk on high heat till they become mushy and soft for about 10 minutes.
• Transfer to a blender and make a smooth paste, when at room temperature.

 

Step 2:

• While the Mangoes are cooking, in another heavy bottomed non-stick deep pan as pictured, boil remaining Milk and washed Rice.
• Once boiled reduce flame to medium and allow to simmer, stir frequently to prevent from sticking at the bottom for about 1 hour till the Rice is cooked and soft.

 

Step 3:

• Add the Mango puree and the remaining ingredients and cook for a further 15 mins till all is blended well.
• Check for sweetness and add more if required.

Serve hot or cold. If you are serving hot this consistency is correct but if you are planning to serve it cold, do not reduce the Milk to this extent as it will thicken later.

 

NOTES:

*Mangoes – The best Mangoes for this preparation are ones sold in Indian grocery stores, that are from India or Pakistan. Alphonso variety is considered as one of the best in terms of sweetness, richness and flavour. If you were to use some other variety depending upon the sweetness of the Mangoes you will have to increase the Sugar.

**Jaggery is a traditional unrefined Cane Sugar widely used in Asia, Africa and Caribbean. You will find this sold in blocks in Indian grocery stores, the ones that are darker tastes better. It has a wonderful, rich flavour, somewhere between molasses and caramel.

***Ask for Payasam Rice in an Indian grocery store and you will easily find it – they are brown in colour and short as pictured here.

This dessert can be served hot or cold. Certainly if you are planning to serve it cold, please do not thicken beyond a Pancake dough consistency as it will thicken while cold. I would also prefer to add the Mango pulp as late as possible as mentioned in the recipe, to get more of the Mango aroma and flavour, else the Milk aroma and taste stands out (as Milk is condensed in this process of making.