Neipayasam/ Aravana payasam

Neipayasam/Sharkara payasam

Today's recipe is a delicious sweet/pudding with rice. Rice payasam is comforting and has a divine appeal to it, and sweet rice puddings are often associated with the temples.Nei payasam/ Aravana payasam/ Kadum Payasam is a cherished offering of Kerala temples. For many Malayalees, when they think of Prasadam, the first image would be Aravana payasam. It is a sure treat for all those with a sweet tooth. It has a richness and unique taste that is magical! Now I warn you, this dessert is quite addictive, but it is calorie-rich and extremely sweet. It is also called Kadum Mathura payasam because of its sweetness.

My memories of having the tastiest Nei Payasam/ aravana payasam is when my dad or my cousins go on their yearly pilgrimage to Sabarimala temple and bring home Aravana prasadam in canned tins. This payasam has a long shelf life and there is a time-honored technique in making Nei payasam. This is my humble attempt to try to recreate this elegant dessert at home.

Nei payasam looks exotic with the appealing dark color. This rich color is from jaggery or palm sugar and has a rich molasses taste to it. You need to be patient when you make this payasam, it is slow-cooked to attain its thick, creamy consistency. As the name suggests, nei in Malayalam means ghee or clarified butter, and nei payasam is a sweet dessert made with lots of ghee/ clarified butter that gives it an appealing glossy, almost melting in ghee texture. The three major ingredients are rice, jaggery, and ghee. In temples, it is called kadum payasam because it is very sweet. We often make Sharkara payasam or neipayasam at home on special occasions festivals like Vishu and Onam, Diwali, Navarathri. This is a flavorful and rich payasam. It has a thicker consistency than the normal payasam.

Nei payasam has a beautiful texture, soft and moist, and almost melting in ghee. The rice is cooked till soft but should hold a texture, and have a nice mouthfeel. Kerala raw rice/ unakalari rice is commonly used for Nei Payasam, but you can use other varieties of raw rice to make the payasam.

Roasted nuts, coconut pieces, and candy sugar/kalkandam add a delightful crunch. Instead of coconut bits, you can use grated coconut also. It is gently laced with the flavor of cardamom and dried ginger powder/chukku. And most importantly ghee adds all the richness and taste-the more ghee you add, the better it tastes.

This payasam tastes divine, and I am sure you'll love them too! Go ahead then and give it a try. Happy cooking!

Neipayasam/ Aravana payasam Recipe

Ingredients
Raw rice/Payasam rice/ Kuthari- 1 cup
Ghee- 3/4 cup
Water- 4 cups
Dark Jaggery - 2 1/2 cups
Cashew nuts- 1/4 cup
Coconut bits/pieces- 1/4 cup
Raisins- 1 tbs (optional)
Kalkandam/ Sugar candy- 1 tsp (optional)
Cardamom powder- 1/2 tsp
Dry ginger powder- 1/2 tsp

Wash and rinse rice and soak it for half an hour. Cook the rice with one tablespoon of ghee and around 4 cups of water. Cook till it is soft but not mushy. If you have any excess water, strain it, and set aside.
You can also pressure cook the rice if you prefer.
Meanwhile, powder jaggery and bring it to a boil with 2 cups of water. Strain to take out the impurities. Transfer into a heavy bottom pan and simmer till the jaggery becomes a thick syrup.

Make sure that the rice is cooked and soft. Add the jaggery syrup to the rice and allow the rice and jaggery to simmer and thicken for about 10 minutes on a low medium flame. Next, add a little of the ghee and mix well. Continue stir and simmer and add ghee in intervals to avoid sticking to the bottom. Let the payasam simmer and thicken. When the payasam starts leaving the edges of the pan, add cardamom powder and ginger powder. Heat one tsp of ghee in a pan and roast coconut till golden. Next, add cashew nuts and raisins and roast. Pour this over the payasam and mix. Switch off the flame when the payasam reaches the desired consistency. The payasam will thicken as it cools down.