Skip to main content

Pazha Pradhaman/Nendra Pazham Pradhaman/Sweet Plantain Pudding

Pazha Pradhaman/Nendra Pazham Pradhaman
It is Onam time in Kerala and tomorrow is Thiruonam- the final day of celebration. Onam is a ten-day-long festival celebrated in Kerala and no festival is complete without a satisfying hearty meal. So Onam sadhya is something we look forward to every year. Sadhya is the traditional vegetarian feast served on a banana leaf and there is a colorful array of vegetarian curries, rice, and desserts. If you love desserts try this Kerala style pradhamam.Trust me on this pradhaman recipe, it is a bowl of divine fruity goodness that will surely satisfy your sweet tooth cravings.Pazha pradhaman or nendra pazham has sweet plantain as the star ingredient.

I have already posted recipes like ada pradhaman and kadala pradhaman. Payasam and pradhaman are both dessert or pudding, but when it comes to making pradhaman there is a time- honored cooking technique. Payasam is easier to make but pradhaman is time- consuming. It is cooked and reduced and then cooked again- sort of double cooking which adds richness and flavor. Pazha pradhaman is cooked in coconut milk and jaggery. Cardamom, dry ginger and ghee adds an extra layer of flavor. Do not add to much of flavoring  because cooked plantain itself  has a rich fruity flavor. You can also add sabudana or tapioca pearls or ada/dry rice flakes, but I prefer it with only plantains. Cooked plantain is starchy and creamy and it will naturally thicken as payasam cools down. Try this recipe, you will surely love it.

Cooking time- 45 minutes
Cuisine - Indian (Kerala)
Recipe type- pudding, dessert 
Serves-6


Ingredients
Plantains medium sized -4
( use really ripe soft to touch plantain)
Jaggery  powdered- 1 1/2cup
Sugar- 2 tbs (or up to 1/2 cup according to sweet preference)
Ghee- 3 tbs
Thick coconut milk- 1 1/2 cup
Thin coconut milk- 4 cups
Cashew nuts and raisins- a few
Chopped coconut slices- 2 tbs
Dry ginger powder- 1/2 tsp
Roasted cumin powder- a pinch (optional)
Cardamom powder- 1/2 tsp


Peel off the skin and chop the plantains into small pieces. If it is really ripe, mash it gently. (there is also another technique the plantains before making this payasam).
Grate one coconut. Put it in  a blender one cup of water. Blend for a minute and the squeeze  the thick coconut milk. Add 3 cups of water and squeeze again and extract the second time. Keep both thick milk and thin milk separately.
In a pan melt jaggery using one cup of water. Allow it to boil till the jaggery melts. Strain and keep aside.
To start making the payasam heat one tbs of ghee in a pan and add the plantains, fry in medium heat till it changes color and becomes soft and mushy.Add two cups of thin coconut milk cover and cook for four to five minutes till it is soft and thick. Using a ladle press and mash the plantain into a puree. You can also you a blender if you want it really smooth.Now add the melted jaggery. Simmer till it thickens. At this stage add sugar. Sugar will caramelize and give it a good color. Cook till the puree is thick and starts leaving the edges of the pan and ghee separates. At this stage add the two cups of thin coconut milk and mix well. Allow it to simmer for another 10 minutes. In between the cooking process add cardamom  powder, a pinch cumin powder(optional) and ginger powder and mix well. Finally add the thick coconut minute mix well  and switch off the flame. The pradhaman thickens as it cools down.
Heat ghee in a heavy bottom pan and roast chopped coconut,cashew nuts and raisins, pour over the pradhaman and mix. Serve warm or chilled.


If you like desserts like payasam and pradhaman check these recipes too..
Pal payasam
Palada Pradhaman
Chakka Pradhaman
Ada Pradhaman
Neipayasam

For more Kerala Sadhya recipes check my page 100 Kerala Sadhya Recipes

Try this,
Hope you will all enjoy!


Comments

  1. I would love to take one of those bowls and indulge in that payasam now... So well made, so tempting...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Rafeeda for stopping by and for the sweet comment :)

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular Posts

Thalashery Chicken Biryani

Chicken Biryani is very important for festive occasions in Kerala. Different styles like Kozhikodan Biryani, Malabar Biryani, Thalashery style, Kayees Biryani famous in Central Kerala especially Cochin....the list goes on and on..... This recipe I had noted in my recipe book some time back  from a TV show. Talasherry Biryani ingredients are not much different from the usual Kerala styles,but the preparation and taste is definitely unique. In the ingredients you will find a total absence of curd and chilly powder. The rice I has used is long grain basmathi rice, as I did not have the smaller variety which is actually used in this biryani. Give this recipe a try..you will surely feel the difference. Ingredients For the Rice Basmathi Rice- 3 cups Salt to taste Cloves- 5 Cinnamon 1 inch tick Cardamon- 3 Ghee- 1 tsp Rose water- 2 tsp Water- 6 cups For the masala Chicken- 2 lb Onions thinly sliced- 6-7 medium Tomatoes- 4 medium Ginger - 2 inch thick peice Garlic- 1...

Mathanga Parippu Curry/Pumpkin Dal Curry

Mathanga Parippu Curry  This is a basic home style lentil curry with pumpkin and moong dal. This is a coconut based curry and goes well with rice. It is similar to the nadan parippu curry. Pumpkin added to lentil brings in extra flavor and a little sweetness which is pleasing to the palate. Ingredients Pumpkin/Butternut squash cubed - 2 cup Moong dal- 1/2 cup Coconut grated 3/4 cup Turmeric- 1/3 tsp Green chilly- 4 Cumin- 1/2 tsp Fennel- 1/3 tsp Turmeric powder 1/3 tsp Garlic - 2 Mustard seeds 1/2 tsp Shallot- 2 diced Dry Red chilly- 2 Oil - 2 tsp Curry leaves Dry roast the moong dal till it gets a nice aroma but it should not be browned up. Allow to cools down a bit. Pour two cups of water and pressure cook till soft ( three whistles) Chop pumpkin into cubes. Add this into the cooked dal with half cup of water and salt to taste and cook till pumpkin becomes soft and tender. Meanwhile grind the coconut, cumin and fennel into a fine paste....

Kerala Chicken Curry/Home Style Chicken Curry

Kerala Chicken Curry Spicy chicken curry is a great accompaniment with rice, appam, or chapati. This chicken curry is an old comfort food recipe, simple and straight forward and you will never go wrong with this. It is a simple, easy chicken curry but tastes delicious. The flavor of earthy spices, onion tomato- masala, and coconut milk all melding into one another, to make rich and aromatic chicken curry. This home-style chicken was the first chicken curry that mom taught me. My mom is my food hero, and sometimes she got this wildly experimenting streak which drives my dad crazy, but I enjoy it the most. So let me call this home style, standardized regular curry, which she makes every Sunday. Now when I’m feeling extra nostalgic for homey taste, I make this chicken curry.  It goes well with almost anything-naans, chapatis, ghee rice, fried rice, or with freshly baked bread.   Coconut milk adds flavor and a touch of sweetness to the curry. If you like, you can add s...