how to prepare rice kheer

CREAMY PARAMANNAM / RICE KHEER ingredients:

Rice - 1 Cup
Milk - 8 Cups ( or Milk + Water = 8 Cups, use as per your milk availability and interest) 
Sugar + Jaggery - 1 Cup
Ghee - 2 Tbsp 
Cashews - 15
Raisins - 10
Cardamom -2 (crush into powder)
Maida - 1/4 Tbsp (optional)


Method:

1. Heat milk + water in a heavy bottom sauce pan. When it is boiling, reduce the flame and add rice to it. Mix it well and cook under low flame, stirring frequently, till the rice cooks completely and preferably little mushy. DONOT cover with lid as the milk tries to come out of the pan.
2. Add sugar+ jaggery  & cardamom to it. 
3. If you are using less milk and more water ratio or watery milk like in India, and if  paramannam turns out thin, add little Maida. Mix 1/4th tbsp of Maida in little water to a smooth consistency and add this to the boiling rice. Let it cook for 3 more mins.
4. Take a pan and heat the ghee. Fry cashews & raisins in a low flame till the cashews turn golden color, and raisins bubble slightly.
5. Garnish the kheer with the fried cashews & raisins. 

That's it! Creamy Paramannam is ready to eat and can be served warm or cold.

Tips: 

• Cook rice completely before adding sugar because rice doesn't get cooked once the sugar is added.
• If you like only sugar, then add more sugar instead of jaggery.
• Maida acts as a binding agent and prevents separation of milk & water and gives creamy texture and fullness.
• When frying Cashews and Raisins, fry cashews first and when they are about to turn golden color, add raisins and fry until they just bubbles up. This is because raisins take less time to fry compared to cashews.
• Don't fry raisins too much as they turn hard and bitter.
• If you don't want to wash the rice - add few drops of ghee to the raw rice and mix it well. This makes rice grains not to stick each other while cooking and gives nice aroma.