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Rauh di kheer
Rice in sugarcane juice
ਰਹੁ ਦੀ ਖੀਰ: rice slow-cooked in fresh sugarcane juice on Lohri night
In Punjabi villages the cane harvest is in by Lohri, and on the night of the bonfire a pot of rice is set to cook slowly in fresh sugarcane juice (rauh) with no milk and no added sugar. The custom is to leave it to cool overnight and eat it cold the next morning, on Maghi, so you will often hear 'poh rinni, magh khaadi': cooked in Poh, eaten in Magh. It sets into a soft, brown, gently caramel pudding that tastes of cane. Common mistake: cooking on a high heat; the juice catches and turns bitter, so simmer it low and stir from the bottom, and it is done when the rice is very soft and the kheer coats the back of a spoon thickly. Chef's tip: skim off all the grey scum as the juice first comes to the boil, or the kheer tastes earthy.
- Total time
- 120 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
- 6 ¼ cups fresh sugarcane juicestrained
- 3 ½ oz short-grain or broken basmati ricewashed and soaked 30 minutes
- ½ tsp fennel seeds (optional)
- 3 green cardamom podslightly crushed
- 10 almonds (optional)slivered
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Pour 6 ¼ cups fresh sugarcane juice into a heavy, wide pan and bring it slowly to the boil over a medium heat. Skim off the grey foam that rises with a spoon until the surface is clear.
15 minStep 2: Drain 3 ½ oz short-grain or broken basmati rice and add it to the juice with 3 green cardamom pods and ½ tsp fennel seeds. Turn the heat to low.
1 minStep 3: Simmer, uncovered, for about 1½ hours, stirring every 10 minutes and scraping the bottom. The juice reduces by half and turns a deeper brown.
90 minStep 4: Cook for a final 5–10 minutes, stirring constantly, until the rice is soft enough to crush against the pan and the kheer coats a spoon thickly. It thickens a lot more as it cools.
8 minStep 5: Pour into a bowl, scatter with 10 almonds, cool and refrigerate overnight. Serve cold the next morning.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 260 kcal
- Protein
- 2 g
- Carbs
- 62 g
- Fat
- 1 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does rauh di kheer take?
- About 120 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 110 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of short-grain or broken basmati rice?
- Any long-grain rice, same amount.
- What can I use instead of green cardamom pods?
- A pinch of ground cardamom per 2 pods.
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