The Big Sweet Tooth: Mango Sago Payasam/ Kheer

Tomorrow my parents leave for a short trip to India. Short is around 18 days. I was not expecting umma to go, but then she also decided at the last minute. More than me, it's the kids who are feeling sad about it. They will have to adjust to a totally different schedule for the coming days, but I want to take it as a way to get myself acquainted and adjusted to a life that I will be facing very soon. Though a little worried, yet in peace with the understanding that things will never be the way you want them to be, right? :)

I love sago in a payasam, it is well aware from my two favorite payasams that I have posted on my blog - the Carrot Sago Semiya Payasam and Sago Payasam. I love to put it into any payasam, if I get a chance. Just like how I used it into the mango payasam that I tried to prepare! Sago gives a nice crunch and a different texture to the kheer, if cooked properly. With the last set of less-than-sweet mangoes that I had at home, I made this simple payasam one day and loved it to the core. More than drinking the payasam, I was biting down the bits of sago and enjoying it... hehe...

Mango Sago Payasam/ Kheer

Serves 4

Ingredients:

600 ml milk

4 tbsp rice, washed and soaked in water for 30 minutes

1/4 cup sago

1/4 tsp cardamom powder

1 cup mango pulp

Sugar to taste

1 tsp ghee

5-6 cashews

5-6 raisins

Method:

Soak the sago in warm water for 15-20 minutes, and drain. Heat up 2 liters of water. When the water starts boiling, add in the sago and reduce the flame to medium. Keep boiling the sago in the water till the sago converts itself into transparent balls. Immediately, strain it through a sieve and wash thoroughly in cold water. This will avoid the sago from sticking to each other. Set aside.

Add the milk, rice and cardamom into a pressure cooker. Cook till one whistle, lower the flame and leave for 20 minutes. Switch off and allow the pressure to go by itself.

Open the lid, keep on low flame, add the cooked sago and mango pulp and allow to simmer for 5-7 minutes. Check for sweetness, if required then add sugar.

Fry the cashews and raisins in ghee and dump into the kheer!!!