How do you know when something will be good? It could be because it is made at a restaurant where you are never disappointed with the food. It could also be when you look at a recipe and the ingredient list alone strikes your fancy. Or a friend shares one and you trust their judgment. Both the ingredient list and a friend played in why I decided to make slow-cooker Kheer a.k.a. Indian Rice Pudding. That decision came after an extensive recipe search over the world-wide web.
Why did the search begin in the first place? The simple answer is because of a slow-cooker recipe event for Sunday Supper. My first inclination was to make a Thai pork dish. I thought of starting with a pork butt and my Asian Peanut Dressing. I looked around to see variations and the next thing I know I run across a list of slow-cooker Indian recipes. Curry popped into my mind. So I axed the original idea and started checking out curries. Nothing really jumped out at me until I saw rice pudding mentioned on one site and I immediately knew my next cooking adventure. And who popped up in my research of this dessert? None other than a fellow Sunday Supper contributor, Soni of Soni’s Food. So my search started because of Sunday Supper and ended with it too.
Slow-Cooker Kheer (Indian Rice Pudding) is very simple to make. Whisk together all the ingredients, turn the slow cooker on low, and come back in a few hours to find a creamy and comforting dessert waiting for you to attack with a big spoon. And attack it with a big spoon is exactly what I did. I took a tiny test bite to see if it was done and the next thing I know I’m standing over the crockpot shoveling it in like I had not eaten for days.
The recipe is adapted from the original version. One adaptation is cooking it in a slow-cooker instead of in a pan. I also added golden raisins which I saw on several other Kheer recipes and reduced the amount of cardamom. The reason I reduced the cardamom is that it has a mint taste to some people including my husband. I didn’t want him to think I had made minty rice pudding. I used enough to give a slight background flavor without being over-powering.
One other note on the rice pudding. As with many rice dishes, the rice will continue to soak up moisture after the cooking process and become drier. All you have to do is stir in some milk or cream to get it back to the right consistency. I used a combo of cream and sweetened condensed milk to re-hydrate mine after it had been in the fridge overnight.
Do you cook using a slow-cooker? I do when I want to set, forget, and come back later to have a fully finished meal or dessert ready to eat. Now I’ll have more recipes to try from my fellow Sunday Supper contributors. Scroll down to see the list and remember each one is just a click away. Special thanks to Christie of A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures and Heather of Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks for hosting the event.
Slow-Cooker Kheer (Indian Rice Pudding)
Ingredients
- 3 cups whole milk
- 1 cup uncooked basmati rice not fast-cooking
- 1/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
- 1/3 cup golden raisins
- 3 tablespoons slivered almonds
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
Instructions
-
Whisk together all ingredients in a slow-cooker. Cover and cook on low for 3 1/2 to 4 hours.
-
Check after 3 1/2 hours. It is done when it has a thick pudding consistency.
-
Serve hot, warm, room temperature, or chilled.
Recipe Notes
Note: The rice in the pudding will continue to soak up milk when chilled. If pudding is too thick or seems "dry" after chilling, stir in a little milk, cream, or sweetened condensed milk to get to desired consistency.
Recipe adapted from Kheer (Indian Rice Pudding) on Soni’s Food website.
Are you ready to do some slow-cooking? Check out these slow-cooker recipes by Sunday Supper contributors:
Satiating Soups
- Amazing Slow Cooker French Onion Soup from Hot Momma’s Kitchen Chaos
- Crockpot Caramelized Pork Noodle Soup from Brunch with Joy
- Crockpot Kielbasa Split Pea Soup from The Foodie Army Wife
- Crockpot Turkey Meatball Soup from Flour On My Face
- Slow Cooker Acorn Squash and Apple Soup from Rants From My Crazy Kitchen
- Slow Cooker Chicken, Spinach & White Bean Soup from Amee’s Savory Dish
- Slow Cooker Chunky Chicken Tortilla Soup #GlutenFree from Sue’s Nutrition Buzz
- Slow Cooker Kielbasa Soup with Kale and White Beans from The Messy Baker
- Slow Cooker Potato, Kielbasa and Spinach Soup With Gouda from Meal Planning Magic
- Slow Cooker Tomato Basil Soup from Noshing With The Nolands
- Spicy Ham and 10-Bean Soup from Food Lust People Love
- Three Bean, Butternut, and Quinoa Vegetarian Chili from Ruffles & Truffles
Scrumptious Mains (Breakfast and Dinner)
- Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken Sliders from Eat, Drink and Be Tracy
- Crock Pot Pork Chops with Apples and Figs from Cooking On The Ranch
- Crockpot Sesame Chicken from Casa de Crews
- Madras Beef Curry with Vegetables from Curious Cuisiniere
- Pork and Cabbage Stew from Kudos Kitchen by Renee
- Pork Chops in Gravy with Potatoes from Cookin’ Mimi
- Slow Cooked Apple Pie Oatmeal from Life Tastes Good
- Slow-Cooked Country Pork and Veggies from Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
- Slow Cooker Garlic Chicken with Artichokes from Bobbi’s Kozy Kitchen
- Slow Cooker Lime Garlic Chicken from Peaceful Cooking
- Slow Cooker Mongolian Beef from Nosh My Way
- Slow Cooker Shredded Beef Tacos from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
- Slow Cooker Spicy Peach Pulled Pork from Family Foodie
- Slow Cooker Tomato Basil Pulled Chicken from Cupcakes & Kale Chips
Satisfying Sides
- Scalloped Potatoes from Peanut Butter and Peppers
- Slow Cooker Caramelized Onions from The Dinner-Mom
Scintillating Sweets and Sips
- Slow Cooker Brownie Dessert from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
- Slow-Cooker Kheer (Indian Rice Pudding) from Magnolia Days
- Slow Cooker Lemon Poppy Seed Cake from Ninja Baking
- Slow Cooker Rice Pudding from Killer Bunnies, Inc
- Spiced Caramel Cider from The Life and Loves of Grumpy’s Honeybunch
- Triple Rich Chocolate Cake from MealDiva
Savory Baking
- Slow Cooker Seedy Bread from Jane’s Adventures in Dinner
- Slow Cooker Sourdough Bread from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
Join the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. To get more great Sunday Supper Recipes, visit our website or check out our Pinterest board.
Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It’s easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.
Sarah
Tuesday 12th of January 2021
Good base recipe - it will be fun to play with variations. The 1/3 cup sweetened condensed milk is just the right amount of sweetness. I needed to nearly double the milk (in the end I probably used 5 or 6 cups instead of 3), as after 3 hours on low the rice was nearly dry, less like a pudding, and more like cooked rice, as commenter Janet mentioned. I replaced the golden raisins with seedless Thompson raisins. Next time I probably won't use raisins at all. Just personal preference. I used 6 whole cardamom pods in place of powdered cardamon, as this is what you normally get in restaurants here (Toronto). Didn't have slivered almonds, so I added a tablespoon of almond flour as suggested by FoodandGrace. I am thinking about trying this with a brown-wild rice blend next time, for interest and chewiness.
Jade
Saturday 29th of December 2018
Hi there! Question!
Making this dish tomorrow! Can I sub the whole milk for almond milk, do you think it’s disturb the consistency.
Also, High or low setting for crock pot? Thanks!
Katie Moseman
Sunday 30th of December 2018
Low setting. I haven't tried almond milk in this, personally, but supposedly it's possible to make the swap. Check out this link: https://www.thekitchn.com/can-i-substitute-skim-or-almond-milk-for-whole-milk-in-rice-pudding-228211
deborah christensen
Saturday 7th of October 2017
Ok so I only have nonfat milk in the fridge and rice......i have Japanese sushi, arborio, long grain, and Calrose. Can I substitute any of these? SCM, got that. Please advise, the recipe sounds delicious.
Katie Moseman
Wednesday 25th of October 2017
Hi Deborah! So sorry I missed this question. I just now saw it.
Nonfat milk will work. From what I know, jasmine or long grain should work. Monitor the texture of the rice as it cooks, as it may cook at a different pace than basmati.
Janet
Monday 3rd of July 2017
I followed the recipe exactly as written. I checked 3.5 hours later and all the liquid had dried up. It looked like cooked rice rather than a pudding. To correct this, I added a can of condensed milk and almost an entire 1/2 gallon of milk and cooked it another 30 minutes.
Parm
Wednesday 21st of July 2021
Traditionally, Indian Khmer is made with a high milk to rice ratio. I am talking in the vicinity of 4 cups milk to 1/4 cup of rice . This is where it may have gone wrong. The milk reduces considerably while making Kheer. Rice pudding I believe has more rice than Indian kheer.
I’ve tried a couple times making kheer in my very small crockpot but I find stovetop is the best as the milk just doesn’t reduce as effectively in a crockpot. I’ve trie to go down to 3 cups milk to 1/4 cup rice but have still ended up transferring to stovetop to cook on simmer for a short while until some of the milk reduces. Also, to avoid the shells of cardamon and to not have bigger pieces of seeds in your mouth, I tend to use my mortar and pestle and crush the seeds somewhat. Love the smell of the cardamon cooking!
I will be trying this version (higher rice ratio) soon to see if that helps with the liquid ratio in crockpot but my go to will still be stovetop, traditional ratio of rice/milk for kheer.
Katie Moseman
Monday 3rd of July 2017
Hi Janet,
Sorry it didn't work out! Sometimes, the difference in temperature between different slow cookers is enough to make a recipe behave unexpectedly. I'm glad you were able to come up with a quick fix. I'll re-test this recipe when I get a chance, just to make sure everything is correct.
Best,
Katie
FoodandGrace
Saturday 22nd of October 2016
Hi, just came across this recipe. As an Indo-Pakistani cook, kheer is a quintessential recipe in our households. Having tried many versions - often every household has their own unique recipe - I come back to my family's tried and true recipe. I have never made kheer in a slow cooker although my sil now swears by it, which is why I was browsing the internet to see the process, so I could adapt my own stove top recipe. I wanted to see if people were pre-boiling the milk (even infusing it with cardamom during this step).
Just a few tips/variations that I wanted to share. If you are truly going for an Indian flavored version also consider adding kewra essence/kewra water (kewra=screwpine). This is a super fragrant flavoring added to desserts, biryanis, and qormas. It's that "je ne sais quoi" aroma wafting from a pot of biryani that lets eaters know there's something special waiting at the table :) It tends to be strong, if you are going to use essence you would only need to add a few drops (3-4), if you were using kewra water, you could add 1-2 tbsp depending on how much milk the recipe calls for.
Another variation, "Baadaami Kheer = Almond kheer" that has been in my family for generations, is to add ground almonds to the milk and rice. I would add 3 tbsp to 1/3 cup of ground almonds to 3 cups of milk (superfine --> I will either use my coffee grinder to grind some *blanched almonds* or store-bought fine ground almond powder). This yields a very rich, indulgent, subtly nutty rice pudding, and has always earned rave reviews from my friends and family.
Lastly, I would definitely suggest reducing the amount of cardamom. For 3 cups of milk I would personally only use 1/8 to 1/4 tsp at most. I love the taste of cardamom in kheer, and couldn't imagine not using it but such strong spices need to be used in moderation. Sometimes less is more. You could also add the cardamom in the last 30 minutes of cooking so the flavoring is less muted (thus requiring less cardamom than if it were cooked for the whole time). I often find in adaptations of Indian recipes the spice balance is skewed. However, as in all things culinary, it is best to adapt recipes to your own taste. As they say in France, chacun son goût - to each one his taste.