This delicious kheer/pudding is made with butternut squash. Butternut squash has a sweet, nutty taste like that of a pumpkin. So, if you can’t get butternut squash, you could use pumpkin instead. This is very easy to make. To make it easier, I am using tinned coconut milk. If you want, you can make fresh coconut milk at home and use it.
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How to make Butternut Squash Pudding
What you’ll need
Butternut Squash/Pumpkin (finely chopped) – 500 gm
Jaggery – 400 gm
Coconut Milk (thick) – 400 ml
Cardamom & Cumin Powder – 1 1/4 tsp
Cashew Nuts
Raisins
Water – 2 cups
Clarified Butter – 1 tbsp
Tips
- Butternut squash or pumpkin must be very finely chopped. I used a vegetable chopper.
- Add melted jaggery based on the sweetness you would like in the kheer.
- If you are using pumpkin, make sure take off the pressure cooker from the stove and depressurize immediately in running tap water, to make sure it doesn’t get overcooked.
- If you are using thin coconut milk, no need to add the pumpkin stock.
- After adding the second half of the coconut milk, make sure the kheer doesnt boil too much.
How to make it
- Melt 400 gm of jaggery in 1 cup of water. Once the jaggery is melted completely, take it off from the stove. Strain and keep it aside.
- Add finely chopped butternut squash into a pressure cooker along with 2 cups of water and mix. Close and cook it till 1 whistle. After 1 whistle take it off from the stove. Once the cooker is depressurized, check the cooking of the squash. Once the squash is cooked, strain and reserve the stock.
- Add the cooked and strained squash into a pot and spread it. Add 3/4 cup of melted jaggery and mix. Cook it on a high heat till it thickens. Stir in between.
- Once it thickens, add 1/3 cup more of melted jaggery and mix. Once the mixture thickens again, reduce the heat to low.
- Add half of the tinned coconut milk. Add 1/4 cup of the butternut squash stock and mix.
- Once the mixture starts boiling, stir it well. Add the remaining half of the thick coconut milk and mix.
- Add 1 1/4 tsp of cardamom & cumin powder and mix.
- When it is about to boil, close and take it off from the stove. Do not let it boil.
- Add 1 tbsp of clarified butter into a pan and fry cashew nuts.
- Fry raisins in the same clarified butter.
- Add fried cashew nuts and raisins into the payasam and mix.
- Butternut squash kheer/pudding is ready to serve.
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