Semiya payasam step-by-step recipe with video and photos.
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About this recipe
Seviyan kheer or semiyan payasam is a popular and delicious Indian dessert made with vermicelli, milk, and sugar. It is flavored with saffron and cardamom and topped with nuts. It is a great sweet dish for not only festivals but also everyday sweet cravings. This creamy and luscious fuss-free Indian-style pudding can be made ahead of parties, special occasions, and gatherings.
Also popularly known as sheer khurma or seviya kheer, semiya payasam is made in most Indian households and the most common method is simmering milk and vermicelli in a heavy bottom pan. The stovetop version of vermicelli payasam is simple but needs monitoring and very frequent stirring to make sure the milk does not burn and stick to the bottom of the pan. The Instant Pot recipe follows a dump-and-go method and one of the easiest dessert recipes you will try. All we have to do is put all ingredients in the Instant Pot pressure cooker and cook on the Porridge mode. The Instant Pot version is quicker, does not involve stirring, and is way less hands-on than the traditional kheer recipe.
I have earlier shared making vermicelli upma in an Instant Pot. Here is my take on seviyan kheer recipe made in the Instant Pot. Read on for ingredients, step-by-step instructions, and useful tips to make this dump-and-go dessert. For a variation, try Indian-style rice pudding in Instant Pot. Click here for my collection of Instant Pot Indian desserts.
What is payasam
Kheer or payasa or payasam is a type of pudding made mostly with milk. It is one of the oldest forms of desserts, having been made for hundreds of years. The simplest and most common kheer is made by boiling rice and milk together which is then sweetened with sugar. Closest to it is shavige payasa which is made with vermicelli, milk, and sugar. Other common forms of payasam are made using lentils, millets, semolina, and tapioca.
Kheer is flavored with cardamom and saffron. In South India, it is mostly made using coconut milk and sweetened using jaggery. This sweet dish has so many different names and is called kheer in Hindi, payasa in Kannada, payesh in Bengali, and payasam in Tamil. I love making rice kheer in an Instant Pot as it saves so much time and gives the same results as the traditional method of slow cooking.
Ingredients
Vermicelli: I use roasted vermicelli noodles which are easily available in Indian grocery stores. If the vermicelli is not roasted, heat 1 tablespoon of ghee and roast it for 4-5 minutes until they are golden brown before using them.
Milk: Whole milk gives a creamy texture; however, low-fat milk also can be used.
Sugar: I use raw sugar; however, plain white sugar or brown sugar also can be used.
Cardamom and saffron strands: They are used to add flavor. You can use either one of them or both. Dried rose petals also are used to add great flavor.
Nuts and raisins: Dry fruits are added as a garnish. They add a great texture to the pudding. Almonds, pistachio, cashew nuts, golden raisins, etc. are commonly used.
Step-by-step instructions
Press the saute button on the Instant Pot and add ½ cup of water to the inner pot. Once it heats up, press cancel and add milk (steps 1 and 2).
Next, add roasted vermicelli and sugar (steps 4 and 5).
Next, add cardamom powder, saffron, chopped nuts, and raisins. Mix it well (steps 5 and 6).
Close the lid and press the Porridge button on the Instant Pot for 8 minutes with the pressure valve in the sealing position. Once the Instant Pot beeps, cancel the porridge setting and do a natural pressure release (steps 7 and 8).
Open the lid and mix the Instant Pot semiya payasam well (steps 9 and 10).
Useful tips
Make sure the lid and sealing ring of the Instant Pot is cleaned thoroughly. I set aside a spare sealing ring that I use to make sweet dishes.
Use roasted vermicelli for this recipe as it saves time. Roasted whole wheat vermicelli is thin noodles that is easily available in Indian stores and online stores. If the thin vermicelli is not roasted, first roast it in one teaspoon of ghee until it is golden brown.
The first step is to set the Instant Pot to saute mode and add ½ cup water. Once the water is hot, cancel the Instant Pot saute mode, and add the milk, vermicelli, and sugar. This is a common trick used when boiling milk on a stove top - add a small amount of water first and heat it so that the milk does not burn and stick to the bottom of the pot. This trick works perfectly with the inner steel pot of your Instant Pot too.
This sevai kheer will thicken when it cools down. You can add a small amount of milk until it reaches the desired consistency before you reheat and serve.
You can also sweeten the semiya payasam with jaggery. However, in this case, add the jaggery after pressure cooking the vermicelli and put the IP in saute mode (low) until the jaggery melts. Pressure cooking with jaggery will curdle the milk.
You can use any nuts as per your liking. You can also skip it to make nut-free kheer. To make a vegan kheer, use almond milk or coconut milk.
Do not do a quick release of pressure. Wait for the pressure to come down naturally.
As an optional ingredient, you can use 1-2 tablespoons of condensed milk to add richness to the semiyan payasam and also to get a thicker consistency. In that case, make sure to reduce the amount of sugar.
To make this delicious vermicelli pudding on a stovetop, boil the milk in a saucepan and add roasted vermicelli. Let it simmer until the vermicelli is fully cooked. Then, add sugar and mix well. Use more milk for a thinner consistency of the kheer.
You may also like these Indian dessert recipes:
FAQs
Roasted vermicelli works best for this dish. If you are not able to find the roasted variety, make sure to roast it in one teaspoon of ghee until the vermicelli is golden.
This dish can be served warm or cold. This is a personal preference. If you want to serve it cold, make the kheer ahead and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a few hours before serving.
Store any leftovers in an air-tight container in the refrigerator once it comes to room temperature. It can be stored for 2-3 days. Once stored, it tends to thicken. You can add some milk and thin it out before serving.
The main difference between the two is the usage of dates. Sheer khurma is a popular Afghani dessert that uses a good amount of dates to sweeten it.
Bonus
This Instant Pot vermicelli kheer (semiya payasam) is:
- no monitoring and so easy to make,
- creamy, rich, and delicious,
- fuss-free and one of the easiest recipes you will make.
If you liked this recipe, please don't forget to give a 5-star rating and leave a comment below.
Recipe card
Semiya Payasam / Vermicelli Kheer (Instant Pot)
Ingredients
- ¾ cup vermicelli
- 4 cups milk
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ cup nuts (I used almond, pistachio, and cashew)
- 1 tablespoon raisins
- ½ teaspoon cardamom powder
- ½ teaspoon saffron
- ½ cup water
Instructions
- Set the Instant Pot in saute mode and add ½ cup water.
- Once it is hot, add milk, roasted vermicelli, sugar, cardamom powder, saffron, chopped nuts, and raisins. Mix it well.
- Close the lid and put the Instant Pot to Porridge mode for 8 minutes.
- Do a natural release of pressure.
- Open the lid and mix the vermicelli kheer well.
- Serve warm or chill in the refrigerator and serve cold.
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