Sabudana Jaggery Payasam

A rich dessert from the South Indian State of Kerala, this payasam is made specially on the occasion of the festival “Onam”. This payasam prepared with jaggery and coconut milk imparts a lot of flavour and colour which is simply yum…….Usually this dessert is prepared with rice ada (dried ground rice paste cut into pieces) or with moong dal. I have made this with sabudana and rice ada, which I prefer to moong dal.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Ingredients:

Rice ada or samba godhuma (broken samba wheat/dalia) – 1/3 cup

Sabudana – 1/3 cup

Ghee – 1 tbsp

Jaggery – 3/4 cup

Water – 1 cup + 2/3 cup to melt jaggery

Cardamom powder – 1/2 tsp

Coconut milk – 1 1/4 cup thick milk or 3/4 cup cup coconut milk powder

Cashews fried in ghee – 10

Coconut pieces or bits fried in oil – 15 pieces

Preparation:

Soak the sago in 1/4 cup of water for 2 -3 hours.

In a heavy bottomed kadai or pan, add ghee. When it is hot, add the coconut pieces and fry until golden brown in colour. Remove and keep it aside. Add the nuts and fry it until it turns golden in colour. Keep it aside.

Add 1 tsp of ghee again and add the sabudana and saute a bit. Then add the rice ada and saute. If using dalia/wheat, saute it in ghee separately and cook in cooker with 1 1/4 cup of water for 2 whistle on medium flame or for 8-10 minutes. Make sure that it does not burn. ). Add 1 cup of water to the sabudana and rice ada. ( If using fresh coconut milk, instead of adding 1 cups of water, add 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of thin coconut milk). If using coconut milk powder, add 1/2 cup of coconut milk powder to 1 cup of water ) .

Meanwhile, heat another pan, powder the jaggery and add it to the pan alongwith 2/3 cup water and melt it. Stir well until the jaggery thickens and starts bubbling. Pass it through a sieve and add it to the kadai in which rice ada and sabudana has been boiled. (If using dalia or broken wheat, add the cooked wheat to the pan/kadai). Add the thick coconut milk on slow fire and stir for 3 minutes. Add cardamom powder and stir well. Add the ghee fried cashews and roasted coconut chunks/bits to it and serve.