This thick, creamy, and perfectly sweet sabudana kheer is usually made during Hindu fasting days like Maha Shivratri, Ekadashi, Navratri, Krishna Janmashtami, Gauri vrat, etc. This easy-to-make sabudana kheer is made with 3 main ingredients - tapioca pearls, milk and sugar (plus, flavor & garnish).
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What Is Sabudana?
Sabudana (Tapioca pearls) are small white balls made from tapioca roots (aka cassava). It is highly processed food and full of starch, high in carbohydrates with minimal nutrients.
Because of the high-carb nature, sabudana is eaten during fasting (vrat, upwas) so it gives instant energy and keeps you full.
Other sabudana recipes for vrat - sabudana khichdi, sabudana vada, sabudana pakoda, sabudana thalipeeth
❤️ You’ll Love This Sabudana Kheer
Taste & Texture:
- Perfectly sweet
- Melt-in-your-mouth soft tapioca pearls
- Thick, creamy, rich and pudding-like consistency.
- All the pearls are separated (not sticky or clumped together).
Minimal ingredients: You’ll need 3 main ingredients which are sabudana, milk and sugar. For flavor saffron and cardamom powder are added. Plus, nuts are added for some crunch and garnish.
Easy to make: The process of making sabudana kheer is so simple. Just cook the soaked sabudana in milk, add sugar and flavoring ingredients and simmer for some time. Your kheer is ready.
Quick to make: You’ll need 30 minutes of active time to make this delicious sabudana kheer. Though you need to pre-plan as sabudana requires around 2 hours of soaking time.
🧾 Ingredient Notes
Here is the pic of the ingredients you’ll need to make sabudana kheer recipe.
- Sabudana: Use regular sabudana that we widely use in sabudana khichdi. There is another verity called nylon sabudana that is used for sabudana chivda only.
- Sugar: Regular white sugar is used.
- Milk: Full-fat whole milk is recommended to get a rich, creamy texture.
- Saffron: It adds a nice yellow ting to the kheer. Plus, adds a nice unique flavor and aroma.
- Green cardamom seeds powder: Open the green cardamoms and use the black seeds. Crush these seeds into a mortar and pestle to make a fine powder.
- Nuts: I have used almonds and cashews.
👩🍳 How To Make Sabudana Kheer? (Pics)
1) Wash Sabudana: Take sabudana in a colander and rinse under running cold water. Massage the pearls lightly while rinsing to get rid of excess starch and dirt.
Check if they are washed properly: When sabudana is added into the water and water should look clear (not cloudy anymore).
2) Soak: Take washed sabudana in a bowl. Add ½ cup of milk, cover and let it soak for 1 ½ - 2 hours.
3) After the soaking time, sabudana pearls get bigger in size.
4) Make Kheer: Take milk in a heavy bottom pan and turn the heat to medium.
5) Drain the soaking milk from sabudana using a strainer and add to the pan. Keep sabudana aside.
6) Let the milk come to a simmer. Take around 1 tablespoon of hot milk and add to a saffron bowl. Let saffron soak in the milk so it releases its color and flavor. Keep it aside.
7) Keep stirring and scraping the sides and bottom of the pan while the milk is simmering. Simmer milk for around 3-4 minutes or until it starts to thicken.
8) Add Soaked sabudana.
9) Keep stirring occasionally and continue cooking.
10) Simmer for around 8-10 minutes or until sabudana becomes soft and transparent. Check one pearl by pressing between your thumb and index finger. It should mash easily without any effort.
11) Add sugar.
12) Also, add saffron milk, cardamom powder and almond, cashews.
13) Mix and let it simmer for 5 minutes.
14) The kheer should thicken nicely. Keep in mind that it will thicken more as it cools down. So at this moment, sabudana kheer should be thick yet flowing (pourable) consistency. You can see in the pic all the pearls are separated and cooked perfectly.
💭 Expert Tips For Sabudana Kheer
- Washing or Rinsing sabudana properly is a must step. You need to get rid of the excess starch otherwise kheer will become clumpy and too thick. So always wash/rinse until the water is clear and not cloudy anymore.
- Always add sugar once the sabudana is cooked/softened.
- Check cooked sabudana texture: It should be soft, and slightly slimy without any bite to it. And it looks translucent.
- Nuts & Dry fruits: You can use other nuts like pistachios, walnuts, chironji (charoli), chopped dates and figs. If adding lots of dates then you can skip (or reduce) sugar.
- Consistency:
- When sabudana kheer is hot/warm (right after cooking), it should have a pourable (flowing) consistency.
- As it cools to room temperature, it will thicken more and becomes a pudding-like consistency.
- If your store it in the fridge, it will thicken even more. So if planning to serve chilled then keep your kheer slightly runny, to begin with.
🥣 Storage Instructions
- It can be stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 days in an airtight container.
- As this is a fasting food, it is usually made in a smaller batch and consumed fresh (the day it is made).
Check Out Other Kheer Recipes For Vrat
Did you try this sabudana kheer recipe? I’d love to hear about it! Leave a review in the comment section below.
📋 Recipe Card
Sabudana Kheer Recipe
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup Sabudana (Sago or tapioca pearls)
- 1 ½ + ½ cup Milk
- 3 tablespoons Sugar
- 2-3 strands Saffron
- ¼ teaspoon Green cardamom seeds powder
- 1 tablespoon Almonds chopped
- 1 tablespoon Cashew nuts chopped
- Dried rose petals for garnishing (optional)
Instructions
- Wash Sabudana: Take sabudana in a colander and rinse under running cold water. Massage the pearls lightly while rinsing to get rid of excess starch and dirt. Check if they are washed properly: When sabudana is added to the water and water should look clear (not cloudy anymore).
- Soak: Take washed sabudana in a bowl. Add ½ cup of milk, cover and let it soak for 1 ½ - 2 hours. After the soaking time, sabudana pearls get bigger in size.
- Make Sabudana Kheer: Take milk in a heavy bottom pan and turn the heat to medium.
- Drain the soaking milk from sabudana using a strainer and add to the pan. Keep sabudana aside.
- Let the milk come to a simmer. Take around 1 tablespoon of hot milk and add to a saffron bowl. Let saffron soak in the milk so it releases its color and flavor. Keep it aside.
- Keep stirring and scraping the sides and bottom of the pan while the milk is simmering. Simmer milk for around 3-4 minutes or until it starts to thicken.
- Add Soaked sabudana. Keep stirring occasionally and continue cooking. Simmer for around 8-10 minutes or until sabudana becomes soft and transparent. Check one pearl by pressing between your thumb and index finger. It should mash easily without any effort.
- Add sugar, saffron milk, cardamom powder and almond, cashews. Mix and let it simmer for 5 minutes.
- The kheer should thicken nicely. Keep in mind that it will thicken more as it cools down. So at this moment, it should be thick yet flowing (pourable) consistency.
Notes
- When it is hot/warm (right after cooking), it should have a pourable (flowing) consistency.
- As it cools to room temperature, it will thicken more and becomes a pudding-like consistency.
- If your store it in the fridge, it will thicken even more. So if planning to serve chilled then keep your kheer slightly runny to begin with.
Rita
Hi Kanan ,
I made the sabudana kheer today for the
first time for shraad prasad. Since it was
gyaras and wanted to avoid using rice .
It turned out awesome !!!! Everybody over
loved it !!
The very simple instructions made it less
Intimidating for me and I was less nervous,
even though I make kheer all the time and
am familiar with using sabudana otherwise.
It simply made my morning 😇
Kanan
yay!! very happy to know that everyone liked it.