What is Kheer?
Kheer is a sweet dish from South Asia, particularly served in India and Pakistan. Its primary base is boiled milk and sugar which then can have a number of variations. These include rice, vermicelli, tapioca, paneer, semolina, oats, quinoa and sabudana kheer. This is the traditional recipe for rice kheer. We love milk-based Indian sweets and these are some of our favourite kheer recipes: Rice Kheer Pressure Cooker + Instant Pot, Moriyo Phool Makhana Kheer, Shahi Mango Paneer Kheer, Instant Pot Doodh Poha Kheer Kheer is often made for special occasions but is easy enough to be made for a quick dessert too!
Quick Seviyan Kheer
This recipe has many different names. Seviyan Kheer is also called Vermicelli Kheer, Sevai Kheer, Semiya Kheer, Vermicelli Payasam or Semiyan Payasam in South India and it is often eaten during religious festivals. However, it can also be enjoyed at any time of the year because it comes together just in few minutes. My Mum taught me how to make this delicious Indian dessert a few years back, and sometimes I have had sweet cravings after a spicy meal, this easy recipe for kheer always came to the rescue. This super easy quick seviyan kheer is a straightforward recipe and can be made with pantry ingredients. It is prepared with by simmering whole milk with ghee roasted vermicelli and sugar and flavoured with cardamom and nutmeg powder and topped it up with slivered nuts. I love eating this kheer whilst it is hot but it is also delicious cold.
The Difference between Seviyan Kheer and Sheer Khurma
There is a lot of confusion between these two similar-looking desserts which uses almost similar ingredients and method, however, there is quite significant differences between them. Seviyan kheer is popular amongst every culture and made during many festivals and required fewer ingredients. For seviyan kheer even thicker vermicelli works fine too. Whereas Sheer Khurma is popular amongst the Muslim community and often made during Eid all over the world. Eid celebrations are incomplete without this delicious and rich Sheer Khurma. It is mainly prepared with very fine and thin vermicelli which often called nylon seviyan, lots of nuts, dates and sugar and saffron is added for that unique flavour. Basically, sheer khurma means milk with dates. In sheer khurma, first nuts are fried in ghee and later added to the recipe. Once the dish is made, a ghee tempering with either clove or cardamom poured the dessert. Traditionally, sheer khurma is served warm. Did you know you can prepare Sheer Khurma in Instant Pot too? Try our 1 minute vermicelli kheer recipe or semiya payasam now, you won’t be disappointed.
Ingredients for Seviyan Kheer recipe
All ingredients for can be easily found in indian grocery stores. Full ingredients with measurements are available in the recipe card below at the end of this post
- Vermicelli Noodles – these are basically thin noodles. I use normal thickness vermicelli. Toasting the vermicelli before adding to the milk removes the rawness and lends great colour. It is sold as whole wheat vermicelli. For ease, buy the roasted semiya variety rather than unroasted variety to save on time. Use leftovers to make vermicelli upma.
- Milk – using whole milk or full cream milk is best as you get the creamiest kheer with a thicker consistency but you can also use skimmed or semi-skimmed.
- Ghee – you can easily buy pure ghee or make homemade ghee using butter.
- Sugar – use white granulated sugar to keep the white colour however, you can use brown sugar too.
- Nutmeg and cardamom powder – for flavours and lends beautiful aroma, cardamom especially is part of any quintessential Indian dessert.
- Nuts – aka dry fruits in India. I have used almond and pistachio but for health reasons such as allergies, you can hold off the nuts. Don’t have any nuts on hand, use milk masala instead. Some optionally add in golden raisins too, but I prefer mine without. Optional – saffron strands.
Can I make this recipe vegan?
Yes, this seviya kheer recipe is easily made vegan by replacing the ghee with vegan ghee or oil and using non dairy milk such as almond milk, coconut milk, oat milk or cashew milk.
How to make Seviyan with condensed milk
Although, condensed milk is not the first choice to sweeten the dessert, you can use condensed milk instead of normal milk. However, omit the addition of sugar.
Sweet Vermicelli with evaporated milk
Evaporated milk is not condensed milk, in some countries, it is known as ‘unsweetened condensed milk’ however it’s consistency is not the same. It is a shelf-stable canned cow’s milk product where about 60% of the water has been removed from fresh milk. This milk is not sweet therefore you have to use sugar or other sweeteners in the recipe. Addition of evaporated milk makes this kheer creamy, rich and speed up the recipe and saves lots of time. Once the seviyan are roasted, add evaporated milk and sugar together and cook only a minute or so and turn off the heat and transfer the kheer in a bowl to prevent sticking it to the base of the pan.
How to make Seviyan Kheer in Instant Pot
You can also use the instant pot pressure cooker to make sevai kheer. You can use the dump and start method if you have bought pre-roasted vermicelli or use saute mode to fry off the vermicelli first. If using raw vermicelli, select saute mode and add ghee and vermicelli to the inner pot. Saute until golden brown. Pour in the milk, cardamom powder and sugar and mix well, ensuring there is no vermecelli stuck to the bottom of the pot. Close the lid, and move the pressure valve to sealing position. Select Porridge mode and set the timer to around 7 minutes. Once done, allow for natural pressure release.
Storage and freezing instructions
As this delicious vermicelli pudding is a milk-based dessert, it is best eaten fresh. This kheer can be stored in a refrigerator for a couple of days, 3-4 days, in an airtight container. Do not store at room temperature if you reside in a hotter climate. You may freeze the kheer for a couple of weeks if you like. Thaw in the fridge then gently reheat on stove or microwave before eating.
Pro Tips:
While roasting the seviyan, keep an eye on it as it thin vermicelli burns quickly. Stick to a low flame Add a little kewra or rose water at the end to add a gorgeous fragrance and flavour to the semiya payasam recipe. Use single or double cream or half and half for an extra indulgent treat, but only add it when you add sugar to prevent it burning. You’ll get a more creamy texture. If you are using evaporated milk, don’t cook kheer for longer it will stick to the bottom of the pan. You may add cashew nuts, charoli/chironji or raisins too. Add more milk if kheer gets too thick to achieve a thinner consistency. This happens as the kheer cools.
How to make Seviyan Kheer step by step and video recipe
- First melt ghee in a medium size and wide mouth heavy bottom pan.
- Add broken vermicelli noodles (smaller pieces will be easier to eat)
- Roast on low heat.
- When golden brown and aromatic, remove the vermicelli strands in a plate or bowl.
- In the same pan add milk, boil for 3-4 minutes on medium flame and add roasted seviyan.
- Simmer on medium heat for 4-5 minutes, keep stirring.
- Add sugar and cook further couple of minutes or until it reaches your desired consistency.
- Flavour the kheer with cardamom and nutmeg powder, garnish it with chopped nuts.
Other Indian milk sweets
See our full list of Indian Milk Desserts Doodh Pak – Gujarati style rice pudding As always if you make this recipe, be sure to leave me a comment, rate this recipe and tag me on Instagram @jcookingodyssey or #jcookingodyssey. I love seeing all your photos of my recipe recreations! Don’t forget to follow me on social media using the buttons below – I can’t wait to see you all there!
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