Pistachio rice pudding is delicious, colorful, easy to make Indian style dessert that is perfect for holidays! Recipe for pistachio rice pudding dessert or kesar pista recipe is one of the most delicious Indian pudding recipe using milk, rice, saffron and pistachio as the main ingredients.
The pudding or kheer made of milk is flavored with pistachios and saffron and thickened with rice.
I have also made easy, delicious instant pot rice pudding with sweetened condensed milk, rice pudding or rice kheer on stove top etc if you love rice pudding recipes!
More delicious kheer recipes (Indian style pudding recipes also known as payasam) include semiya payasam also known as vermicelli kheer or seviyan kheer, badam payasam (almond kheer), aval payasam or poha kheer etc which are all delicious desserts.
Instead of adding pistachios and saffron you may also use pistachio – saffron flavored milk to the pudding.
An excellent way to flavor the milk with pistachios is to soak the pistachios in the milk overnight in refrigerator and you can use this pistachio flavored milk the next day to be used in recipes like this pudding.
Another instant method is to roast the pistachios in pure ghee and add milk to this roasted pistachios, let it sit for few minutes or you can slightly heat the mixture for a minute.
These steps are only needed if you want to flavor the milk in advance to the preparation of the pudding or kheer.
The reason why some people prefer to flavor the milk early is that it will add more flavor and light green color of pistachios to the pudding but anyhow this step is not mandatory.
If you didn’t already flavor the milk, that is fine, you can directly start preparations to make the most delicious pistachios pudding dessert using pistachios, saffron, rice and milk as the main ingredients.
Let us go on to the pistachio pudding recipe or kesar pista kheer recipe made with delicious pistachio nuts and saffron and such.
In my recipe for kesar pista kheer or pistachio pudding recipe, I am not flavoring the milk in advance.
But you can do so if you wish, which is sure to make it more and more delicious and colorful 🙂
So here you can find the recipe for Indian pistachio rice pudding for dessert!
How to make pistachio rice pudding for dessert?
We use the following ingredients to make easy, delicious pistachio rice pudding or Indian kesar pista kheer!
ingredients to make pistachio rice pudding
pistachios (shells removed) ¼ cup
white basmati rice ¾ cup
whole milk 8 cups
sweetened condensed milk 14 oz
sugar ½ cup
saffron strands 4 to 5
cardamom powder a pinch (or use 1 pod of cardamom)
ghee 1 tablespoon
for garnishing
pistachios 6 to 8
saffron strands 2 to 3
ghee 1 tablespoon
Step by step instructions
Wash the pistachios and rice and then soak the pistachios and rice separately in water for about half an hour (don’t soak the pistachios for garnishing).
After half an hour, drain the water and keep the rice aside.
Chop the pistachios or you can process them in a food processor for a few seconds.
If you are using a food processor, don’t process it more than few seconds since the pistachios will get chopped quickly.
You can even make them into very fine pieces if you don’t want large pieces of pistachios, just make sure you don’t overdo it.
I actually used the food processor and made the pistachios into very fine pieces, but you can do as you prefer.
Heat ghee in a wide bottomed pan,slightly roast the chopped pistachios and rice for a few seconds.
Add the milk and sugar and heat the mixture of rice, sugar, pistachios and milk together until the mixture starts boiling. Make sure you stir it frequently using a good spatula so as to avoid burning the milk at the bottom of the pan.
As the milk starts boiling, reduce the heat and cover the pan and cook in low heat for about 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, open the pan and gently mix the contents.
Add the saffron strands, cardamom powder and sweetened condensed milk to the pan and mix everything well.
Let it cook in for another 3 to 4 minutes until all the ingredients are well blended together, make sure you keep the pan open and stir the pudding kheer continuously to avoid burning at the bottom of the pan.
Your pistachio pudding dessert is ready to be garnished now!
For garnishing, heat ghee in a pan and fry the pistachios for a few seconds.
Add the slightly fried pistachios to the top of the pudding and also add saffron strands, now your pistachio pudding dessert or kesar pista kheer is ready to be served!
You can enjoy the pistachio pudding or kesar pista kheer hot or warm, but for best results, chill the pudding in the refrigerator and enjoy!
Below you can get the recipe for pistachio rice pudding in detail.
Pistachio Rice Pudding – Indian Kesar Pista Kheer
Ingredients
- ¼ cup pistachios shells removed
- ¾ cup white basmati rice
- 8 cups whole milk
- 14 oz sweetened condensed milk
- ½ cup sugar
- 4 saffron strands
- cardamom powder a pinch, or use 1 pod of cardamom
- 1 tablespoon ghee
for garnishing
- 8 pistachios
- 3 saffron strands
- 1 tablespoon ghee
Instructions
- Wash the pistachios and rice and then soak the pistachios and rice separately in water for about half an hour (don’t soak the pistachios for garnishing).
- After half an hour, drain the water and keep the rice aside.
- Chop the pistachios or you can process them in a food processor for a few seconds.
- If you are using a food processor, don't process it more than few seconds since the pistachios will get chopped quickly.You can even make them into very fine pieces if you don't want large pieces of pistachios, just make sure you don't overdo it.I actually used the food processor and made the pistachios into very fine pieces, but you can do as you prefer.
- Heat ghee in a wide bottomed pan,slightly roast the chopped pistachios and rice for a few seconds.
- Add the milk and sugar and heat the mixture of rice, sugar, pistachios and milk together until the mixture starts boiling. Make sure you stir it frequently using a good spatula so as to avoid burning the milk at the bottom of the pan.
- As the milk starts boiling, reduce the heat and cover the pan and cook in low heat for about 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, open the pan and gently mix the contents.
- Add the saffron strands, cardamom powder and sweetened condensed milk to the pan and mix everything well.
- Let it cook in for another 3 to 4 minutes until all the ingredients are well blended together, make sure you keep the pan open and stir the pudding kheer continuously to avoid burning at the bottom of the pan.
- Your pistachio pudding dessert is ready to be garnished now!
- For garnishing, heat ghee in a pan and fry the pistachios for a few seconds.
- Add the slightly fried pistachios to the top of the pudding and also add saffron strands, now your pistachio pudding dessert or kesar pista kheer is ready to be served!
- You can enjoy the pistachio pudding or kesar pista kheer hot or warm, but for best results, chill the pudding in the refrigerator and enjoy!
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