Praying and adopting peace, harmony, and non-violence are principles taught by Gautam Buddha. What better way to celebrate a birthday than something sweet? There’s cakes and ice creams, but what sets the celebration of Buddha Purnima (the birth of Gautam Buddha) apart is the heart-warming, soul-satisfying kheer.
From rice kheer to one made with vermicelli, full-fat milk or plant milk, here are some of our favorite Buddha Purnima kheer recipes from regions of India that are sure to get you drooling.
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Buddha Purnima Kheer Recipes
Some regional Buddha Purnima food recipes have been explained in the following section-
Vermicelli Kheer
This makes a creamy, luscious porridge. All you need is some vermicelli, half a liter of milk, half cup of sugar, cardamom powder, dry fruits, one spoon ghee.
Start by soaking your raisins in water. In a pan, heat some ghee, and roast the nuts until they emit an aroma. In the same pan, add vermicelli and roast them until they turn slightly brown. Take it out in a bowl.
In the same pan, add milk and sugar and let it heat for 2-3 boils. Make sure you are constantly stirring it so it does not burn. Then add the vermicelli, nuts, and raisins, with the cardamom powder.
Mix everything well and let it cook for another boil. Serve it with love, hot or cold.
Coconut Kheer
Coconut lovers, we got something for you.
To start, you need a few basic ingredients like coconut, vermicelli (roasted, preferably), honey/jaggery/sugar, ghee, and dry fruits.
Grate the coconut and mix it with coconut water or normal water until a smooth consistency is achieved.
Next, extract this mix until three cups of content are full. You can mix in more water with the grated coconut to extract more liquid. This is coconut milk.
Take a deep-bottomed pan and cook this for five minutes while stirring occasionally.
Add the vermicelli and cook for another 8-9 minutes. In another pan, roast the dry fruits with ghee. Add your sweetener into the vermicelli and coconut mix followed by the dry fruits.
It is ready to be served.
Paneer Kheer
This Buddha Purnima recipe is high in protein and good fats. You need 750 ml milk, half a cup of paneer, a quarter cup of sugar, some cardamom powder, saffron strands and dry fruits for garnishing.
Start by boiling the milk on medium flame. Add the cardamom powder and saffron and let this boil for 40 minutes until it thickens and reduces to half the quantity.
At this stage, add paneer and sugar and let it simmer for another 20 minutes. Switch off the flame and let your high protein kheer cool down. Garnish with some nuts and serve warm.
Sugarcane Kheer
This Buddha Purnima food is for those who prefer eliminating refined sugar.
The ingredients needed for this all-natural recipe include sugarcane juice, rice, milk, almonds, and raisins.
Wash and soak rice for one hour. Boil sugarcane juice and let it cool. Once cooled, strain the juice using a muslin cloth.
After the rice has been soaking for an hour, boil the juice again with rice on medium flame. Let this cook until the rice softens and cooks.
Add boiled milk to this mix, cook for another 15 minutes, till both liquids incorporate well with rice. Garnish with almonds and raisins.
This can be served warm or chilled, as desired.
Rice Kheer
You would need ghee, whole cardamom, short grain rice, milk, sugar, whipping cream, rosewater, some pista and saffron strands for garnish.
Heat the ghee in a heavy pot and add the cardamom seeds. Stir for 30 seconds and then add rice. Stir it well to coat it evenly with ghee and cardamom. Let the rice roast for around a minute then add milk and sugar. While stirring, add more sugar if you like sweeter kheer.
Once this comes to a boil, lower the flame and cook for 30-45 minutes. Cook until this is thick and creamy. Add in the whipping cream and cook for 10 more minutes. Add rosewater and mix again. Take it off the heat, and serve warm or chilled.
Sabudana Kheer
Sago or sabudana is a versatile ingredient that is used from breakfast, to starters, snacks to desserts. It is especially consumed during the fasting season and auspicious days.
To make sabudana kheer, you need sabudana, water, milk, sugar, cardamom powder, cashews, raisins, and saffron strands.
Rinse the tapioca pearls until the water runs clear. Take a heavy-bottomed pan and add the sabudana with water. Let the pearls soak for 15 more minutes.
Keep this pan on the stove and start cooking. Add warm milk to the mix and let it cook for 4-5 minutes.
Follow by adding sugar and green cardamom powder. Simmer the mix till sabudana has cooked and softened. This will take around 30 minutes. Keep stirring until cooked.
Next turn off the heat, add cashews and raisins. At this stage, you can add more sugar, if desired.
Wrapping Up
These were some Buddha Purnima food options you ought to try this season. From indulgent to protein-rich, there’s one kheer variant for everyone.