Kadala Payisam

I always carry the wonderful moments with me, the days our whole family together for every year Vishu and Onam!!. On Vishu,the most important thing we do at home is is the Vishukkani, which literally means "the first thing seen on the day of Vishu after waking up". The Vishukkani consists of a ritual arrangement of auspicious articles like vegetables,mirror and the key element is the yellow flowers konna poo (which will bloom only at vishu days), with nilavilakku is also placed alongside. This is arranged the night before Vishu. On Vishu, the custom is to wake up at dawn and go to the puja room with eyes closed so that the Vishukkani is the first sight in the new season.
 

Interesting is it!!! Yes, the full day will be fun to be with all these and Sadya off’ coarse! In sadya Payasam is the main factor, as I already mentioned about sadya in my Aviyal post. So, for vishu special comes the kadala payasam :)

Ingredients:

• Channa Dal- 1 Cup
• Jaggery Powder- 1 Cup
• Thick coconut milk- ½ Cup
• Thin Coconut milk- ½ Cup
• Cashews,raisins- few
• Coconut cut pieces- 10 pieces.
• Ghee- 2 Tspn
• Cardamom Powder- 1 Tspn
• Pearl Sago/Sabudhana- ½ Cup

Method:

• Soak the pearl sago in luke warm water for at least 3-4 hours and pressure cooker it for 2 whistles and keep aside.
• Pressure cooker the channa dal for 4 whistles, Smash it well, remove excess water and keep aside.
• In a heavy bottomed pan pour the channa dal and stir for about 2-3 minutes.
• Add the jaggery powder to it and stir again for about 2 minutes
• The color will slightly get changed, at this point, add the thin coconut milk to it and allow it to boil for some time until the texture becomes thick. Stir continuously.
• Now, add the pearl sago and the thick coconut milk to this stirring continuously and let it boil until it becomes thicker.
• In a separate pan, pour ghee and add the cashews, raisins and the coconut pieces and roast until golden brown.
• Add the roasted cashews to the payasam and add cardamom powder to it.

Tips:

"The coconut pieces should be very thin and should be nicely roasted, which gives the payasam the unique taste.

Stirring is most important to get the right taste and care should be taken as not to burnt at the bottom."