Makhana kheer recipe for vrat
This makhana kheer recipe turns ghee-roasted phool makhana and full cream milk into a thick, cardamom-scented kheer in about 40 minutes. It serves 4 and uses only common vrat ingredients.
By the Makau Foods team. Last updated:
Quick answer
Roast 35 g of makhana in 1 tablespoon of ghee, crush half, and simmer it in 1 litre of full cream milk for 12 to 15 minutes until thick. Sweeten with 60 g sugar, or 80 g jaggery added off the heat, then finish with cardamom and roasted nuts. Serves 4.
Makhana kheer recipe card
- Serves
- 4
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 35 min
- Total
- 40 min
Ingredients
35 g raw makhana (about 2 cups, loosely filled)
1 litre full cream milk (4 cups)
1 tablespoon ghee (about 15 g)
60 g sugar (about 5 tablespoons), or 80 g grated jaggery (about half a cup)
4 green cardamom pods, seeds crushed (or half a teaspoon cardamom powder)
10 cashews, chopped (about 15 g)
10 almonds, sliced (about 12 g)
1 tablespoon raisins (about 10 g)
A pinch of saffron soaked in 1 tablespoon warm milk (optional)
Method
Roast the makhana. Heat the ghee in a heavy pan on low heat. Add the makhana and roast for 5 to 6 minutes, stirring, until a piece crushes with a clean snap. Tip it onto a plate.
Roast the nuts. In the same pan, roast the cashews and almonds for 1 to 2 minutes until light golden. Add the raisins for the last 20 seconds, until they puff. Set aside.
Crush half the makhana. Coarsely crush half of the roasted makhana with a rolling pin or a two-second pulse in a mixer. Keep the other half whole.
Boil the milk. Bring the milk to a boil in a heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat, about 8 to 10 minutes, stirring so it does not catch at the bottom.
Simmer with the makhana. Add the crushed and whole makhana. Lower the heat and simmer for 12 to 15 minutes, stirring every minute or two and scraping the sides, until the milk thickens and the makhana turns soft.
Sweeten. For sugar, stir it in now and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until it dissolves. For jaggery, switch off the heat, let the kheer cool for 3 to 4 minutes, then stir the jaggery in so the milk does not split.
Finish and serve. Stir in the cardamom, the saffron milk if using, and most of the nuts and raisins. Top with the rest. Serve warm, or chill for 2 hours and serve cold.
Timings are approximate and depend on your pan and flame. Cup measures for makhana are loose, because the seeds are light and vary in size, so weigh it if you can.
Makhana kheer for vrat: what to check
Every ingredient here is common in a phalahar kitchen: makhana, milk, ghee, sugar or jaggery, cardamom, and dry fruits. That is why makhana kheer is a standard Navratri and Ekadashi dessert. Two things still vary between families. Some use only one kind of sweetener on fasting days, and some fasts allow no food at all, so check your household’s rule before you cook.
Skip shortcuts like kheer mixes or flavoured makhana. Their labels often include ingredients outside vrat rules. Plain raw makhana and milk keep it simple. Our guide to eating makhana during a fast covers salt, oil, and the fasts where makhana is usually eaten.
Common mistakes
Adding jaggery to boiling milk
Jaggery can split hot milk. Switch off the heat, wait 3 to 4 minutes, then stir it in.
Skipping the roast
Raw makhana straight into milk goes soggy on the outside and stays chewy in the middle. Five minutes in ghee fixes both and adds a nutty taste.
Cooking on high heat
Milk catches at the bottom of the pan fast. Use a heavy pan, keep the flame low once the makhana is in, and scrape the sides as you stir.
Reducing it too far
Kheer keeps thickening as it cools. Stop when it coats the back of a spoon loosely. If it sets too thick, loosen it with a little warm milk.
Variations
Thicker kheer. Simmer for 5 more minutes, or crush three-quarters of the makhana instead of half.
Crushed versus whole. All crushed gives a smooth, almost rabri-like kheer. All whole gives a lighter kheer where each piece holds its shape.
Makhana kheer with jaggery. Swap the sugar for 80 g of grated jaggery, added off the heat. The colour turns light brown and the taste deepens.
The size of the makhana matters more than people expect. Large, evenly popped seeds soften at the same rate, so you do not get hard bits in a soft kheer. That is the reason for sorting makhana by grade.
Storage and reheating
Let the kheer cool, cover it, and refrigerate it within 2 hours of cooking. Eat it within 2 days. Reheat it on low heat with 2 to 3 tablespoons of milk, stirring, since the makhana keeps soaking up milk in the fridge. It is just as good served cold.
For the kheer itself, use raw phool makhana with nothing added. Leftover makhana from the pack keeps well in an airtight jar, and the storage tips on our raw makhana guide keep it crunchy.
Keep reading
Makhana kheer: common questions
Can I eat makhana kheer during a vrat?
In most households, yes. Makhana, milk, ghee, sugar or jaggery, dry fruits, and cardamom are all common phalahar ingredients. Rules differ by family, so check yours, especially for the sweetener and on strict or nirjala fasts.
How do I stop the milk curdling when I add jaggery?
Switch off the heat and let the kheer cool for 3 to 4 minutes before you stir in the jaggery. Adding jaggery to milk that is still boiling is the usual reason the kheer splits.
Should I crush the makhana for kheer?
Crush about half. The crushed part dissolves into the milk and thickens it, and the whole pieces keep some bite. Crush all of it for a smooth kheer, or none for a thinner kheer with whole pieces.
Do I need to roast makhana before making kheer?
Yes. Roasting raw makhana in ghee for 5 to 6 minutes gives a nutty flavour and helps it soften evenly in the milk. Unroasted makhana can turn soggy outside while staying chewy inside.
How long does makhana kheer keep?
Cool it, cover it, and refrigerate it within 2 hours of cooking. Eat it within 2 days. It thickens in the fridge, so reheat it gently with a splash of milk, or serve it cold.
Can I make makhana kheer with jaggery instead of sugar?
Yes. Use about 80 g of grated jaggery in place of 60 g of sugar. Add it off the heat after the kheer has cooled for a few minutes. The kheer will be light brown and taste of caramel.
Start your kheer with handpicked makhana
Large, evenly popped seeds soften evenly in milk. Raw and unflavoured, so the kheer tastes of milk, ghee, and cardamom.
