Paalada Pradhaman

        Whenever I attend weddings, I will be curious during the lunch to look at what paayasam they serve. More than anything else in the menu, paayasam is what attracts me, because paayasams are best when prepared in bulk. In these occasions, generally they skip these tinned condensed milk stuffs, and prepare them by stirring the milk for long hours in urulis in wood fire. It gives hell lot of taste to the paayasams.

Paalada pradhaman comes on the top of my favorite list of payasams.

Paalada pradhaman is kerala special payasam. Any special lunch in Kerala is incomplete without this.

It’s made with milk and rice adai. I have used the readymade adai. (Double horse brand works best). You can also prepare the adai at home. But it’s little time consuming.

Ingredients:

• Milk – 1 litre ( I used aavin blue, you can also use full cream milk)
• Rice adai – 100 gms
• Water – ¼ cup and more.
• Sugar – 3 tsp (change according to your sweetness)
• Condensed – 100 gms and little more (I used about quarter of 400 ml can)
• Cardamom powder -  from 2 Cardamom
• Butter – 1 tsp (optional)

Method:

Wash the adai in fresh water couple of times and drain well.

In a vessel, add ¼ cup of water. (The quantity  of water should be enough to cover adai)

Let it boil well. Once it starts boiling well. Switch off the stove. Add the adai to the water and close the lid. Let it rest for 10 mins.

  

While it is resting, take a thick bottom vessel (urili works best), add milk and let it boil with occasional stirring.

After 10 mins, take the adai out drain the excess hot water if any. It will look fluffy. 

Wash well couple of times in normal water. This step prevents from the adai dissolving in the paayasam when added. Drain again and keep it aside.

Once the milk starts rising, reduce the heat and add the adai carewfully and start stirring continuously by changing the heat from high – medium, medium – high.

Since my vessel was small, I took of some milk from the vessel before adding adai and added it after the milk is reduced a little. This can be skipped if you have a big vessel.

Keep on stir and stir for about 10- 15 mins. Now check if the adai is cooked by pinching it. If it is soft, then its cooked well.

At this stage add sugar and condensed milk.

 Condensed milk is purely a short cut, or else you have to stir a little longer.

And start stirring again by singing your favorite song, this will reduce the strain.

After about 15 mins, add the cardamom powder. For thicker version, make it 20 mins.

I dint have cardamom powder on hand, so powdered in hand motor pestle with help of my lil Lakshmi.

As a final touch add a tsp of butter for a glossy finish.

In general the fried cashews are not addede in this paayasam. But its upto you.

You can either serve this paayasam hot or cold. Chilled one tastes better.

This uruli is gift from my mil. Thanks Amma.