What I have for you today is a delicious DELICIOUS dessert that takes all of 12 mins to make. This is another gem that Darsh introduced me to and I was floored, just like I was with her tiramisu recipe.
The name she gave this – Chenna Payash – leads me to believe that this is a Bengali dessert, not that we are surprised by that, so I want to leave a disclaimer that this may not be an authentic chenna payash recipe or anything. But did I mention it’s delicious?
Paneer Payasam (Chenna Payash) Recipe
Preparation time: 2 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Serves 2-4 people
Ingredients:
3/4 cup of crumbled paneer (here’s how you can make paneer at home)
2 cups of milk (I used low fat)
1/4 cup of sweetened condensed milk (adjust to taste)
2 of green cardamom pods
1/2 tsp of sugar
A few strands of saffron for garnish (optional)
A few pistachios (or almond slivers)
How to Make Paneer Payasam
1. Powder the cardamom seeds with the 1/2 tsp sugar until fine. I don’t like biting into chunky cardamom seeds so I pound it fine. If you have powdered cardamom in hand, just omit the sugar and use a bit of that.
2. In a pan, bring the milk to boil on low heat.
3. Add the condensed milk and mix well.
4. Bring to boil again and then add the powdered cardamom.
5. Crumble paneer as fine as you can with your fingertips…
… and add it to the boiling milk. Stir well to combine. Let it simmer for about 5 minutes more. Test for sweetness and adjust the amount of milk/condensed milk as desired. You need to have enough liquid base for the paneer to swim in so keep an eye on the consistency. These proportions worked great for me.
That’s it! You can serve it hot but personally we prefer it chilled for a couple of hours. So bring the payesh to room temperature and then chill in the refrigerator.
Oh, and if you want to add saffron, add it at the end when the payesh is hot.
Garnish with pistachios before serving. The payesh looks very dull on it’s own and doesn’t convey how delicious it is without the help of the pistachios 😉
Sowmya Sundararajan says
March 22, 2013 at 5:08 amThank you Nags. Will try to visit Kappabashi if i go there.
Sowmya Sundararajan says
March 21, 2013 at 2:20 amWonderful Nags. I ll try this an send you some.I ve fallen in love with your cups specially. Where did u get it? Do suggest some places where i can find good display articles. Will be helpful
Nagalakshmi V says
March 21, 2013 at 2:35 amthese are from tokyo. i have a series of posts on food photo prop ideas and shopping places. depends on where you live. https://www.cookingandme.com/2012/07/food-photos-prop-shopping-in-kappabashi.html
Anonymous says
January 21, 2013 at 11:19 pmHey, any particular reason why the cardamom should be powdered with some sugar?
Nagalakshmi V says
January 22, 2013 at 1:54 amyes, since it's a small quantity of cardamom, it powders better if you do it along with sugar. if you have powdered cardamom in hand already, just use that for the paneer payasam
AMS says
December 29, 2012 at 12:37 pmHey, Nags! Tried this recipe recently, and it came out really well! Insanely delicious! 😀 Thanks!
Rashida Shaikh says
December 8, 2012 at 8:36 amDessert that could be ready in 12 minutes?
I'm gonna try it…Loved the pics
Suvasini.... says
July 27, 2012 at 6:10 amHey there ! Have been stalking your site every now and then looking for new ideas or recipes for those old favorites which mom made. Thanks for hosting this. One question about the payesh though.. Just wondering how you think Tofu will stand up as a replacement for Paneer ?
Nagalakshmi V says
July 27, 2012 at 6:42 amhey! 🙂 tofu will work in this but will taste very bland. if you really like tofu, it will be just fine i think
Suvasini.... says
July 27, 2012 at 5:39 pmWell, the thing is I am not too fond of Tofu and therefore like and mix it with whatever tasty things i can figure out just so i can have more protein. I was thinking that the sugar and cardamom might neutralize the blandness of tofu. But good to know ! Thanks !
Anu Nandu says
June 30, 2012 at 7:27 pmOne of my favorites – pass me a cup please!
Nimi says
June 26, 2012 at 4:07 pmTried your really delicious and easy dessert. Loved it. Added very very little kewra essence (only one to two drops) to it and it enhanced the flavour of the payasam (add only when you want to chill it). Love your blog, your recipe pics and the systematic way of presenting recipes.
beena says
May 21, 2012 at 4:17 pmI have a doubt … any chance of it gettin curdled ???
Nagalakshmi V says
May 22, 2012 at 4:47 amwhen you add paneer to milk? no, it won't curdle.
Anonymous says
January 18, 2013 at 4:09 pmi tried..it got curdled..why? 🙁
Sanjeeta kk says
May 10, 2012 at 3:37 pmPaneer desserts..yum..yum..looks easy and fun recipe to make!
Padhu says
May 10, 2012 at 9:01 amQuick and delicious kheer!
RAKS KITCHEN says
May 10, 2012 at 6:57 amSounds very easy, should be perfect to decide in hurry when we have guests,lovely clicks
Hari Chandana says
May 10, 2012 at 4:59 amWow… quick and delicious kheer.. looks awesome !!
Indian Cuisine
Madhumathi Muthukumaran says
May 9, 2012 at 7:53 pmWow..thats a killer recipe! and also it can be made in a snap..Love the pretty blue ramekins.
Your site looks b'ful. Being here after a long time..though following u via email. Thanks for ur amazing recipes 🙂
Nagalakshmi V says
May 10, 2012 at 4:30 amaww thanks for dropping by to check on the site and the recipes 🙂
Sushma Madhuchandra says
May 9, 2012 at 6:24 pmLovely!
Sharmilee! :) says
May 9, 2012 at 4:07 pmLooks delicious…I have made a similar kind of kheer too and its one of my fav to. Love those cute little cups used for serving 🙂
Veena says
May 9, 2012 at 2:58 pmyummy and healthy also.. I will try whenever earliest possible..
Srimathi says
May 9, 2012 at 2:20 pmPaneer payasam is very interesting idea. It would be a close cousin of basundhi.
Spandana says
May 9, 2012 at 1:01 pmPayasam looks very delicious!!!! Love the fact that it can be made in 12 mins 🙂
BongMom says
May 9, 2012 at 12:49 pmyes it is indeed a Bengali dessert and this is pretty much how we make it. But the milk does take some time to thicken. 12 mins sounds awesome
Nagalakshmi V says
May 10, 2012 at 4:33 amyes, i cheated with condensed milk no? 😀 i am sure it would taste more awesome if made the old-fashioned way by thickening the milk.
vjperera says
May 9, 2012 at 12:09 pm12 min for this payasam? This is happening this wknd!
Hema says
May 9, 2012 at 11:46 amAwesome, yet to try out this dish, very tempting..
notyet100 says
May 9, 2012 at 9:57 amStill to try this,,,have heard about this a lot,looks delicious
Priya says
May 9, 2012 at 9:13 amPayasam looks absolutely divine..super tempting.
jeyashrisuresh says
May 9, 2012 at 8:06 amAwesome payasam. I always love the texture of this payasam. cute props.
Btw, posted ur bittergourd fry recipe in my space a week back.
Reva says
May 9, 2012 at 5:31 amPayasam looks lovely… I can't believe that this can be whipped up in 12 minutes..:)) Very tempting though..
Reva
Shabitha Karthikeyan says
May 9, 2012 at 4:29 amLovely payasam in 12 minutes that is awesome !!
NarMee says
May 9, 2012 at 4:14 amThis looks delicous!Love the logo n watermark in the first pic!
Aarthi says
May 9, 2012 at 3:43 amawesome looking payasam..will make this weekend
Vardhini says
May 9, 2012 at 3:43 amRich and tasty payasam. The blue cups are cute :).
Arch says
May 9, 2012 at 3:14 amAwesome! Nags, you need to link the how to make paneer post!
Nagalakshmi V says
May 9, 2012 at 3:57 amthanks! just did 🙂
Arch says
May 9, 2012 at 3:04 am12 mins for an Indian dessert ! Thats totally wow !!