Dear Food Enthusiasts, 

Do you have a sweet tooth?

I was born with one. (It’s why I am so sweet, you see 🙂 )

During my stay in Murudeshwar, the hostel food got sooooo boring. My mates and I decided, one afternoon, during cricket, to volunteer at the local temple. With wedding guest counts of 300-500 each weekend, it only meant one thing to our bored taste buds:

MORE INTERESTING FOOD.

We got busy chopping vegetables, getting the seating right, and serving food to guests, which blossomed up to a whopping 10,000 headcount during festival season. In the dog days of summer, the smoke & heat from the burning firewood was almost forgivable, given what we got in exchange:

Leftovers.

But for me, it was more than that.

It was about the payasam.

The dessert.

See, when we cooked dessert in the large commercial-sized pots, the dried fruits from the “payasam” sunk to the bottom. Starting with stir-fried vegetables, hot rice, sambar, pickles, pappadums & ending with decadent payasam, it was a veritable feast for my senses and developing palate.

Ah! the nostalgia sitting on the kitchen floor with my friends, lapping it all up!

Over time, I made friends with one of the “Aduge Bhats” (head cook of the Temple Kitchen) who taught me to make an even better version from milk, sugar, and vermicelli. Today I share his recipe for “Shivage Payasam.”

Ingredients:

• Roasted Vermicelli: He used to roast the plain vermicelli in ghee to a golden brown (my task while assisting him). However you can skip this step as now you can find the pre-roasted ones at the Indian stores. (MTR or Bambino are my choice)

• Whole Milk - (1:4 ratio of vermicelli) Use full cream. If you use low-fat milk, you won’t get that rich, silky texture.

• Sugar, as per your taste

• Ghee (clarified butter)

• Cashew nuts

• Raisins

• Cardamom powder

Instructions:

• Heat some ghee in a thick bottom pan. Add cashew nuts and raisins. Roast it until the cashews turn golden brown, and the raisins plump up. Remove them from the pan and set aside.

• In the same pan, pour milk. Once it starts boiling, reduce the heat to low and let it simmer for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

• Add the roasted vermicelli to the simmering milk, and cook until the noodles become soft, and the milk thickens slightly. Stir occasionally.

• Add sugar & cardamom powder. Mix well until the sugar dissolves completely. Let it simmer for another 5-10 minutes.

• Finally, add the fried cashew nuts and raisins to the payasam and mix well. Turn off the heat.

• Allow the payasam to cool down for a few minutes before serving.

• Serve warm or chilled.

Now here’s the kicker.

This gorgeous dessert doesn’t get to sit in memory lane on the Temple’s commercial kitchen floor.

I will be offering it in the final course of my inaugural Supper Club: Sampurn (registration, date and time details here) Saturday, April 20th.

I call it “Madgane” and it’s a twist on the payasam “Aduge Bhat” taught me.

Instead of vermicelli, it’s made with split chickpeas. I cook the split chickpeas until they are tender and become a mashable consistency. I mix it with jaggery (which is like sugar), cardamom powder, coconut milk, toasted cashew nuts & raisins.

Topped off with caramelized bananas & candied coconut slices, it’s the most delicious thing you have ever had.

I promise.

See this video here of me making it at home.

Be sure to follow me on Instagram @swaadbynitin

Nitin