Ever have a very sorry looking pot of plain white rice sitting on your stovetop the day after a special dinner? Yes, you thought you had very smartly calculated exactly how many cups of rice you'll need to avoid wastage, but alas as always, leftovers win and you lose...? I know exactly how that feels!
Leftovers are usually a charm on normal days - hurrah for no cooking the next day! But sometimes, you don't want to have the same old thing from yesterday. I personally don't like plain basmati rice the next day - it has a tendency to clump up, become less fluffy and soft and just be generally not as tasty. Having said that, I love using leftover rice in Kheer the next day. Firstly, who doesn't love Kheer? Use up all the rice and give the Kheer out to your friends, family and neighbours (or eat it all yourself. I won't tell)! Secondly, wasted leftovers always make me sad and I always aim to minimise them as much as possible. When you use leftover rice in Kheer, you won't be able to tell the difference between Kheer where the rice is cooked in the milk and this Kheer!
I really think this recipe should be in your mental kitchen notebook, to pull out any day you have leftovers. Because really, Kheer has to be one of the best Pakistani desserts out there, amiright? Hurrah for delicious ride pudding and double hurrah for no more leftover rice!
One thing to note though is if your rice is salty, this won't work well. Try this out only if your rice is on the blander side - I have tried this with a salty batch of rice and all I ended up with was a lot of wasted milk and inedible kheer.
Enjoy, with love x
📋 Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups approx 400g cooked basmati rice
- 4 cup 1 litre full-fat milk
- ½ cup 100g sugar, or to taste
- ¾ teaspoon cardamom powder
- nuts and raisins or garnish
Instructions
- Add the sugar, milk, cardamom powder and rice into one pot. Feel free to use the same pot the rice was cooked in.
- Turn the heat to medium and cook, continuously stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan until the milk has condensed into a thick, pillowy cream and sticks to the rice. Don't worry about mashing the rice - it adds to the texture.
- Garnish with nuts and raisins and serve warm or cold. I like mine warm!
Notes
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Adrienne Abbate
I made it sugar-free with monkfruit sweetener and added coconut milk for depth. Wowee! So delicious.
Thank you.
Nikki
I make this with oat milk, since we're dairy free, and it's definitely a favorite here!
(I actually make extra rice on purpose, just so I can have an excuse to make it!)
Lizz Roberts
Absolutely delicious! I get a hankering for kheer anytime I have East Asian food and now I have the perfect recipe for leftover Basmati rice. So very simple and satisfying. Thank you!
Helen
This was very good. The proportions were perfect. Thank you.
I had leftover Calrose (sticky) rice, so that is what I used, and it worked fine for me. I also had a half can of coconut milk left over, so I used that plus whole milk to make 4 cups. In addition to the cardamom, I added a star of anise (remove before serving) and a few threads of saffron. I added some golden raisins while cooking, so they would be plump and not dry, and then topped each serving with some chopped cashews (unsalted, not roasted).
Marilyn
Simple and delicious! I never knew what to do with leftover basmati. I will make this often.
Fatima Cooks
Glad you like it, Marilyn!
Cindy
So simple, yet so delicious. I had a bunch of leftover basmati rice and really didn't want to throw any away. I'm so glad to have found your recipe! This is incredible.
Fatima Cooks
Thrilled to hear you enjoyed it, Cindy! ❤️
Amy H
Thank you for this! It seems like all the other recipes I saw were for uncooked rice, and this is exactly what I was looking for for my leftover basmati. I didn't have regular full-fat milk on hand, so I used a can of coconut milk and some almond milk to get the right amount of liquid. The coconut milk and the cardamom in this recipe made it absolutely perfect. Thanks again!
Fatima Cooks
Sounds absolutely amazing, Amy! So glad you enjoyed it 💖
Lashel
This is SO GOOD! I swear It's better than any kheer I've made without leftover rice. OK, that's probably a reflection of how good of a cook I am, but this is freaking amazing amazing amazing amazing amazing delicious! I had a bunch of stuff left over from people visiting (whole milk, rice, a bit of whipped cream), and instead of ultimately having it go to waste, I ended up making some of the best kheer I've ever had! SO EASY, SO YUMMY! Thank you!!!!!!!
Fatima
Yayyyyyyyyyyyy I am so happy to hear!
Ayesha
Asalamu alaikum and happy Ramadan! Which kind of milk do you use? 2% or whole? Does 2% work for it?
Fatima
Wasalaam! Ramadan mubarak to you too!
I always use whole milk. 2% would work too but wouldn't be quite as milky.
Ali
Thanks for the recipe! I never eat the plain rice that restaurants send with take-out meals, so I used mine up in kheer. I cooked it in a double boiler so it wouldn't burn. Wonderful!
Ruby
This tasted great!
Karen
Thanks for giving me the confidence to go ahead to just do it in the old pot of rice. I had always been afraid that would burn it. The recipe was quick and easy. I cut some of the rice and sugar and added a half can of sweetened condensed milk which I also needed to use up. It halved the cooking time. Delicious results.
Fatima
Great to hear it worked well for you, Karen!
RW
I made this last night, and it was delicious! Usually I make lemon/tamarind/coconut rice with leftover rice, but this is a great sweet alternative. Thank you for posting this simple and tasty recipe.