Kheer

Steps

1. Rest20 min
   cold water, then drain
   • whole milk
   basmati soaked until the grains go chalky-white, then drained and crushed lightly between the fingers — the fractures are deliberate, they are how the starch gets out of the grain and into the milk
2. Infuse10 min
   2 tbsp milk, warm not hot
   • saffron
   saffron threads bruised into a spoonful of the warm milk; saffron's colour and aroma are water-soluble and need soaking time, thrown in dry at the end it just floats
3. Boil6 min
   medium-high, ghee-smeared pan
   • ghee
   milk brought up in a heavy pan wiped with ghee first — the fat film keeps lactose and casein from welding to the metal, which is the difference between kheer and a scorched pan
4. Simmer50 min
   low, uncovered, stirring every few minutes
   • basmati rice
   + drained rice, at a lazy simmer that never climbs to a rolling boil. Scrape the bottom and push the skin that forms on the sides back into the pot each time you stir: those reduced milk solids are the flavour of kheer, and left on the wall they dry and then burn
5. Reduce10 min
   low, stirring near-constantly
   continue until the volume is down by about half and the milk coats a spoon — the rice has collapsed and its starch, not any cream, is doing the thickening. It thickens again hard on cooling, so pull it looser than you want to eat it
6. Mix5 min
   low
   • sugar
   • cardamom
   • almonds
   + sugar + crushed cardamom + saffron milk + almonds, only now: sugar added earlier draws water out of the swelling starch granules and the rice stops softening, leaving chalky grains in a sweet soup
7. Rest15 min
   off heat, uncovered
   • pistachios
   • raisins
   stand until skin-warm, stirring once or twice so a tough skin does not set on top, then serve warm or chilled with pistachios and raisins