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Bellam paramannam
బెల్లం పరమాన్నం: rice and moong dal cooked in milk with jaggery, ghee and cardamom
Bellam paramannam is the naivedyam of Telangana and Andhra homes, cooked for Sankranti, Ugadi, Varalakshmi Vratam and almost any puja, a soft rice-and-moong pudding sweetened with jaggery and glossed with ghee. Its colour is a warm caramel and its taste deeper than a sugar kheer. The classic mistake is adding jaggery to milk that is still on a high boil, which can split it; take the pot off the heat, let it stop bubbling, then stir the jaggery in. Chef's tip: roast the moong dal in a spoon of ghee until it smells toasty before cooking; it gives the paramannam its homely flavour.
- Total time
- 45 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the paramannam
- 3 tbsp ghee
- 3 ½ oz short-grain ricerinsed
- 1 ¼ cups water
- 3 cups full-fat milk
- 7 oz jaggerygrated
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
- ⅔ oz cashews
- ⅔ oz raisins
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Method
0/4 doneStep 1: Heat 1 tbsp of the 3 tbsp ghee and roast 1 oz split yellow moong dal over low heat for 3 minutes until golden and toasty.
3 minStep 2: Add 3 ½ oz short-grain rice, 1 ¼ cups water and 3 cups full-fat milk and simmer over low heat, stirring often, for 25 minutes until the rice and dal are very soft and the mixture is thick.
25 minStep 3: Turn off the heat and wait 2 minutes until it stops bubbling. Stir in 7 oz jaggery until dissolved, then add ½ tsp ground cardamom.
3 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 370 kcal
- Protein
- 8 g
- Carbs
- 55 g
- Fat
- 13 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does bellam paramannam take?
- About 45 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 35 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of ghee?
- Butter, same amount (keep the heat a little lower, butter burns sooner).
- What can I use instead of short-grain rice?
- Any long-grain rice, same amount.
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