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“Nei Payasam is the payasam served at Guruvayur. The traditional recipe uses buffalo ghee — its heaviness is not a flaw but the point. It is meant to be dense. It is meant to coat your tongue. It is meant to feel like something sacred was poured into a bowl.”

Ingredients

Raw rice (pacharisi)	½ cup
Jaggery, grated	1½ cups
Water	3 cups
Sree Kumaran Desi Buffalo Ghee	½ cup
Cardamom powder	½ tsp
Dry ginger powder	¼ tsp
Cashews and coconut pieces, fried in ghee	2 tbsp each

Method

1. Cook rice in water until completely overcooked and mushy — softer than you would ever eat it normally. The grains should dissolve when pressed.
2. Dissolve jaggery in ½ cup of warm water, strain, and add to the cooked rice. Stir and cook on medium heat for 10 minutes until the jaggery is fully incorporated and the mixture darkens.
3. Add ghee in 3 additions, stirring vigorously between each. The payasam will become glossy and dense. This is correct — nei payasam is supposed to be thick and almost sticky.
4. Add cardamom and dry ginger. Stir and cook for 5 more minutes until the mixture holds together in the pan.
5. Add fried cashews and coconut pieces. Serve warm in small portions. Nei payasam is intensely rich — a small amount is deeply satisfying.