Once, my biggest-support colleague bought some payasam for us, so lovingly made by his wife. As usual, I got it in a little cup and being a food blogger, he wanted me to guess the ingredients that went into it. Seriously, I should tell you that I am very bad at guessing. When you sit to guess what goes into food, then how do you really enjoy it and eat?? Am I right or wrong?? :) I told him that I wouldn't guess, rather enjoy it. He was adamant that I guess with what the payasam was made. As usual, I lost! It tasted exactly like parippu pradhaman - a kheer made with chana dal, so I thought it was that. Then he told me that it was jackfruit seeds. I asked him, "What??? Can you tell me one more time??" Very soon, I was on the phone with his wife asking her for the recipe and really there was nothing complicated in it. But I should admit that the payasam I made was not even close to what she had made. It was really awesome. So then why do I post this recipe if I wasn't satisfied with the end result? Because - the next time I get my stock of jackfruit seeds, I am going to improvise on it again and update this post then... :)
Chakkakuru/ Jackfruit Seeds Payasam
Serves 4-6
Recipe Courtesy: My colleague's wife! :)
Ingredients:
Jackfruit Seeds - 25 nos, washed and peeled quite well
1 cup grated coconut
2 cups water
200 gm jaggery melted in 100 ml water
1 tbsp ghee
5-6 cashes
5-6 raisins
Method:
Pressure cook the jackfruit seeds in 1/2 to 3/4 cup water, just enough to cover them, till they become really soft. I cooked them on high for three whistles and left them on low flame for around 45 minutes. Switch off and allow the pressure to go by itself.
Add the coconut and the remaining water into a mixer and blend well. Strain through a seive and reserve the coconut milk. Throw away the residue of the coconut. Melt the jaggery in water and allow it to cool.
Drain the cooked jackfruit seeds into a thick saucepan and nicely mash it using a potato masher, till it represents a pulpy mess. Pour in the coconut milk and the melted jaggery and mix well. Switch on the flame and simmer for 10-15 minutes for the flavors to mingle in.
Heat the ghee, fry the cashews and raisins. Dump into the payasam and devour!
Notes:
1. The thickness of the kheer will solely depend on the jackfruit seeds. Certain seeds are more grainy, and therefore the kheer will thicken. The seeds I used were not grainy and hence was slightly a bit runny.
2. Adjust the coconut milk and the jaggery according to the consistency of the seeds and the sweetness required.
3. You may keep the husk of the seeds, just like I did or remove it completely.
4. The mashing depends entirely on you. If you like to have bites, don't mash it to pulps, so that some bites may remain.
Method:
Pressure cook the jackfruit seeds in 1/2 to 3/4 cup water, just enough to cover them, till they become really soft. I cooked them on high for three whistles and left them on low flame for around 45 minutes. Switch off and allow the pressure to go by itself.
Add the coconut and the remaining water into a mixer and blend well. Strain through a seive and reserve the coconut milk. Throw away the residue of the coconut. Melt the jaggery in water and allow it to cool.
Drain the cooked jackfruit seeds into a thick saucepan and nicely mash it using a potato masher, till it represents a pulpy mess. Pour in the coconut milk and the melted jaggery and mix well. Switch on the flame and simmer for 10-15 minutes for the flavors to mingle in.
Heat the ghee, fry the cashews and raisins. Dump into the payasam and devour!
Notes:
1. The thickness of the kheer will solely depend on the jackfruit seeds. Certain seeds are more grainy, and therefore the kheer will thicken. The seeds I used were not grainy and hence was slightly a bit runny.
2. Adjust the coconut milk and the jaggery according to the consistency of the seeds and the sweetness required.
3. You may keep the husk of the seeds, just like I did or remove it completely.
4. The mashing depends entirely on you. If you like to have bites, don't mash it to pulps, so that some bites may remain.