While the traditional Phirni in North India is made with ground rice, in Kashmir it is made with Suji, Rava or Semolina. Flavoured with Saffron, THE aromatic that Kashmir is famous for, Kong Phirin is a creamy and light dessert that is a great way to finish off a heavy meal.
Kashmiri Kong Phirin | Semolina Saffron Pudding
This month the Shhhh Secret Challenge group is celebrating Kashmiri Cuisine and I am paired with Amrita Iyer who blogs at The Food Samaritan. She has an amazing range of Indian and International recipes on her blog. The most recent of her recipes to catch my eye was the Shadiyon Wala Aloo Matar, while Papchi (a sweet from Chhattisgarh) is also on my list. Actually, these are just two of the many recipes I have bookmarked from her blog.
My secret ingredients for Amrita were ghee and saffron and she made this wonderful Meethe Chawal with those ingredients!
Coming back to the cooking challenge, as is the norm, Amrita has to give me two secret ingredients with which I have to cook and her choices for me were Saffron and Sugar. I was conflicted between Shufta and Kong Phirin but finally settled for the latter and made it to mark Eid-Ul-Fitr (marking the end of Ramzan).
As I mentioned earlier, Kong Phirin is very similar to Phirni, except that it uses semolina (rava or suji) as the thickening agent in place of rice. Also, you need very few ingredients to make this delectable dessert; just semolina, sugar, cardamom, and saffron. The key to getting a rich and creamy texture is to set it in the traditional clay container because the clay absorbs any excess moisture, and gives you a thick and creamy Kong Phirin.
Recipe for Kong Phirin | Kashmiri Suji Kesar Phirni
Kong Phirin | Kashmiri Suji Kesar Phirni
Ingredients
- 1 Litre Milk (Full-fat milk preferred)
- 6 tbsp Samolina, Suji, Rava (About 50 gms)
- 6 tbsp Sugar (About 100 gms)
- 1/2 tsp Cardamom Powder
- 20-30 Strands Saffron
- 2 tbsp Slivered Almonds (for garnish)
Instructions
- Bring the milk to a boil.
- Lower the heat.
- Add the semolina while stirring constantly.
- Cook on medium flame while stirring constantly till the milk thickens a bit.
- Add the saffron and continue to cook till you get a thick pudding consistency.
- Add sugar and cardamom powder.
- Mix well and turn off the heat.
- Transfer to earthen bowls.
- Garnish with slivered almonds.
- Let the Kong Phirin cool and set. If you prefer it cold, refrigerate the Kong Phirin.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Kashmiri Kong Phirin
How to Make Kong Phirin | Kashmiri Suji Kesar Phirni
- The Preparations
- If you are going to use earthern-ware or clay pots, soak them in water for about 10 minutes, remove them from water and leave them upside down for about 10 minutes. The pots must be damp but not wet when we pour the Phirin into them to set.
- If you are going to use earthern-ware or clay pots, soak them in water for about 10 minutes, remove them from water and leave them upside down for about 10 minutes. The pots must be damp but not wet when we pour the Phirin into them to set.
- Cooking the Kong Phirin
- In a heavy bottomed vessel, boil the milk.
- Turn the heat down to low and slowly add the semolina while stirring continously. The stirring is the most important part as the semolina has this tendency to form lumps and/or settle at the bottom and burn.
- Turn up the heat to medium and let the semolina cook in milk while stirring continously.
- When the semolina has cooked a bit, add the saffron strands and continue to cook the mix till it thickens and forms a custard like consistency.
- Now turn the heat to low, and add the sugar and cardamom powder.
- Mix well till the sugar dissolves and turn off the heat.
- Immediately pour the mix into the earthen bowls.
- Garnish with slivered almonds.
- Let the Kong Phirin cool and set.
- If you prefer eat it cold, refrigerate the Kong Phirin.
- In a heavy bottomed vessel, boil the milk.
Tips
- You can set the Kong Phirin in steel or glass bowls as well. Just use a little more semolina (about 1 tbsp) and cook it till set consistency.
Kashmiri Suji Phirni
I love anything with semolina except upma… hehe… and looking at that yellow phirini pots with the saffron strains is making me salivate all over my table… this must be truly delicious, must make them soon!
Do… do…. You will love it. Hardly takes any time.
This looks delicious – will try ?
Oooh, this looks so very good! ? I’m sure it would suit my sweet tooth perfectly – going to try this out!
Thank you!
The ? was a typo. ?
I usually don’t like desserts but phirni is my favourite. Looks so nice and inviting.
Thank you, Shobha-ji. It is a not-too-sweet dessert!
Wow the kong phirini is amazing. Reminds me of my mil making a delicious kheer with rava. Will try making it. Sooner ‘re better.
Thank you. I hope you make it soon. 🙂
Love the easy yet delicious treat. moreover love the photographs.
Thank you, Seema. ??
How creamy and delightful this Kong phirin looks.. And those pots looks too cute. Such a delicious dessert Aruna.. Cant wait to give a try to this dish.
This Kong Phirin looks delectable and I can almost smell the fragrance of the saffron and cardamom! I dont make desserts too often but this is one I will be glad to add to my list of easy to make ones!
It has a relatively low quantity of sugar, Sujata, and so makes for a delightful treat.
Never mind it. Saffron cardamom semolina and milk sounds great. It must be delicious. Superb share.
Looks so creamy and delicious?
The Phirni looks delectable Aruna . Droolesome share
Looks so delicious! These creamy phirni is making me crave for some sweet dish now. Simple recipe and I am going to try these.
what a beautiful picture of the recipe…very pretty..simple but tasty
This looks so rich and creamy. Delicious looking and feeling like to grab the bowl now.
Thank you!
Like those clicks and that name. This is a quick one to make.
Thank you!
As I was reading through the recipe and introduction, my mouth was watering. The clicks are so beautiful and what a delectable sweet dish from Kashmir, making use of the famous saffron that the state is known for.
Delicious looking pudding Aruna! Yummilicious!