How to make Kalkandu Rice (or) Rock Sugar Candy Rice

• tinyytopic.com
• 0
• on Mar 20, 2023

Kalkandu Rice is a sweet and traditional South Indian dessert made with rice, milk, and rock sugar candy known as “kalkandu” in Tamil. It is a popular dish served during special occasions and festivals like Pongal, Navratri, and Diwali.

To make Kalkandu Rice, raw rice is cooked in milk and flavoured with cardamom and a pinch of salt. Once the rice is cooked, kalkandu or rock sugar candy is added to the mixture and stirred until it dissolves completely. The kalkandu gives a unique and distinct taste to the dish and adds a subtle sweetness to it.

Kalkandu Rice is usually served warm or chilled and can be enjoyed as a dessert or a snack. It is a nutritious and filling dish that people of all ages love. Here’s a simple recipe to make Kalkandu Rice:

1 cup raw rice

3 cups milk

1 cup kalkandu (rock sugar candy)

2 tbsp ghee (clarified butter)

2-3 cardamom pods

A pinch of salt

1. Rinse the rice in cold water and soak it in water for 30 minutes. Drain the water and keep the rice aside.
2. Heat ghee in a heavy-bottomed pan and add the drained rice. Roast the rice on low flame for 3-4 minutes until it turns slightly golden.
3. Add milk to the rice and let it come to a boil. Then reduce the flame and let the rice cook in milk for 20-25 minutes or until the milk is absorbed and the rice is cooked.
4. Crush the cardamom pods and add it to the rice along with a pinch of salt.
5. Now add the kalkandu to the rice and stir it well until the kalkandu dissolves completely.
6. Cook the rice for 5 more minutes until the kalkandu is well blended with the rice and the mixture becomes thick.
7. Turn off the flame and let the kalkandu rice cool down for a while.
8. Serve the Kalkandu Rice warm or chilled as per your preference.

Your delicious Kalkandu Rice is now ready to be served!