Rice Phirni Recipe

To prepare the Phirni, wash and soak rice in water for about 1 hour. Dissolve saffron strands in 2 tbsp of warm milk and keep aside.
Make a fine powder of pistachio, almond and cardamom in a mixer. Set aside till required. Drain soaked rice in a colander, pat dry rice on an absorbent kitchen towel.
Blend rice in a mixer to a coarse powder. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
Add 1/2 Cup of milk (at room temperature) to the powdered rice and mix well to make a paste. Keep aside. Boil remaining milk in a heavy bottomed pan, reduce the heat to low once milk starts bubbling.
Now stir in the rice paste, saffron mixture and dry fruits powder. Keep on stirring frequently until the pudding starts to thicken which will not take long after you add rice paste to milk.
Now add sugar. At this stage, it is always better to taste Phirni and adjust the amount of sugar accordingly. Once all the sugar is dissolved and rice is cooked, the pudding is ready.
Now if you like it a little loose and flowing Phirni then turn off the heat. If like it thicker like I do then cook a little further.
Turn off the heat, let Phirni cool down for some time. Stir it every once in a while preventing it from forming a thick layer on top.
Once Phirni has cooled down pour it into earthenware containers. Keep in the fridge for at least 1 hour before serving. I keep it for a longer duration like 4 - 5 hours.
Serve Rice Phirni chilled garnished with chopped nuts and saffron strands.