Sabudana Kheer Recipe
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Learn how to make creamy sabudana kheer with soft, translucent sago pearls simmered in milk, saffron, and cardamom. A perfect vrat-friendly dessert for Navratri and fasting days.
Check out my other tried-and-tested Indian dessert recipes for festivals or special occasions.
Quick Look: Sabudana Kheer
Soaking Time: 5 hours
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 6 hours 10 minutes
Servings: 4 people
Calories: Approx. 320 per serving
Dietary Info: Vegetarian, gluten-free. Vrat-friendly. Can be easily made vegan.
Skill Level: Easy
Tools Needed: Heavy-bottomed pan, spatula, bowl.
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My husband (Mohit) can eat a whole bowl of sabudana kheer before it even reaches the table. Every Navratri, I make a big pot of it, and every year, half of it disappears before the prasad even goes out. There’s something about those soft, pearly sago balls floating in thick, saffron-kissed milk that makes people go back for seconds.
Sabudana kheer (also called sago kheer or sabudana payasam) is one of the easiest Indian desserts to make, with just five ingredients. It needs no roasting, no grinding, and barely any hands-on effort. You soak the sabudana, simmer it in milk, and stir once in a while. That’s it.
This dessert is a fasting-day (vrat) staple in most Indian households, right alongside sabudana khichdi and sabudana vada. But you don’t need a festival as an excuse. It’s rich, comforting, and ready in under an hour, which makes it a solid answer to “what do I make for dessert tonight?”
Here’s exactly how I make mine, plus the small details that decide whether your kheer turns out creamy or clumpy.
What Is Sabudana Kheer?
Sabudana kheer is a milk-based Indian pudding made with sago pearls (also called sabudana or tapioca pearls), whole milk, sugar, and warm spices like cardamom and saffron. It is similar to rice kheer and vermicelli kheer, but sabudana gives it a distinct chewy-soft bite and a natural thickness, since the pearls release starch as they cook.
It’s popular during Navratri, Maha Shivratri, Janmashtami, and other fasting festivals because sabudana is considered a fasting-friendly (falahari) ingredient. But it also shows up as a regular festive dessert at Diwali and family dinners, no fasting required.
You can also try my other recipes featuring sabudana as the star ingredient: sabudana thalipeeth, sabudana khichdi, and sabudana upma.
You can make sago kheer in a pan on the stovetop or in an Instant Pot, as per your preference. I am sharing both processes in the post below.
Sabudana is a very popular ingredient in India. It is called Javvarisi in Tamil, Sabakki in Kannada, Sagubiyyam in Telugu, and Sabudana in Hindi, Gujarati, and Marathi. It is also called tapioca pearls because it is made from the roots of tapioca (cassava). Due to its high Instant energy, it is a favorite ingredient on vrat days. It is also a great ingredient for summer, as it cools and helps maintain internal body temperature.
Ingredients
- Milk – Whole milk (full-fat) gives the richest, creamiest kheer. For a vegan version, swap in almond milk, soy milk, oat milk, or coconut milk.
- Sabudana – The star of the dish. Use the small or medium pearls, not the large glassy variety meant for frying namkeens. You’ll find them at any Indian grocery store or online.
- Saffron – A pinch gives the kheer its golden color and aroma. Optional, but worth it.
- Cardamom Powder – Freshly ground cardamom (hari elaichi) rounds out the flavor and gives the kheer its signature aroma.
- Sugar – Granulated white sugar keeps the kheer pale and classic, but light brown sugar, dark brown sugar, jaggery powder, coconut sugar, or date puree are all fair substitutes. If you’re using jaggery, stir it in only after taking the pan off the heat, as jaggery can curdle hot milk.
- Nuts – Chopped almonds, cashews, and pistachios give a nice crunch.
- Optional garnishing – Dried rose petals.
How To Make Sabudana Kheer
Step 1: Rinse and soak the sabudana. Rinse ½ cup sabudana once under running water. Unlike sabudana khichdi, where you rinse the pearls several times to remove excess starch, kheer needs just one rinse. The starch is what makes the kheer thick and creamy, so you want to keep most of it.
Soak the rinsed sabudana in ½ cup water for 4-5 hours or until each pearl turns soft and slightly translucent.
Forgot to soak ahead of time? Soak the pearls in boiling water for 30 minutes instead.
Step 2: Boil the milk. Heat 1 liter of whole milk over medium-high heat in a heavy-bottomed pan. Stir often so it doesn’t scorch at the bottom.
Step 3: Add the sabudana. Once the milk comes to a full boil, stir in the soaked sabudana along with 15-20 saffron strands.
Never add sabudana to milk that hasn’t fully boiled yet. It can curdle the milk.
Step 4: Simmer until thick. Lower the heat and let the kheer cook gently for 40-60 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until it thickens and the sabudana turns soft.
The finished kheer should flow like custard, not sit stiff in the pan; it thickens considerably as it cools. The pearls should be soft, slightly sticky, and translucent, with no raw bite left in them.
Step 5: Sweeten and flavor. Stir in ¼ cup granulated sugar and ½ teaspoon cardamom powder. Cook for another 2-3 minutes. Taste it, and add more sugar if you like it sweeter.
Add sugar only once the sabudana is fully cooked. Adding sugar too early can slow the pearls’ softening.
Step 6: Garnish and serve. Top with ¼ cup of slivered almonds, pistachios, and 1 teaspoon of crushed dried rose petals. Serve warm, or chill it for a couple of hours.
Planning to chill it? Cover the pan tightly with a lid or cling wrap right away. This stops a thick cream layer from forming on top as it cools.
Sabudana Kheer FAQs
To make it vegan, cook the sabudana in water until they are softened. Now add almond or coconut milk and heat over low heat until the milk comes to a boil. Switch off the heat and garnish with slivered nuts. Serve warm or chilled. Do not boil the vegan milk vigorously; otherwise, it may curdle.
You can make sabudane ki kheer without soaking the sabudana; it will take longer to cook. The other alternative is to cook the sabudana with water in a pressure cooker or an Instant Pot. Then add milk to the cooked sabudana and cook until the kheer thickens.
You can substitute the sugar with jaggery. Cook the kheer as mentioned in the recipe. Once cooked completely, remove the pan from the heat and add crushed or powdered jaggery. Mix well until the jaggery is melted.
Add jaggery to the kheer only when slightly cooled; otherwise, it can curdle the milk.
Cook the sabudana in milk until they are tender. Add ½ tin of sweetened condensed milk and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Do not add extra sugar, as the condensed milk is sweet.
This usually happens when the sabudana is added before the milk fully boils, or when the kheer isn’t stirred enough during cooking.
This usually happens when the sabudana is over-rinsed before soaking, which washes away the starch that thickens the milk. Rinse it just once, then soak fully before cooking.
Variations
- Add other dried nuts apart from almonds and pistachios. Walnuts, pecans, and pine nuts are some options.
- You can also add dried fruits such as figs, raisins, and cranberries.
- You can flavor sago kheer with fruit purees such as mango, strawberry, or chikoo. Add the fruit puree to the cooked and cooled kheer.
- You can also add grated bottle gourd (lauki) or carrots to this kheer along with sabudana.
- Flavor the cooked and cooled kheer with rose syrup and gulkand (rose jam) to make rose sabudana kheer.
- You can add some thandai powder for a thandai-flavored sabudane ki kheer.
- You can also flavor the kheer with some rose water, screw pine water (kewra), orange blossom water, or vanilla extract.
Storage Suggestions
Sabudana kheer keeps well in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
It thickens a lot as it sits, so loosen it with a splash of warm milk while reheating gently on the stove or in the microwave.
It’s not freezer-friendly, as the sabudana turns rubbery once thawed.
Other Kheer Recipes We Recommend
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Sabudana Kheer Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup medium size sabudana (sago, tapioca pearls)
- ½ cup water (for soaking)
- 1 liter whole milk (full-fat milk)
- 15-20 strands saffron (optional)
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom (elaichi powder)
- ¼ cup granulated white sugar (or to taste)
- ¼ cup slivered almonds and pistachios
- dried rose petals (for garnishing)
Instructions
- Rinse and soak the sabudana. Rinse sabudana once under running water. Unlike sabudana khichdi, where you rinse the pearls several times to remove excess starch, kheer needs just one rinse. The starch is what makes the kheer thick and creamy, so you want to keep most of it. Soak the rinsed sabudana in ½ cup water for 4-5 hours or until each pearl turns soft and slightly translucent.
- Boil the milk. Heat the milk over medium-high heat in a heavy-bottomed pan. Stir often so it doesn’t scorch at the bottom.
- Add the sabudana. Once the milk comes to a full boil, stir in the soaked sabudana along with 15-20 saffron strands.
- Simmer until thick. Lower the heat and let the kheer cook gently for 40-60 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until it thickens and the sabudana turns soft. The finished kheer should flow like custard, not sit stiff in the pan; it thickens considerably as it cools. The pearls should be soft, slightly sticky, and translucent, with no raw bite left in them.
- Sweeten and flavor. Stir in the sugar and cardamom powder. Cook for another 2-3 minutes. Taste it, and add more sugar if you like it sweeter.
- Garnish and serve. Top with almonds, pistachios, and crushed dried rose petals. Serve warm, or chill it for a couple of hours.
super yummy kheer…love the colour dear
super delicious looking sago kheer 🙂 tempting me dear !!
Very tasty cheer awesome
Thanks