Sheer Khurma is a Persian dessert, made with whole wheat vermicelli, nuts, dates, and milk. This delicious dessert is sweetened with sugar or condensed milk. I love how beautifully creamy, and nutty this recipe is. It is usually made during Ramadan and to celebrate Eid.
If you are observing Ramadan or celebrating Eid, Ramadan Mubarak and Eid Mubarak to you. I love sheer khurma, which is also popularly known as sheer khorma.
But ever since, I had my daughter, I have been finding ways to make my favorite desserts but more efficiently. And truth to be told, Instant pot sheer khurma has come to my rescue. I am writing the recipe for both Instant Pot and Stove Top versions for this recipe.
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What is Sheer Khurma?
Sheer means milk and Khurma means dates in Farsi. This recipe is a creamy, delicious dessert from Persian culture, made with whole wheat long and thin vermicelli, Dates, and Milk. I like to add nuts like almonds, pistachios, and cashews to the recipe, along with some raisins. This date pudding is perfumed with rose water, saffron, and cardamom and is an absolute delight to serve on festivities.
This dessert is made during the auspicious month of Ramadan, for Iftar and to celebrate Eid. This recipe gets ready in under 20 minutes using the Instant Pot.
Seviyaan Kheer v/s Sheer Khurma
Seviyaan kheer is made with whole wheat vermicelli, nuts and milk, while Sheer Khorma is made with dates, vermicelli, nuts, and milk. This is the only difference. They are both delicious and takes about the same time to make.
But, in my opinion, I like the sheer khurma more, as the delicious earthy sweetness from dates and the beautiful color it offers is my favorite.
This Sheer Khurma is
- A creamy delicious dessert made with whole milk.
- Made with nuts like almonds, pistachios, cashews, raisins and dates
- Perfumed with rose water, saffron and cardamom.
- Serve it warm or chilled. I love it warm in winter and chilled during summer.
- You can also add some unsweetened desiccated coconut.
Expert Tips and Variations To Make This Recipe
- You must use full-fat whole milk for this recipe. I don't like to use 1% or 2% milk, because it doesn't give the same creamy texture and taste is not the same. So please use whole milk.
- My recipe yields a creamy kheer, without adding milk powder or mawa. But, if you like the taste of mawa, add about ½ cup of fresh shredded mawa or milk powder. I will recommend you, add the mawa which is easily available at the Indian stores.
- Add roughly chopped nuts and dates to the recipe. I like to use a small knife and sliver the nuts.
- Be careful with the amount of sugar you add to the recipe as dates and raisins add to the sweetness to this recipe too.
- You can add slivered nuts and dried rose petals for garnishes.
- I think it is a personal preference how creamy you like your sheer khurma to be. I personally like mine to be thick, but if you like a slightly thinner consistency, you can add some milk before serving.
Ingredients to Make this Recipe
You need a few handful of ingredients, and may have it all present at home in your pantry. But, if you don't you will find all the ingredients easily at a nearby Indian grocery store or on amazon.
- Whole Milk - I highly recommend you to use only whole milk. Skim milk doesn't give the same creamy consistency to the recipe.
- Vermicelli - You have to use whole wheat thin roasted vermicelli for this recipe. I buy mine from the local Indian grocery store, and the brand I use is Shan.
- Nuts - You can use any nuts you like. I add slivered almonds, pistachios, cashews, dates and raisins. You can also add 2 tablespoons of unsweetened desiccated coconut if you like.
- Spices - I like to add rose water, cardamom powder and few strands of saffron.
- Sweetener - You can use ½ cup of castor sugar, or ⅓ cup of condensed milk to the recipe.
- Dried Rose Petals and Slivered Nuts - You can garnish the sheer khurma as I have with dried rose petals and slivered nuts.
Instant Pot Sheer Khurma
This recipe is very easy to make, and I am sharing how to make it step by step using the Instant Pot. To make the stove-top version, the steps remain the same, but the cooking time for stove-top takes longer, and needs to be stirred to make sure the milk doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.
1.Turn on the Instant Pot on Saute Mode.
2. Add ghee to the instant pot, and let it melt.
3.Now add the slivered nuts and roast them until aromatic.
4. Next, add in the roasted broken vermicelli. Roast the vermicelli until aromatic.
5. Once the vermicelli is roasted add the milk. Give it a mix.
6. Now add the sugar, saffron strands and cardamom powder. Mix it well.
7. Close the Instant Pot lid. Press cancel.
8. Now press on Pressure Cook. Manually adjust the time to 9 Minutes. Press Start.
9. Once the cook time is over, let the pressure release naturally for 5-7 minutes.
10. Do a quick pressure release. Open the instant pot lid, and give the khurma a stir.
11. Add 1 teaspoon of rose water and give it a mix. Skip this step if you don't have rose water.
12. Now transfer the sheer khurma in a serving bowl. Let it cool down, before you place it in the refrigerator. You can serve it warm if you like it warm or during winter.
13. Garnish it with slivered almonds and pistachios, and sprinkle some dried rose petals before serving. Serve it warm or chilled as per your liking.
Tip - After chilling the sheer khurma, if you feel it is very thick, simply add a splash cold milk, and stir to adjust the consistency as per your liking.
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FAQs
Sheer in Farsi means milk, and Khurma means Dates. Sheer Khurma is a milk pudding made with whole wheat long and thin vermicelli, dates, nuts and whole milk, sweetened with sugar or condensed milk.
Yes, you can make this recipe ahead of time. Although, the sheer khurma thickens as it chills. Adjust the consistency by adding some milk. Heat up the sheer khurma, and add some milk, to adjust the consistency if serving it warm. If you prefer to serve it chilled, add cold milk, and stir in the milk to adjust the consistency.
Yes, you can make this recipe vegan. Substitute ghee with either coconut oil or vegan butter. Now cook the vermicelli, by pouring hot water on it, and cook for a minute. Strain the water and keep it aside.
Roast the nuts in oil or vegan butter. And add either full fat almond milk, or coconut milk. Bring it to a simmer and add sugar. Now add the cooked vermicelli, saffron strands, cardamom powder and rose water. Turn off the stove. You can also add jaggery powder to sweeten it, to achieve the sheer khurma color.
Note - You may notice the sheer khurma tastes like coconut or almonds, based on the plant milk you are using.
Yes, sheer khurma is a vegetarian dessert recipe discovered in Persia. This recipe uses vermicelli, dates, nuts and milk, and is completely vegetarian.
Instant Pot Sheer Khurma
These nutrional values are automatically generated. Use them for estimation only.
Equipment
- Instant Pot or a Heavy Bottom Pot
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons Ghee
- 10-12 Almonds
- 10-12 Pistachios
- 8-10 Cashews
- 8-10 Raisins
- 6-7 Large Dates Use 10 small dates
- 1 Cup Vermicelli Whole-Wheat roasted long and thin broken vermicelli
- 4 Cups Milk
- ½ Cup Sugar
- ½ Teaspoon Cardamom Powder
- 5-6 Saffron Strands
- 1 Teaspoon Rose Water
Garnishes
- 2 Tablespoon Almonds Slivered
- 2 Tablespoon Pistachios
- 1 Tablespoon Dried Rose Petals
Instructions
- Start with chopping nuts like almonds, cashews and pistachios. Use a small knife, and sliver the nuts, or roughly chop them
- Then roughly chop the dates and keep them aside.
- Roughly break the long vermicelli.
Instant Pot Sheer Khurma
- Press the Saute Buttom on the Instant Pot and hit Start.
- Add 2 tablespoons of ghee. Let it melt.
- To this add, roughly chopped dates, almonds, pistachios, cashews and add the whole raisins. Sauté the nuts until aromatic.
- Now add 1 cup broken vermicelli, and roast it until aromatic.
- To this add 4 Cups of milk, and mix well.
- Now add 5-6 strands of saffron, half a teaspoon of cardamom powder and half a cup of sugar. Mix it all well.
- Press cancel on the Instant pot. Close the instant pot lid securely. Make sure the pressure valve is on the sealing position.
- Now Press on the Pressure Cook Button, and Manually adjust the time to 9 Minutes.
- Once the sheer khurma is cooked, let the pressure release naturally for 5-7 minutes.
- Now do a quick pressure release, and open the Instant Pot Lid carefully.
- Stir the sheer khurma and add 1 teaspoon of rose water.
- Trasnfer it to a serving bowl.
Stove-Top Version
- In a heavy bottom pan add 2 tablespoons of ghee on medium flame.
- Once the ghee melts, add roughly chopped almonds, pistachions, cashews, dates and whole raisins.
- Saute the nuts until aromatic.
- Remove the nuts from the pan in a plate and set them aside.
- Now in the same pan add the roasted vermicelli, and sauté until fragrant. It should take you about 2-3 minutes.
- Now add 4 cups of milk, and stir. Stir every 30 seconds to make sure the milk doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.
- As the milk boils you will notice it is thickening, and vermicelli is cooking.
- Once the milk comes to a boil, lower the flame from medium to low, and continue cooking it for another 8 minutes.
- After 8 minutes, the milk must have reduced and thickened. Add sugar, cardamom powder and rose strands.
- Cook for another 3-4 minutes on medium low flame. Turn off the flame, and add 1 teaspoon of rose water.
Garnish and Serve
- You can serve the sheer khurma warm or chilled as per your prefrence.
- Tramsfer the sheer khurma in a serving bowl.
- To serve it warm, garnish the sheer khurma with slivered nuts and dried rose petals and serve immediately after cooking.
- To serve it chilled, once the sheer khurma comes at a room temperature, cover it with a plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator for two hours. The sheer khurma thickens as it chills, so add a splash of milk and mix it well to adjust the consistency as per your liking. Garnish with slivered nuts and dried rose petals and serve,
Notes
- Make sure you read the blog thoroughly.
- Prep the ingredients ahead of time to make it easier when you start making the recipe.
- The recipe is super easy and simple to follow.
- If you are cooking on the stove-top, make sure you stir every 30 seconds, so vermicelli and milk don't stick to the bottom of the pan.
- Serve it chilled or warm as per your liking. Read the serving instructions to adjust the consistency of the sheer khurma.
- If you are making this dessert ahead of time, and wish to serve it warm. Transfer the sheer khurma to a pot, and add a splash of milk. Heat up for 5-7 minutes and serve immediately.
- The sheer khurma stays good in the refrigerator for 2 days.
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