Sabudana kheer is a creamy, sweet pudding made with tapioca pearls, cherished during Hindu fasts and festivals for its rich taste and spiritual significance. Sabudana kheer is a delicate, luscious, and indulgently sweet cate that holds a favored place in Indian culinary traditions, especially during religious fasting ages. frequently prepared during auspicious Hindu carnivals and vrat( fasting) days similar as Maha Shivratri, Navratri, Ekadashi, Krishna Janmashtami, and Gauri Vrat, this comforting pudding is both spiritually significant and delightfully satisfying.
The heart of sabudana kheer lies in its simplicity — drafted with just a many introductory constituents that come together to produce a rich and scrumptious dish. The three essential factors of this traditional form are sabudana( also known as tapioca plums or sago), full- fat milk, and sugar. These form the foundation of the kheer, while sweet rudiments similar as green cardamom, saffron beaches, and a generous sprinkle of diced nuts like almonds and cashews frequently elevate it further.
As the sabudana simmers gently in the milk, it softens and absorbs the delicate uproariousness, performing in a smooth, satiny texture. The subtle agreeableness is impeccably balanced, making it a soothing yet indulgent treat. Garnished with roasted nuts and occasionally a mizzle of ghee, the kheer becomes a gleeful delight that’s both nutritional and celebratory.
Whether served warm on a cool evening or stupefied as a stimulating treat, sabudana kheer offers a sense of warmth and devotion. Its simplicity, combined with the depth of flavor, makes it a dateless classic in Indian homes during times of devotion, reflection, and festivity.

What Is Sabudana?
Sabudana, also known as custard pearls or more commonly tapioca pearls, are small, white, round balls made from the root of the cassava plant (also called custard root in some regions). The process of turning cassava into sabudana involves extensive preparation. The cassava roots undergo a process where they are initially peeled, then ground and thoroughly rinsed to release their starchy content, which is later shaped into small round pearls and dried for preservation.
Sabudana is primarily composed of starch, making it extremely rich in carbohydrates while offering very few other nutrients. It contains minimal protein, fiber, or essential vitamins and minerals. Despite this, sabudana holds a special place in various cultural and traditional diets, especially in India.
One of the main reasons sabudana is widely consumed during fasting periods—such as vrat or upwas in Hindu customs—is because of its high carbohydrate content. It provides a quick source of energy and helps keep one feeling full for a longer duration, which is especially beneficial when food intake is restricted.
Whether it’s prepared as sabudana khichdi, sabudana vada, or kheer, these pearls serve as a versatile and filling base ingredient in many fasting-friendly recipes. Despite its limited nutritional profile, sabudana remains a go-to food during spiritual observances, offering both comfort and energy in times of dietary restraint.
❤️ You’ll Love This Sabudana Kheer
Taste & Texture:
- Perfectly sweet
- Melt-in-your-mouth delicate custard pearls
- Thick, rich, wealthy and pudding-like consistency.
- All the pearls are isolated (not sticky or clumped together).
Minimal fixings: You’ll require 3 fundamental fixings which are sabudana, milk and sugar. For flavor saffron and cardamom powder are included. Also, nuts are included for a few crunch and garnish.
Easy to make: The prepare of making sabudana kheer is so basic. Fair cook the drenched sabudana in drain, include sugar and flavoring fixings and stew for a few time. Your kheer is prepared.
Quick to make: You’ll require 30 minutes of dynamic time to make this delightful sabudana kheer. In spite of the fact that you require to pre-plan as sabudana requires around 2 hours of splashing time.
🧾 Ingredient Notes
Here is the pic of the fixings you’ll require to make sabudana kheer recipe.

- Sabudana: Utilize standard sabudana that we broadly utilize in sabudana khichdi. There is another verity called nylon sabudana that is utilized for sabudana chivda as it were.
- Sugar: Normal white sugar is used.
- Milk: Full-fat entirety drain is suggested to get a wealthy, velvety texture.
- Saffron: It includes a decent yellow ting to the kheer. Furthermore, includes a pleasant special flavor and aroma.
- Green cardamom seeds powder: Open the green cardamoms and utilize the black seeds. Smash these seeds into a mortar and pestle to make a fine powder.
- Nuts: I have utilized almonds and cashews.
👩🍳 How To Make Sabudana Kheer? (Pics)
1) Wash Sabudana: Take sabudana in a colander and flush beneath running cold water. Knead the pearls gently whereas washing to get freed of overabundance starch and earth.
Check if they are washed appropriately: When sabudana is included into the water and water ought to see clear (not cloudy any longer).
2) Douse: Take washed sabudana in a bowl. Include ½ container of drain, cover and let it douse for 1 ½ – 2 hours.
3) After the splashing time, sabudana pearls get greater in measure.

4) Make Kheer: Take drain in a overwhelming foot skillet and turn the warm to medium.
5) Deplete the drenching drain from sabudana utilizing a strainer and include to the skillet. Keep sabudana aside.
6) Let the drain come to a stew. Take around 1 tablespoon of hot drain and include to a saffron bowl. Let saffron drench in the drain so it discharges its color and flavor. Keep it aside.
7) Keep blending and scratching the sides and foot of the pan whereas the drain is stewing. Stew drain for around 3-4 minutes or until it begins to thicken.

8) Include Drenched sabudana.
9) Keep blending once in a while and proceed cooking.
10) Stew for around 8-10 minutes or until sabudana gets to be delicate and straightforward. Check one pearl by squeezing between your thumb and file finger. It ought to pound effortlessly without any effort.

11) Include sugar.
12) Moreover, include saffron drain, cardamom powder and almond, cashews.
13) Blend and let it stew for 5 minutes.
14) The kheer ought to thicken pleasantly. Keep in intellect that it will thicken more as it cools down. So at this minute, sabudana kheer ought to be thick however streaming (pourable) consistency. You can see in the pic all the pearls are isolated and cooked flawlessly.

💭 Expert Tips For Sabudana Kheer
- Washing or Flushing sabudana appropriately is a must step. You require to get freed of the overabundance starch something else kheer will gotten to be clumpy and as well thick. So continuously wash/rinse until the water is clear and not cloudy anymore.
- Always include sugar once the sabudana is cooked/softened.
- Check cooked sabudana surface: It ought to be delicate, and somewhat disgusting without any chomp to it. And it looks translucent.
- Nuts & Dry natural products: You can utilize other nuts like pistachios, walnuts, chironji (charoli), chopped dates and figs. If including parts of dates at that point you can skip (or diminish) sugar.
- Consistency:
- When sabudana kheer is hot/warm (right after cooking), it ought to have a pourable (streaming) consistency.
- As it cools to room temperature, it will thicken more and gets to be a pudding-like consistency.
- If your store it in the ice chest, it will thicken indeed more. So if arranging to serve chilled at that point keep your kheer marginally runny, to start with.
🥣 Storage Instructions
- It can be put away in the fridge for 2-3 days in an sealed shut container.
- As this is a fasting nourishment, it is more often than not made in a littler clump and expended new (the day it is made).
Notes
How to Identify Properly Cooked Sabudana
When cooked correctly, sabudana (tapioca pearls) should be soft, slightly sticky, and free from any hardness or chewiness. The surface of each pearl will turn translucent, indicating they’ve absorbed enough liquid and cooked through. Undercooked sabudana will retain a white center and feel firm when bitten—this should be avoided.
Using Nuts and Dry Fruits in Sabudana Kheer
To enhance the richness and flavor of your sabudana kheer, feel free to explore a variety of nuts and dry fruits beyond the traditional cashews and raisins. Pistachios, walnuts, and charoli (chironji) add unique textures and flavors. You can also incorporate chopped dates or figs for natural sweetness and added nutrition. If you’re adding sweet dry fruits like dates, consider reducing the amount of added sugar, or omitting it altogether, depending on your taste preferences.
Understanding the Right Consistency of Sabudana Kheer
The texture of sabudana kheer changes based on its temperature:
- Immediately After Cooking: While still warm or hot, the kheer should be of a flowing, pourable consistency. It should not be too thick, allowing it to be served easily.
- At Room Temperature: As it cools, the kheer will gradually thicken. The sabudana will continue to absorb liquid, transforming the dessert into a creamier, more pudding-like texture.
- When Refrigerated: If you store sabudana kheer in the refrigerator, it will become even thicker due to the starch content. For this reason, if you plan to serve it chilled, it’s best to prepare the kheer with a slightly thinner consistency to begin with. This ensures it remains creamy and smooth even after being cooled.
