Pesara Pappu or Pasi Paruppu Payasam With the advent of the month of Shravan (sometime in July-August according to the Gregorian calendar) begins the festival season in India and my mind is full of ideas of how to celebrate the plethora of festivals and poojas that await us. In our home, the first major Pooja of the season is Varalakshmi Pooja.
Dry roast the pesara pappu till it starts to change colour.
Add 1 cup milk and 1/2 cup water.
Pressure cook for 4 to 6 whistles, or till the pesara pappu is of mashable consistency. Use a large vessel so that there is a lot of empty space after adding the pappu, milk, and water because milk has a tendency to boil over.
Using a heavy ladle, mash the dal.
Peel the green cardamom and crush the seeds to a coarse powder. It is easier to crush cardamom seeds if you add about 1 tsp of sugar. The volume makes it easier to crush the seeds.
Add the remaining milk, cardamom, and sugar to the cooked pesara pappu.
Mix well.
Over medium heat, bring the payasam to a gentle simmer.
Heat the ghee.
Break the cashew in halves and add to the ghee.
Stir-fry the cashew till it starts to change colour.
Add the raisins and stir-fry till the raisins start to puff up.
Add the fried cashew and raisins to the payasam.
Mix well.
Serve warm.
Recipe Notes
I find that cooking the pesara pappu in milk gives the payasam a richer taste. You could also cook it using just water.