Heerekayi(Ridge Gourd) Payasa

Ingredients:
4 medium sized Tender Ridge Gourd / Heerekayi
3.5 - 4 cups fresh Coconut Milk
2.5 - 3 cups Jaggary
1.5 tsp Rice flour / Ground Rice Batter
3 - 4 Cardamoms / Elakki
Pinch of Salt

Recipe:

Peel the ridge gourd and chop them into medium sized thin pieces as shown in the picture below.

Grind around 4 cups of fresh/frozen grated coconut into smooth paste by adding little amount of water. (If it is frozen coconut use hot water while grinding.) Squeeze the ground coconut, by placing it in a clean cotton cloth.

After this process, add around 3 cups of water to the squeezed coconut, mix well and squeeze it again. Cook the chopped ridge gourd in a vessel by adding around 2.5 cups of thin coconut milk. Once its cooked, add jaggary, pinch of salt and bring them to boil.

Keep this in low/medium flame for about 5 mins.

Take around 1/2 cup of thin coconut milk in a bowl, add rice flour / batter and mix them well. Add this to the vessel containing cooked ridge gourd and bring them to boil.

Add thick coconut milk and bring them to boil. Add mashed cardamom seeds and keep the Payasa in low flame for about 1-2 mins.

Serve it hot or chilled. The above mentioned ingredients will serve 7-8 cups of Payasa.