Paayasam or kheer is a lip smacking sweet dessert which originated in india and was a part of ancient indian time. The first mention of kheer was found in ramayana and mahabharata . In 14th century, it was mentioned as kshirika (sanskrit word). Kheer is basically a rice pudding made with milk, sugar or jaggery and rice or vermicelli or sago. It combines the fat in milk with the starch in rice to boost energy. Kheer originated in india and spread to other countries with little variations.(in olden days rice grain was available in plenty in india and was expensive in other countries).in ayurveda, kheer was mentioned as a medicine to heal many stomach ailments. A variation of kheer was named as firni from persia, shola from iran and afghanistan, sheer from persia, eight jewel rice pudding from china, rice pudding from europe and oriza from rome. It has a long history but the recipe is very simple and healthy.
