Delicious Kesari Bhat

By ayesha

Published on March 23, 2025

15 min

15 min

Easy

Dairy-Free South Indian

Roast Semolina: Heat a pan over medium flame and add 1 tablespoon of ghee. Add the semolina (rava) and roast it until it turns light golden brown and emits a nice aroma. Stir continuously to prevent it from burning. Once roasted, remove from heat and set aside.
Prepare Sugar Syrup: In another saucepan, add 2 cups of water and bring it to a boil. Once it starts boiling, add the sugar and stir well until the sugar dissolves completely. If you like, you can add a pinch of saffron or a little food color at this stage to enhance the color.
Cook Cashews & Raisins: In the same pan, heat the remaining ghee. Add the cashews and raisins, frying until the cashews turn golden and the raisins puff up.
Add Semolina to Sugar Syrup: Slowly pour the roasted semolina into the sugar syrup mixture, stirring continuously to avoid lumps. You can add milk here if you like a creamier texture.
Simmer and Stir: Lower the flame and allow the mixture to cook, stirring constantly. The semolina will absorb the syrup and start thickening.
Add Cardamom: Once the mixture thickens and reaches a halwa-like consistency, add cardamom powder and stir well. Cook for another 2-3 minutes, and then remove from heat.
Garnish: Garnish with the fried cashews, raisins, and grated coconut (if using). Serve hot.

Ghee is an essential ingredient for the authentic taste of Kesari Bhat, so don’t skimp on it!
The dish can be served either hot or at room temperature.
For a richer version, you can add a little milk along with water when making the sugar syrup.
Adjust the sugar quantity to suit your sweetness preference.
You can skip the food color and saffron if you prefer a more natural color.
Kesari Bhat can be made ahead of time and reheated before serving.