I went and got this bag of whole wheat berries and you can see that's the reason for all wheat related dishes coming up. I basically bought it to make the Wheat Halwa. I used just about a cup and there were no quarter kg bags available. And it's not enough to grind into flour. Well, we have come up with the sprouts. Though that's a very good healthy option, was wondering what another way to use it up. We came out with the salad. Then we were generally talking about the wheat and how it can be used when Athamma recollected her Mom making Payasam with Whole Wheat berries. Wow, that sounds really tasty. More and more I heard about it, I was sure that's what I wanted to try next. Wheat berries are nothing but the whole wheat grains.
Amma was also talking about the same. It seems her mom also used to make this payasam. I really wonder why those age old recipes got the lost track. I wanted to learn and see how it's supposed to be prepared. It's very similar to the paruppu payasam. But it was completed so different to taste and should I say the bowl was empty in flat 5 mins. We made it for the neivedyam and so didn't know the taste until we actually tasted it. But believe me, it was simply superb. The process may seem a little complicated with soaking and cooking it for a long time, but then hey what's pleasure without pain. If I am assured of such divine taste, I would take up the task without hesitation.
Ingredients Needed:
Whole Wheat Berries - 1 cup
Jaggery - 1 cup
Cashew Nuts - 10
Raisins - 10
Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp
Water - 2 cups
Ghee / Butter - 2 tbsp (optional)
Method to prepare:
Wash and Soak wheat berries for 2 days. You can soak them during the day and drain and store in the fridge. We did this because we weren't sure if they will stay without getting spoilt at room temperature for so long. Next time, I am going to experiment with that too.
Before pressure cooking, this, wash well. Add about 2 cups of water and pressure cook for nearly 5-6 whistles. Check if the berries are soft. If not, put them back again.
Meanwhile, melt the jaggery with little water. Remove if any scum. Then add the jaggery water, cardamom to the wheat berries, and pressure cooker again. Once done, remove the lid and cook on high flame to get the desired consistency. For more richness add cashew paste.
Update:
You can leave out the nuts roasting part in the ghee as the payasam as such was quite creamy and tasty.
Roast the cashew nuts and raisins in ghee and add to the boiling payasam.
The combination was ultimate, the berries being cooked in jaggery made them a little hard on the outer but soft in the inside. It was a completely new experience. When you bite on the berries, it goes little dunking inside. You can get to chew on them and with jaggary all the way, it was divine!
Cardamom adds such taste and aroma, that it's not really the same without it!
Divya says
Yummy payasam Sri..I am not so sure what wheat berries are though..!!
Indranee says
Lovely payasam Srivalli! Love it:)
dindintonight says
That looks really good. I've never used wheat berries before. I might have to give them a try.
Shreya says
So yummy! My mother makes this. I have never tried this myself. Will try now:-) I have something waiting for you at my blog.
Rajani says
v.intriguing. what are wheat berries srivalli? if you have any left over can u post a pic?? the payasam looks yummy for my tummy 🙂
Vaishali says
The payasam looks so delicious, Srivalli. Lovely pictures. It's not quite vegan because of the ghee/butter, though. I guess one could just substitute with some vegetable oil?
Simran says
I've never cooked with wheat berries before because, as you said, they take too long. But now, with so many berry dishes up on your blog, I think I am going to! 🙂
Jayashree says
What are wheat berries, Valli?
FoodyGuru (Srimathi) says
Hey Sri, Good try. We can make payasum out of anything that is healthy. I am sure it would taste good.
Uma says
looks so delicious Srivalli! Lovely.
ANJALI J. says
i love all kinds of payasam..but i never tried this one.. looks great..
Kamini says
Looks great and should be healthy, too.
Kamini.
homecooked says
Looks delicious Sri! I didnt know you could make anything out of wheat grains 🙂
SriLekha says
payasam sounds great!
Vanamala says
What is wheat berries ? lovely yummy ...
Illatharasi says
Looks delicious, healthy one:)
Cham says
Wheat berry should be a healthy payasam 🙂
sunita says
Srivalli,
thank you for the lovely entry...the payasam looks delicious...fit for a celebration 🙂
Aabharan says
Valli - Never heard of this before. Definitely looks awesome!!
Maheswari says
My MIL makes this often.Looks so delicious..Wish i cud grab that bowl through the screen...:D
Sukanya says
Yummy Payasam. You have an award waiting for you in my blog.
Nirmala says
Thats a real lovely payasam Valli. You can soak them at room emperature but change the water (wash it once before changing the water) everyday. Keepingit in fridge actually makes them numb and this increases cooking time too. This way th outer skin won't be hard after makinf the payasam.
Srivalli says
Thank you ppl for your lovely comments. Wheat berries are whole wheat grains. Do try this if you get a chance, really very tasty.
Vaishali, Yep, I was thinking I should mention that..but as habit wrote ghee. The raisin and nuts can be roasted in regular oil too. Have updated the post. Thank you!
Nirmala, thank you for the excellent tips, I thought the same but didn't want to take chances. So will do this next time. As you said, it become little hard because of storing in fridge
Anonymous says
can you ask your grandma and mom for more wheat berry recipes and post?
can you grind the wheat berries
and then cook them instead of having to soak it? i have tried soaking things before like millets and the water gets so smelly.
Srivalli says
AnonWill surely post more, just got another bag of these berries.
I didn't quite understand your question. Did you mean to ask if you can cook directly without soaking? Since these grains are hard, may not be an easy task to cook them to soft texture. Soaking aids to cook faster.
We can use ground paste for the payasam also.
When you tend to soak the grains, it's always advisble to change the water in between. Hope I have answered your query.
DV says
Yummy! 🙂 I want to lick the payasam off the bowl 🙂