rava kesari recipe with step by step photos. rava kesari is a popular and delicious south indian sweet made from rava. in hindi ‘rava’ is also known as ‘sooji’ and in english as semolina. rava kesari is made during festivals as well as during poojas or auspicious occasions. rava kesari is also made for breakfast.
what is rava kesari?
the term “rava kesari” means semolina pudding which is flavored with saffron and orangish in color. since the dish is made with rava or sooji and has an orange color, hence the name rava kesari. the word kesari means orange color tones and in some instances also means saffron – which is called as kesar. the main ingredients in a rava kesari are ghee, rava, sugar, water and saffron or orange food color.
rava kesari’s north indian counterpart is sooji ka halwa which is also equally popular and tastes good. in maharashtra and gujarat this same dish is called as sheera. however, there are some variations in the preparations of sooji halwa, sheera and rava kesari.
in karnataka rava kesari is known as kesari bhath. for breakfast, both khara bath (uppittu or upma) and kesari bath are served together and this combination is called as chow chow bath.
the difference between rava kesari and sooji halwa or sheera is the color. also more amounts of ghee and sugar are used in a rava kesari as compared to sooji halwa or sheera. but the main difference is the color. rava kesari has an orange color. generally synthetic orange food color is added while making rava kesari. addition of ghee and sugar can always be minimized when making rava kesari at home. in this rava kesari recipe, i have added slightly less quantities of both ghee and sugar.
since i don’t use any synthetic colors in food, i have used saffron and a natural orange color extract to give the orangish color tones. addition of only saffron will give yellow tones and not orange. apart from that saffron gives a nice flavor and aroma to rava kesari. if you want orange tones, then add orange food color. better to use a natural orange color or natural yellow color extract.
rava kesari varieties:
using the basic recipe of rava kesari many variations are possible. add milk and you get milk kesari. add mixed fruits or just one type of fruit and you get a nice fruity flavored kesari.
some delicious variations of rava kesari i have earlier shared are :
- fruits kesari – kesari made with mixed fruits
- pineapple kesari recipe – made with chopped fresh pineapples
- mango kesari – made with mangoes
- rava kesari with milk – rich version of kesari made with milk
tips to make the best and perfect rava kesari:
- remember to roast the rava very well. this step is important because if rava is not roasted well then you will not get perfect texture in the kesari. there will also be a slight raw taste in the rava kesari.
- use fine rava also known as bombay rava for making kesari.
- stir frequently while roasting rava for even cooking. the rava should release ghee once its roasted well.
- when adding the sugar solution to the hot rava+ghee mixture, make sure that the sugar solution is bubbling hot.
- add the sugar solution slowly and carefully as the rava mixture splutters.
- you can also use packaged roasted rava. but make sure that the rava is roasted well. sometimes the readymade roasted rava is not completely roasted.
- you can also use milk instead of water. this makes the rava kesari more rich. use same amount of milk as the quantity of water mentioned in the recipe.
- to get a melt in the mouth rava kesari, the proportion of rice and water to be used is 1:2.5 for both rava and water respectively. you can even add 3 cups water, which gives a slightly moist rava kesari.
i had made rava kesari as naivedya for lord ganesha during the first day of the ganesh chaturthi festival. was not able to post the recipe all the time. finally posting when lord ganesha is leaving today. bidding a sweet adieu to lord ganesha. rava kesari can also be made during any indian festival like janmashtami, ugadi, diwali, raksha bandhan or holi.
if you are looking for more halwa recipes then do check:
rava kesari recipe below:
rava kesari recipe
rava kesari is a south indian dessert made with semolina, ghee, dry fruits and saffron.
ingredients (1 cup = 250 ml)
for frying dry fruits & rava
- 6 tablespoons ghee
- 3 to 4 tablespoons cashews
- 1 tablespoon raisins
- 1 cup fine rava, 160 grams, (sooji or semolina or cream of wheat)
for sugar solution
- ¾ to 1 cup sugar or as add required, 190 to 200 grams sugar
- 2.5 cups water or milk
- 2 to 3 pinches saffron strands (kesar)
- 2 to 3 drops natural orange color extract - optional
other ingredients for rava kesari
- ½ teaspoon cardamom powder (elaichi powder)
- 1 pinch edible camphor - optional
how to make recipe
frying dry fruits for rava kesari recipe
in a heavy kadai or a thick bottomed pan take 6 tablespoons ghee. heat ghee on a medium-low flame till it melts completely.
add 3 tablespoons cashews.
begin to fry cashews stirring them often till they become golden. remove with a slotted spoon and keep fried cashews aside.
next add 1 tablespoon raisins in the hot ghee.
stirring non-stop fry the raisins till they become plump and swell.
remove them and keep aside with the fried cashews.
roasting rava
now reduce flame to a low and add 1 cup fine rava (160 grams) to the ghee. mix well.
begin to roast rava on a low to medium-low flame.
stir frequently while roasting rava for even cooking.
roast till you can see the ghee getting separated and the color of rava will also change. a nice aroma will also emanate from the roasted rava.
the color of the rava should not become brown.
making sugar syrup for rava kesari
when you begin to roast rava, at that time take ¾ cup sugar (190 to 200 grams) in a sauce pan.
add 2 to 3 pinches of saffron strands. you can also add a natural yellow or orange color extract. i added 2 drops of natural orange color extract.
add 2.5 cups water.
keep the pan on stove top and on a medium to medium-high flame begin to heat the sugar solution.
when you keep the pan on the stove-top for heating, at that time stir with a spoon so that all the sugar is dissolved.
bring this sugar solution to a rolling boil.
making rava kesari
by the time the sugar solution starts boiling, the rava will also get roasted well.
lower the flame and now carefully pour the sugar-saffron solution in the ghee-rava mixture in a steady stream and slowly.
take care while pouring as the mixture splutters.
stir and mix very well. break lumps, if any while mixing.
cook rava kesari mixture on a low to medium-low flame stirring often.
the rava or sooji will absorb the water and swell and the mixture will begin to thicken.
when the rava kesari mixture starts thickening, add the fried cashews and raisins reserving a few for garnish.
also add ½ teaspoon cardamom powder. at this step you can also add a pinch of edible camphor if you want. mix very well.
stir till the mixture releases some ghee and the rava has absorbed all the water and cooked well.
then switch off the flame and cover the pan for 5 minutes just to allow the rava kesari to steam.
after five minutes, remove the lid. stir rava kesari. if you want to make slices, then immediately pour rava kesari in a steel pan or tray. spread evenly and when warm or cooled, cut into diamond shaped or square slices.
serve rava kesari hot or warm. you can also serve rava kesari as a side sweet dish.
recipe notes
- you can add a few tablespoons of more ghee or sugar if you want in the rava kesari.
how to make rava kesari recipe:
a) frying dry fruits:
1: in a heavy kadai or a thick bottomed pan take 6 tablespoons ghee.
2. heat ghee on a medium-low flame till it melts completely.
3. add 3 tablespoons cashews.
4. begin to fry cashews stirring them often.
5. fry cashews till golden. remove with a slotted spoon and keep aside.
6. next add 1 tablespoon raisins in the hot ghee.
7. stirring non-stop fry the raisins.
8. the raisins will become plump and swell.
9. as soon as the raisins become plump, remove them and keep aside along with the fried cashews.
b) roasting rava for kesari recipe:
10. now reduce flame to a low and add 1 cup fine rava (160 grams) to the ghee.
11. mix well.
12. begin to roast rava on a low to medium-low flame. stir often.
13. stir frequently while roasting rava for even cooking.
14. the color of the rava should not become brown. roasting rava takes approx 9 to 11 minutes on a low to medium-low flame. timing will vary with the type and make of the kadai or pan and the flame intensity.
15. roast till you can see the ghee getting separated and the color of rava will also change. a nice aroma will also emanate from the roasted rava.
c) making sugar syrup for rava kesari:
16. when you begin to roast rava, at that time take ¾ cup sugar (190 to 200 grams) in a sauce pan. the sugar syrup needs to be cooked simultaneously while roasting rava.
17. add 2 to 3 pinches of saffron strands.
18. add 2.5 cups water. you can also add a natural yellow or orange color extract. i added 2 drops of natural orange color extract.
19. keep the pan on stove top and on a medium to medium-high flame begin to heat the sugar solution.
20. when you keep the pan on the stove-top for heating, at that time stir with a spoon so that all the sugar is dissolved.
21. bring this sugar solution to a rolling boil. in case the sugar solution has come to a boil, but rava has not yet roasted, the reduce the flame to a low and simmer the sugar solution for a couple of minutes – so that it stays hot. however do not simmer for a long time as then the sugar consistency will change and the syrup can become sticky or have the sugar thread consistencies.
making rava kesari:
22. by the time the sugar solution starts boiling, the rava will also get roasted well.
23. lower the flame and now carefully pour the sugar-saffron solution in the ghee-rava mixture in a steady stream and slowly.
24. take care while pouring as the mixture splutters. in this rava kesari recipe lumps are not formed as the quantity of water is more. in case if lumps do form then just break them with the spatula or spoon.
25. stir and mix very well. break lumps, if any while mixing.
26. cook rava kesari mixture on a low to medium-low flame stirring often.
27. the rava or sooji will absorb the water and swell and the mixture will begin to thicken. it will be soft and moist and the consistency will be like that of a pudding.
28. when the rava kesari mixture starts thickening, add the fried cashews and raisins reserving a few for garnish.
29. also add ½ teaspoon cardamom powder. at this step you can also add a pinch of edible camphor if you want.
30. mix very well.
31. stir till the mixture releases some ghee and the rava has absorbed all the water and cooked well. also you should not see any whitish or creamish tiny specks on the rava. if you see then this means that the rava is still not cooked well.
32. then switch off the flame and cover the pan for 5 minutes just to allow the rava kesari to steam.
33. after five minutes, remove the lid. stir rava kesari. if you want to make slices, then immediately pour the rava kesari in a steel pan or tray. spread evenly and when warm or cooled, cut into diamond shaped or square slices.
34. serve rava kesari hot or warm. garnish with a few of the reserved fried cashews and raisins while serving. you can also serve rava kesari as a side sweet dish. for more delicious rava recipes, you can check this collection of 38 rava recipes.
About
- i started vegrecipesofindia.com in feb 2009. it is a pure vegetarian blog and shares recipes with step by step photos.
i am passionate about cooking from childhood and learnt cooking from my elders. a home science degree course further enhanced my cooking and baking skills professionally along with an internship in a five star hotel. i am trained both in mainstream indian as well as international cuisines.
all the 1800 recipes posted on blog are tried and tested and made healthy wherever possible. the recipes are detailed and with step by step pictures that will easily help you to make delicious and tasty vegetarian food.
Latest Posts
Festival Recipes2018.09.19bhakarwadi recipe, how to make bhakarwadi recipe | bakarwadi recipe
Festival Recipes2018.09.05kozhukattai recipe, how to make kozhukattai recipe for ganesh chaturthi
Dinner Recipes2018.08.01macaroni recipe | indian style macaroni recipe | macaroni pasta recipe
Cooking Tips & Methods2018.07.24custard recipe, how to make custard | vanilla custard recipe
Thank you for the recipe Dassana. Didn’t have saffron at home…I added raisins towards the end.
The dish turned out very soft and tasty…thanks for the detailed instructions.
welcome estee. saffron can be skipped. raisins can also be added towards the end. thanks for the feedback and nice to know.
Superb recipe rava kesari….tried so many times…Awesome dish!
Thanks Deepa for sharing your positive feedback.
Fan of all your recipes turned a good baker following most of your recipes,have tried rice varieties,north Indian recipes everything was a success thanks for your collection.
Welcome Smitha. Glad to know this. Thanks for your positive feedback and kind words.
Hi Dassana,
Tried rava kesari and the sooji halwa recipe. Both were so delicious. Have been following your recipes since a long time, and they never disappoint with the measurements or the flavour. Thank you so much.
Welcome Ritu. Glad to know this. Thanks for sharing positive feedback on recipes.
Can i use jaggery instead of sugar?
you can use jaggery in this recipe.
Very tasty. ..came out too good …thanks for sharing so briefly with posting detailed photos which helps us a lot .
thank you iileen for this feedback. nice to know.
Hi dassana
Can I use roasted upma rava for the kesari.
yes you can use roasted rava.
I am really thankful to you, I tried many sweet items which come out well.
pleased to know this thank you sheeba 🙂
Turned out awesome!!
thanks akshatha for sharing positive feedback on rava kesari.
Excellent recipe. I tried it for the first time and it turned out awesome. Thank you.
-Rahul
pleased to know this rahul 🙂 thankyou so much.
I have become your fan….tried several of ur recipies n all came out very well….Thank u sooo much….I really appreciate your effort n dedication…the pictorial steps help a lot….
thankyou for your kind and encouraging words god bless you remya 🙂 glad you found our food blog helpful.
Awesome
thankyou abi.
Hi
Just saw u r recipe they are so good Nd easy to make thanks for sharing.
I have a one in recipe you use cashew yogurt can we use cashew flour .
Thanks
Shashi
you can use cashew flour, but also add 1/2 tsp of lemon juice to give that faint sour taste in the recipe. you can also increase or decrease the amount of lemon juice as per your taste.
Hi dassana di,
Can i use condensed milk in this recipie?
Can you explain how?
i don’t thick condensed milk can use used in this recipe. you can use milk instead. just add the same amount of milk instead of water.
Dearest Dassana,
As you know, rava kesari is commonly made in Tamilian households. As a Mumbaikar now living in Coimbatore, we’ve tasted this dish many times here. After asking around for the recipe, I also tried making it at home a few times, but found considerable difference in the taste and texture.
Made rava kesari following your recipe just now and I’m so delighted to tell you that finally I got the authentic taste that has eluded me all this while. Thank you so much! God bless you! ☺
Love,
Neeti
welcome neeti. glad to know this. thanks for sharing your positive feedback and for your prayers.
Tried kesari (which was part of a thali dish) in one of the local South Indian restaurants and was curious about it. So I searched for the recipe and came across your website. I am not much of a cook and the recipe looked simple enough so I decided to try it. I followed the recipe exactly and it turned out PERFECT!
The step-by-step illustrations are very helpful. Thank you for the recipes.
welcome sita. glad to know this. thanks for sharing positive feedback.
I will try your method. Thank you.
welcome malinishunmugam
your recipes is super
thanks gowthami
Hi Dassana,
Today i have tried Reva kesari.For 1 cup rava,2 glass water is enough?
I tried with 2 cups of water but the rava was not cooked well,so again heat the 2 glass of water separately and mixed with Rava mixture…After that only it steamed well.
Could you pls correct me the water level. having added the hot water in between the reva mixture the taste is not good.Pls correct me
did you use 2 cups or 2 glass. 2 cups of 250 ml each is equal to 500 ml water. as a rule, you could add from 2 cups (500 ml) to 3 cups (750 ml) of water for any kesari recipe. if the rava is roasted very well, then its gets cooked also well in water. 2 cups is enough for 1 cup of rava. it also depends which rava you used. best is to use the fine rava and not the coarser ones. the taste does not come good when you mix hot water later is that by the time you heat water, the rava mixture cools down and when hot water is added, the rava becomes lumpy and does not cook well. so in such cases, you can just add the extra water at room temperature and cook the rava in it.
really i went through your recipes of Hotel type sambar for idlis and kesaribath amazing and awesome
Kindly requesting you to subscribe the new recipes to my mail id
thanks ramesh. i have added your name in subscriber list. you will receive a confirmation email to approve the subscription.
I will be attempting this for Holi this week. A few decades ago, I use to work for a private firm in Delhi, owned by a Tamil Brahmin family. The lady use to make this for every pooja she did, however she always added a well ripe mashed banana, along with the sugar mixture. That use to be real treat.
thanks ancy for sharing this info. in most poojas banana is added to halwa or sheera. i have already one post on banana halwa in the blog.
I was trying to make Kesari several times .., but your recipe was awesome .
And for the first time in my life., my kesari tastes exactly like south Indian kesari . Thank you very much .
Also Its my passion to try some weird experiments with my cooking .., so during my second attempt to make your recipe I added 400 Ml of pineapple Jam with the boiling sugar solution . .,and my friends and family ( they were the helpless victims of my cooking lab’s products 🙂 ) said that ..its tastes like a 5 star dish . Thank you so much
thanks lini for this positive review. good to know. i can imagine what pineapple jam must have done… am sure it must have been YUM 🙂
Three days holidays for self, wife and child. To pass time, made kesari as per receive, but added more dry fruits and little jeera and milagu also – more as a fun than as necessity. It also tasted well.
thanks for the feedback. i have seen some variations of kesari adding jeera.
Hi dassana….every time I make this.simple dish something goes wrong. So came here fully trusting nothing can go wrong. I was right. Came perfect. Thank you.
welcome famidha. thanks for showing trust. glad to know that it worked out well for you.
Can I know if we can add milk instead of water ? Will it be equally good as this recipe ?
gayathree, heat the milk and then add it, instead of water. it will taste good.
This is an awesome recipe 🙂
I did made some changes n it turned out pretty delicious
I combined white & brown sugar as per the measurement n half cup of cashew n the result was incredible.
Tq for sharing
welcome kay. glad to know this.
I made Rava Kesari exactly as per your site instructions, believe me it has come out really yummy. Slowly becoming a house-husband!!! Thanks a lot … Its a Vijaya Dasami offering to God ….
welcome satheesh. glad to know this.
I have had sheera in south indian restaurants (didnt know its called rava kesari). They also add cloves (lavang) to it and it tastes delicious.
This turned out to be good. I did add the cloves to emulate the restaurant taste but I hardly got the taste of it.. Have you tried using cloves ever?
thanks kashmira for your inputs. i don’t add cloves. i prefer the cardamom flavor.
Have tried many kesari bath recipes.. and this was the only one succeeded.. I got awesome response from my hubby…:) thanks a lot dassana..
welcome nisha. glad to know that you rava kesari recipe worked for you.
hi
i used to cook rawa but it used to never turn out the way it turned out from your recipe,the rawa was just perfect !!!!! thank you
thanks arusha.
Hi, I am planning to make this wonderful kesari for a group of friends. Can you tell me the measurements if I have to make this for around 17 people. I don’t wan’t to go wrong with my estimates.
for making a sweet like kesari, you can easily increase the recipe proportionately. generally as a ratio for 1 cup of rava, 1/2 cup ghee is used. the sugar can vary from 1 cup to 1.5 cups or more. this recipe served about 3 to 4 servings. so you can increase everything proportionately.
I Love rava kesari bath , thank u for showing this recipe
welcome sandhya
Can I get the ingredient measures.
you have to try the cup measures. for ingredient measures you will have to check online.
Wow ! it’s really tempting going to try this now thnx keep on doing this job
welcome geetha
Hello,
I am really thankful for the step by step guide to the recipie with pictures, and its really tempting. I tried it and really enjoyed it a lot..Thanks for posting such type of recipe.
rawa kesari is tooooooooo good
I love this dish. Thanks for the recipe!
Hello,
I am thankful for the step by step guide to the recipie with pictures, and its really tempting. I became fond of Kesribath when I was in Bangalore, and today I am through with the procedure and shall try out at home.Another favourite sweet dish is Obattu which is really relishing and I think most of the viewer will appreciate the dish if shown.
Thanks
L.I.Misra
Asst.Professor Dept.of Hotel Management
School of Hotel Management,SOA University
Bhuabneswar
Odisha
thanks a lot. do try the rava kesari. i know about obattu. on the blog there is puran poli – a maharashtrian dish, which is similar to obattu. link here – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/puran-poli-recipe/
I had been trying ravva kesari for many times and it never came out so well. And your recipe helped me a lot to make it look and taste so perfect and just the way my family likes it. Ravva Kesari came out really well. Thanks a lot.
welcome kranthi. nice to know that the rava kesari recipe was helpful to u.
hi dasana.love this recipe.In mauritius, we do this recipe during prayers, and nearly same ingredients and procedures like your recipe, only difference, we heat the semolina until light brown or we buy grilled semolina.I have never tried with ungrilled semolina..will the taste vary with grilled semolina? Anyway, ur recipe seems very good..will give it a try soon and will give the feedback.
by grilled semolina i think you mean pre roasted semolina. the taste will not vary. what you do is heat ghee and just lightly fry the semolina in ghee for a few minutes till they become aroamatic and the ghee starts to release. but don’t brown them. you won’t take long as mentioned in this recipe as here the semolina is not roasted.
So very well presented. The last photograph makes me want to have this now. Keep up the great work.
thanks hema
Dasanna,namaskara & thanks a million for sending such a wonderful & tasty recipes,today i am going to try Rawa halwa,once again thank you very much,please keep posting your latest recipes regularly.
Raju P.M, thanks for the encouraging comment. you can also subscribe to email updates or facebook or twitter to stay updated with latest recipes.
hi dasanna, its very tasty item,wen i hav seen pictures too tempting.thanq u soooooooo much 4 introducing dis recipe..
Welcome Hepsinithya Kaguturi
i tried your rava kesari recipe, it’s my first time cooking and my family loves it thanks 🙂
thanks radhika for the positive feedback on rava kesari recipe.
Hey Dassana,
The recipe is temptating. The sooji has taken the color of kesar…looks yummy. Will definately try this. I have also tried your Papaya halwa which tastes really good. On seeing the halwa everyone at home thought its a carrot halwa. Thanks for sharing.
the rava kesari is too good. do try it pratiksha. and thanks for the feedback on papaya halwa… it has become a favorite at home too.
You pictures are tempting particularly when it is a dessert ! i am totally in to the picture ! awesome !
thanks aparna