Perfect Greek Rice Pudding (Risogalo)

 

Updated post. Greeks adore their rice pudding and this sweet offering can be found at zacharoplastia (dessert shops) in Greece and Cyprus as well and is made in Greek homes the world over. Greek rice pudding hits differently for me, it’s that mix of sweet nostalgia with the literal sweet pudding!

The unique Greek flavours are lemon peel, cinnamon and rosewater. You can experiment with different milks too.

Let me know if you try this.

Ingredients:

500 ml full fat milk or plant milk of your choosing (I like oat)
75g sugar
125g short-grain pudding rice, rinsed
Peel of one lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
pinch of salt
3 egg yolks
25g cornflour
ground cinnamon
rosewater

Method:

Place the rice in saucepan with 300ml of water. Cook over a medium uncovered, stirring continuously until the rice has absorbed all the water, about 10 minutes.

Put the milk and sugar with the lemon peel in a saucepan with a heavy base and warm through, stirring.

Add the warm milk to the rice and a pinch of salt and cook on a gentle heat, covered until the rice has absorbed all the milk about 20 minutes.

Remove from the heat and leave it to rest for 10 minutes before adding the vanilla essence and the egg yolks and cornflour mixed with 2 tablespoons of milk.

Return the saucepan to the heat and cook over a low heat for a further 2-3 minutes to thicken.

Take the saucepan off the heat and pour the rice pudding into individual bowls or dishes.

When cold, sprinkle generously with cinnamon and a few drops of rosewater if you prefer.

Risagalo is known to taste better when served cold. I prefer it hot and use plant-based milk and especially oat milk when I make mine as it’s so creamy!

Photographs ©Peter Broadbent.

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