Ingredients

½ cup pistachios (pista), shelled

1 full-fat milk

½ cup sugar

4 green cardamom pods (elakkai)

1 pinch saffron

10 pistachios, slivered, to garnish

1 tbsp ghee

Directions

Blanch the pistachios in hot water for ten minutes, drain, and rub off the skins - this is what keeps the payasam green.
Grind them with two tablespoons of warm milk to a smooth paste.
Bring the milk to a boil, then simmer until it reduces by about a quarter.
Add the sugar and stir until it dissolves.
Lower the heat and stir in the pistachio paste. Cook for 4-5 minutes without letting it boil hard.
Add the crushed cardamom and saffron, take the pan off the heat.
Heat the ghee and lightly fry the slivered pistachios for the garnish, and scatter over the top.

Made with Pista (pistachios) — what it is, what it is called in Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam and Telugu, and how it is used in South Indian cooking.