This creamy rice pudding infused with cinnamon flavour and pops of plump sultanas is just heavenly!! It’s an effortless, straightforward recipe that’s the perfect cosy dessert for cold winter nights.
Serve it plain, straight out of the pot, or take it over the top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!
Creamy Rice Pudding
I am pretty sure this is the ultimate emergency cosy winter dessert.
It takes all of 5 minutes to prep.
It’s completely effortless – just pour everything into a baking dish, then pop it in the oven.
It’s extremely low risk – all sorts of outcome variables are easy to rectify and adjust.
There’s no need to fuss with compotes or other toppings – it is really really good straight out of the pot as is (unlike plain rice pudding which I find desperately needs a fruit compote or something to dress it up).
And it’s terrifically economical, calling for just a handful of ingredients!
What goes in Cinnamon Rice Pudding
Here’s what you need to make this cinnamon Rice Pudding:
The best rice for rice pudding – medium grain white rice or risotto rice
The rice type is really important for the desired outcome (she says wearily, after having tried 10 or so batches using various rice types – half the Northern Beaches have received samples of various versions I’ve made over the past few weeks!)
Medium grain rice – In my view, the best rice (by a long shot) is medium grain white rice, uncooked. It makes a creamy rice pudding with rice grains that are soft but not mushy (read: baby food). The rice and creamy sauce meld together beautifully, becoming one BUT without being mush. It’s certainly the benchmark for upscale restaurants.
Risotto rice (arborio rice) is just as good – but requires more liquid and takes slightly longer to cook.
Jasmine rice & short grain rice – If you want quite soft rice (softer but not mush), then short grain white rice or jasmine rice is the go.
Long grain rice – If you want firm rice grains, then use long grain white rice. In my personal opinion, it doesn’t have as nice a mouthfeel because the rice grains don’t “meld” with the sauce – there is too great a textural contrast. The thing with long grain rice is that here is no in between – it’s either firm or if overcooked it breaks down into unpleasant mush. We want the middle ground that medium grain rice can deliver!
Brown rice really isn’t to my taste – it’s just too firm for rice pudding.
Basmati rice – I haven’t tried it with basmati rice because I don’t associate the flavour with rice pudding, but I suspect it will be like long grain.
Rice needs to be uncooked – because stirring the raw rice as it cooks loosens the starch which is what thickens the milk mixture to make the sauce creamy. And this is the reason why it is illegal to stir when cooking rice for meals – because we want fluffy rice for our stir fries, we don’t want to make the cooking water creamy!
Cooked rice won’t yield the same creamy texture and also the rice texture isn’t as nice – it’s either firm or mush, you just can’t achieve the perfect soft texture you want for rice pudding.
And a quick note on the other ingredients!
Milk – any fat % is fine. I haven’t tried with non dairy but see no reason why it wouldn’t work. Coconut milk also works great but I’d change the flavour profile (see recipe notes for adjustments);
Butter – a good smear on the baking dish for flavour and stop it catching on the sides;
Sugar – I only use 1/3 cup which isn’t a lot given it makes about 5 cups of pudding. I’d say this rice pudding borders on “just sweet enough”, definitely not too sweet;
Cream – just a bit, stirred through at the end, to add a subtle richness to the mouthfeel and also makes the sauce whiter (it comes out a bit brown from the cinnamon). Sub with butter – it has a similar effect;
Sultanas or raisins – I find 1/2 cup is enough which doesn’t sound like a lot but you will be surprised how much it swells!
How to make rice pudding – in the oven
A notorious problem with stovetop rice pudding is that it catches on the base of the pot due to the sugar. So stovetop recipes call for constant stirring, like with risottos.
Scratch that.
Just bake it. So much easier, just as creamy. Dump and bake, and stir just twice during the bake time.
What to serve with Cinnamon Rice Pudding
If it’s a plain vanilla rice pudding (and you can totally do that by leaving out the cinnamon and sultanas in this recipe) then I really feel like you need a fruit compote or similar to put on top to turn it into a dessert that I can get really excited about. (Try the Strawberry Sauce in this Cheesecake).
But with just a little bit of cinnamon and sultanas, it takes the bland into OMG this is sooooo good! territory which is where I always like my food to be. 😂
Then to take it over the top, try it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. In my simple mind, this takes it from a quick dessert for a family meal, to guest worthy. It’s that addictive combination of warm and cold that we love with all our favourite cosy desserts, like Apple Crumble, Chocolate Pudding, Butterscotch Pudding.
Effortless cosy food. It’s got my name written all over it! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Creamy Cinnamon Rice Pudding (really easy!)
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter , for greasing
- 4 cups milk (full or reduced fat, Note 1)
- 1/3 cup white sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup medium grain white rice, uncooked – definitely the best for rice pudding (Note 2)
- 1/2 cup sultanas or raisins (Note 3)
- 3/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 cup cream , thickened/heavy (or bit of butter)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (all types).
- Grease a 10 cup+ casserole dish with butter.
- Place milk, sugar and vanilla in a saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring to dissolve the sugar, until the surface is foamy – do not boil, it will split.
- Place rice, sultanas and cinnamon in baking dish. Pour over milk, give it a brief stir then cover with lid or foil.
- Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes to break up the rice that starts to set on the base.
- After 1 hour, remove from oven and add cream. Give it a good stir – it will look a bit watery straight out of the oven but it evaporates quickly. I like mine creamy so it oozes when you serve it.
- Serve immediately, just as is or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream if you want to take it over the top!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
More Cosy Desserts
Warm, cosy desserts for cold winter nights!
Life of Dozer
Wondering if he should clean up that dollop of rice pudding on the bench… the answer is NO! His cleaning duties are restricted to floor level only. 😂
Do you think this could be made in a slow cooker ?
Hi Dottie – I imagine so, I would need to test it though! N x
Can I make this with left over cooked rice?
No sorry – you need the starch that’s released from the rice when cooking to thicken up the milk and make it creamy 🙂
Takes me back to my childhood!! I love rice pudding. Haven’t had it in years. I’ll be making this, for sure! I like the oven vs the stove top, too. Thanks Nagi!
Love to know what you think Leslie!! N x
This is over the top in just simple delicious goodness! My only regret, I didn’t double this recipe….my boys literally licked the bowl clean! Just started a second batch (doubled the recipe this time)…my boys are sitting in front of the oven window looking at the pudding cooking like it is a T.V. screen…not so patiently waiting (a little pushing and poking each other) for it to be done….my youngest has his spoon in hand with great anticipation I am sure! Thank you for making my day a HAPPY!
I’m so glad it’s a hit Mug, that’s great to hear!! N x
Loved it. I learned this dish as a teenager with evaporated milk. Yours is delicious but I did add a pinch of salt. 😊
Sounds decadent Kerry! N x
I love all your recipes Nagi and always look here first for inspiration. Haven’t tried this lush rice pudding yet but it’s in my list. Growing up in UK years ago rice pud was always a favourite often with sultanas and always with full cream milk or evaporated milk (carnation) a pantry stable and cheap! The rice pudding always had a dark skin on it (we called it wallpaper because you could peel it off!!) Sometimes a bit if a fight as to who got the most wallpaper. It was alway cooked in the oven. Do you think this skin was the nutmeg or because it was never covered or had a lid. I want to recreate that wallpaper but don’t know how mum did it.
Hi Molly cooking without a lid will get a golden top and provide the skin you’re talking about, however don’t stir once you’ve removed it from the oven 🙂 N x
Oh goodie can’t wait to make it Thanks Nagi. 😊
The skin always formed on mine when I used Carnation Milk but the nutmeg sprinked on top before putting it in the oven gives it the Brown colour and a lovely taste.
Thanks Ann. Now I know how to recreate the wallpaper effect. Yum. Molly 😊
Can I use sushi rice?
Hi Sulis, yes I talk about short grain rice in the post 🙂 N x
Looks utterly delicious Nagi (as always), this one some more because it’s a rice pudding. Can I make this in a gas oven, I face a lot of problems with the cook time using it.
Hi Merl, I imagine you can – however I’m unsure how your oven behaves so just keep an eye on it – N x
Just made this. It was delish!! Added a little bit of ground cloves. Thank you for all your wonderful recipes, Nagi! We haven’t found a bad one yet!
Sounds fabulous Samantha!! N x
Try your ( cinnamon ) rice pudding over stewed apples or plumbs mmmmmmm….
Yum! A great combo Brian! N x
This was a lifesaver tonight, couldn’t think of what to have that was quick & easy, then your email arrived, problem solved and it was just delicious, although I used a little less cinnamon
I’m so glad you loved it Judith! N x
What is medium grain rice? Sushi rice? In Canada what would medium grain rice be called? Thanks
Hi Nancy, sushi rice is a short grain rice. Medium rice is labelled as “medium grain” – if you can’t find it you can always use one of the alternatives I talk about in the notes 🙂 N x
UNICO makes Italian style rice which is medium grain. Superstore carries it here.
That rice pudding is the best very Morish .Dozer is very cute I just love him.🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰
Thanks so much Carol! N x
My mother was a pathetic cook, sad but true, yet one of the few dishes she did master, was rice pudding. Sometimes we had sultanas in it and sometimes none at all. I preferred it without. We always had either cinnamon or nutmeg sprinkled on top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Thanks for the happy memory. I will certainly be making this during the winter season. Thanks
I love hearing this Anneissa33!! N x