• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Pakistan Eats

  • Recipe Index
  • About
  • Subscribe
  • Features
  • Collections
  • Navigation Menu: Social Icons

    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipe Index
  • About
  • Collections
  • Features
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipe Index
    • About
    • Collections
    • Features
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » Sweets

    Seviyan (Vermicelli Pudding)

    October 9, 2020 by Maryam Jillani 19 Comments

    seviyan-landscape
    Jump to Recipe

    One of the first desserts that most Pakistani blogs share is seviyan, a vermicelli pudding. It’s a classic sub-continent sweet that emerges every Eid, so it’s only fair that it’s one of the first desserts that expat Pakistanis learn to make. What is great about seviyan is that because every household does it differently, there is no wrong way to prepare it. In essence, it is fried wheat vermicelli simmered in milk. There are however, dozens variations from household to household - from how long you decide to simmer the vermicelli in milk in to the choice of dry fruit.

    seviyan-angle

    The recipe shared below is my mother’s. My mother’s family is originally from Ludhiana in Eastern Punjab, India, and they migrated to Jhelum in Pakistan during Partition. My mother grew up in, and spent most of her life in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. The recipe shared below therefore, has very strong Punjabi roots. I would love to hear how about how your family prepares it, and where they are from.

    Most of my mother’s family recipes are quite simple. It’s in part a reflection of her childhood and upbringing. She was one of eight and so her mother, my nani jan, did not have the bandwidth for extremely time consuming, layered recipes. But her dishes still hit all the right traditional notes, as they do with this simple seviyan recipe.

    seviyan-vertical

    This recipe can be seen as a basic template for seviyan. It only utilizes the core set of ingredients: vermicelli, milk, sugar and cardamom. You can always add additional layers to give the dish more depth – saffron, more dry fruit etc. Some households prefer to have their seviyan simmered in milk for a long time, making the vermicelli soft. My mother and I prefer it to have some bite so we don’t let it cook for that long. I also am a little conservative with my choice of dry fruit and prefer to stick with almonds but you feel free to play around.

    Seviyan (Vermicelli Pudding)

    Seviyan, a vermicelli pudding, is a popular Pakistani dessert that nearly every family prepares dutifully on Eid.
    5 from 4 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Cook Time 20 mins
    Total Time 20 mins
    Course Dessert

    Ingredients
      

    • 4 tablespoon canola oil or ghee
    • 6 cardamom pods
    • 1 packet of seviyan, approximately 150 gram (vermicelli noodles, available in specialty Indian/Pakistani grocery stores)
    • 2 liters whole milk
    • ¾ cup sugar

    Instructions
     

    • Heat oil in a large stockpot. Once it begins to shimmer, add cardamom pods and fry for about 30 seconds.
    • Add vermicelli. On medium heat, fry vermicelli till it browns slightly, approximately 2 – 2/1/2 minutes.
    • Lower heat, slowly add milk and then, bring to a boil. Add sugar and stir till it dissolves.
    • When the milk begins to bubble, lower heat and keep stirring till you get the desired texture, about 15 - 20 minutes. The milk should thicken and the sawaiyyan should retain some bite.
    • Place in serving bowl and let it cool at room temperature. Top with slivered almonds.

    Notes

    There are many variations to sawaiyyan. Many like to cook it for a lot longer (one hour or more). In my home, we like it when sawaiyyan still have some bite and so prefer not to cook them too much. Play around with the recipe and see what you like!

     

    Tweet
    Share
    Pin64
    Share40
    104 Shares

    More Sweets

    • Zeera Biscuits (Cumin Biscuits)
    • Suji Ka Halwa (Semolina Pudding)
    • Parsi Wedding Custard (Lagan Nu)
    • Modern Shahi Tukray (Bread Pudding)

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Svet Tour.Com

      April 04, 2020 at 1:45 am

      salaams.. thank u so much for the recipes. would like to know what i can substitute instead of evaporated milk dnt have that ?thank u

      Reply
      • pakistaneats

        April 05, 2020 at 8:08 am

        Hello! You just need regular plain milk that you need to cook down. Hope this helps.

        Reply
    2. Maha

      June 24, 2020 at 10:13 pm

      5 stars
      Hi there. Would I get a good result if using regular vermicelli instead (not quite as fine as the one called for in your recipe)?
      Thank You

      Reply
      • pakistaneats

        June 25, 2020 at 1:56 pm

        Hi! So it should be vermicelli that is made out of flour, not the one that's made out of rice. Hope that's helpful.

        Reply
    3. Dennis Yannakos

      October 15, 2020 at 5:08 am

      What a brilliant idea! It looks exceptional! Thank you for the recipe, I gonna try it soon!
      Kitchen Utensils

      Reply
    4. Terry

      May 15, 2021 at 6:21 pm

      My neighbor shared debutant with our family. I am so happy to find this recipe! It is delicious!

      Reply
      • Terry

        May 15, 2021 at 6:22 pm

        I meant to say seviyan

        Reply
    5. Marcia

      October 29, 2021 at 4:42 pm

      I think that Guyana's Vamazelli was originaled from this recipe, as They have many decendents from India. I thought ir was from Italy, as italians are spaghetti lovers. As a kid My mom would make Vamazelli for us, we loved it. Later on My family migrated to a spanish speaking country where sweet spaghetti is an imposible. But I kept My traditions and My kids love Vamazelli.

      Reply
    6. pakistaneats

      October 30, 2021 at 1:06 am

      That's fascinating. I had no idea about this Guyanese dish - thanks for sharing!

      Reply
    7. Samina

      November 05, 2021 at 6:55 am

      5 stars
      I love this recipe and make it every year for Eid!

      Reply
    8. Jacob

      December 02, 2021 at 11:55 am

      5 stars
      A favourite in my mother’s repertoire of desserts. This recipe is an authentic seviyan recipe with scope for improvising on the choice of dried fruit and nuts. Excellent.

      Reply
    9. Sam

      March 28, 2022 at 8:53 am

      Can I use vermicelli made out of sooji? I bought a vermicelli from a Sri Lankan store. It is white in colour. Will it become brown if I roast it? Is 100gms enough for 4 servings?

      Reply
      • pakistaneats

        March 29, 2022 at 1:05 am

        Hi Sam - yes, you can use vermicelli made out of suji. It will brown but it may take a bit longer and the final texture will be a bit different. 100 grams should definitely be enough for 4 servings. Good luck!

        Reply
    10. Abz

      July 02, 2022 at 3:58 pm

      Interesting when I search it up it says it's a Bengali dessert, not pakistani.

      Reply
      • pakistaneats

        July 04, 2022 at 2:26 am

        It's also very popular in Pakistan 🙂

        Reply
    11. Mamta

      January 15, 2023 at 1:13 am

      5 stars
      I will definitely try. Can you give us the measurements of vermicelli in cups?
      Thanks.

      Reply

    Trackbacks

    1. Modern Shahi Tukray (Bread Pudding) - Pakistan Eats says:
      June 28, 2022 at 1:02 am

      […] Seviyan (vermicelli pudding) […]

      Reply
    2. Happy Eid Wishes In Urdu: 10+ Memorable Ways – branding.ling-app.com says:
      September 25, 2022 at 5:25 pm

      […] dress up in new attire on the first day of Eid al Fitr. The day begins with a light breakfast of Vermicelli, which consists of fine wheat noodles combined with […]

      Reply
    3. Happy Eid Wishes In Urdu: 10+ Memorable Ways - Ling App says:
      November 16, 2022 at 4:22 am

      […] dress up in new attire on the first day of Eid al Fitr. The day begins with a light breakfast of Vermicelli, which consists of fine wheat noodles combined with […]

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    About Me

    Hi! I'm Maryam, an international educator and food writer, excited about bringing you traditional Pakistani recipes from across the country. Learn more.

    Trending Recipes

    • Masoor Ki Daal (Red Lentils)
    • Seviyan (Vermicelli Pudding)
    • Palak Gosht (Mutton Curry with Spinach)

    Fall Recipes

    • Palak Gosht (Mutton Curry with Spinach)
    • Rafia's Pakistani Style Ginger Chicken
    • Black-Eyed Peas with Spinach and Dill
    • Kaali Daal (Black Lentils)

    Reader Favorites

    • Nur's Borani Banjan (Eggplant with Yogurt)
    • Kali Mirch Chicken (Black Pepper Chicken)
    • Karela Sabzi (Bitter Melon Vegetable)
    • Masoor Ki Daal (Red Lentils)

    Footer

    ↑ back to top