First, we are going to OVER cook the rice in boiling water for 10-12 minutes, until they get really soft and mushy.

Next, strain the rice and with the back of a fork, mash it well until it resembles oatmeal.
Next, heat up milk in a stainless steel deep saucepan and let it come to a gentle simmer.

Open the cardamom pods and add it to the milk. (Once Kheer is done, you can simply take out the husk since we're only using 5 pods.) Next add the rice and sugar. The rice will be clumpy but as it cooks, it will break down.

Now on very low heat, cook the Kheer for 3 hours. Make sure you stir every once in a while. The milk will inevitably catch at the bottom so make sure you use a stainless steel pot because if you use a non-stick saucepan, the brown bits will peel off as you stir and distribute throughout the Kheer. That would be gross!

After 3 hours of slow cooking, the Kheer will have thickened. It should fall in little clumps from the spatula (see the video for clarity).
Immediately pour in terracotta bowls and garnish with crushed nuts. The skin that forms on the surface is the BEST part!