Lebanese Rice Pudding (Riz bi Haleeb)
A silky, chilled milk pudding thickened with a little cornstarch and perfumed with orange blossom water, finished with a scatter of crushed pistachios. Simple pantry ingredients, but the texture is pure luxury.
Servings
Ingredients
Nutrition
Per serving
Steps
Rinse the rice
Put the rice in a sieve and rinse under cold running water, swirling with your hand, until the water runs clear instead of cloudy.
- 100 g rice
✅ Done when: the rinsing water runs clear
Cook the rice
Put the rinsed rice and the water in a heavy-bottomed pot. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer uncovered, stirring now and then, until the rice is very soft and just starting to fall apart. This breaks down the starch so the finished pudding feels silky, not grainy.
- 100 g rice (from step 1)
- 300 ml water
✅ Done when: the rice is very soft and the grains are breaking apart
Add milk and sugar
Stir in the whole milk and the sugar. Bring back to a gentle simmer over low heat and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring often so a skin doesn't form on top and nothing catches on the bottom.
- 1 litre whole milk
- 100 g sugar
✅ Done when: the mixture looks like a thin, milky porridge
Thicken with cornstarch
In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with the cold water until completely smooth with no lumps. Pour it into the pot in a steady stream while whisking, then cook on low heat, stirring constantly — this is the step that makes the pudding silky, so don't stop stirring or it will catch at the bottom. Cook until it visibly thickens and coats the back of a spoon.
- 30 g cornstarch
- 50 ml cold water
✅ Done when: the pudding coats a spoon and looks like thick custard; it will thicken a little more as it cools
Scent with orange blossom
Take the pot off the heat and stir in the orange blossom water and the salt. Adding it off the heat keeps its delicate scent from cooking away. Taste: it should smell fragrant and floral, not soapy — if it's faint, add a little more, a teaspoon at a time.
- 2 tbsp orange blossom water
- 1 pinch salt
Pour and chill
Divide the pudding among 6 small bowls or glasses. Let cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, until softly set like a thick custard.
✅ Done when: the pudding is cold and holds its shape softly when the bowl is tilted
Top and serve
Just before serving, sprinkle each pudding generously with the crushed pistachios.
- 30 g crushed pistachios
Rinse the rice
Put the rice in a sieve and rinse under cold running water, swirling with your hand, until the water runs clear instead of cloudy.
- 100 g rice
✅ Done when: the rinsing water runs clear
Cook the rice
Put the rinsed rice and the water in a heavy-bottomed pot. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer uncovered, stirring now and then, until the rice is very soft and just starting to fall apart. This breaks down the starch so the finished pudding feels silky, not grainy.
- 100 g rice (from step 1)
- 300 ml water
✅ Done when: the rice is very soft and the grains are breaking apart
Add milk and sugar
Stir in the whole milk and the sugar. Bring back to a gentle simmer over low heat and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring often so a skin doesn't form on top and nothing catches on the bottom.
- 1 litre whole milk
- 100 g sugar
✅ Done when: the mixture looks like a thin, milky porridge
Thicken with cornstarch
In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with the cold water until completely smooth with no lumps. Pour it into the pot in a steady stream while whisking, then cook on low heat, stirring constantly — this is the step that makes the pudding silky, so don't stop stirring or it will catch at the bottom. Cook until it visibly thickens and coats the back of a spoon.
- 30 g cornstarch
- 50 ml cold water
✅ Done when: the pudding coats a spoon and looks like thick custard; it will thicken a little more as it cools
Scent with orange blossom
Take the pot off the heat and stir in the orange blossom water and the salt. Adding it off the heat keeps its delicate scent from cooking away. Taste: it should smell fragrant and floral, not soapy — if it's faint, add a little more, a teaspoon at a time.
- 2 tbsp orange blossom water
- 1 pinch salt
Pour and chill
Divide the pudding among 6 small bowls or glasses. Let cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, until softly set like a thick custard.
✅ Done when: the pudding is cold and holds its shape softly when the bowl is tilted
Top and serve
Just before serving, sprinkle each pudding generously with the crushed pistachios.
- 30 g crushed pistachios
The Story Behind the Dish
Milk puddings thickened with rice or cornstarch have been made across the Levant for centuries, and orange blossom water — distilled from the blossoms of bitter orange trees grown throughout the region — became the signature scent of Lebanese sweets, from this pudding to ashta and syrup-soaked pastries.
Riz bi haleeb is an everyday dessert in Lebanese homes, served chilled in small bowls after a meal or offered to guests, often finished with crushed pistachios, almonds, or a dusting of ground cinnamon.
⭐ Why It's Famous
It's prized for its silky, delicate texture and its floral orange blossom aroma, a hallmark of Lebanese and wider Levantine milk desserts.
💡 Fun Fact
Orange blossom water and rose water are the two defining aromatics of Levantine sweets, and Lebanese cooks often keep both bottles on hand just for desserts like this one.
Lebanon, especially Beirut and the coastal towns
33.89°N, 35.50°E
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