Although she's a less-than-ideal future daughter-in-law for Sumit’s Indian parents, 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way’s Jenny Slatten seems be an ace in the kitchen. Sumit, who has been part-timing as a chef to support his American lover, has been teaching Jenny quite a few kitchen tricks during quarantine. While the latest 90 Day Fiancé episode cooked up a literal storm with Sumit's parents arriving at his house, the kheer Jenny dished up is attracting more attention!
It’s been a two-season long journey for Jenny, 62, and Sumit, 31. The first season saw Palm Springs native Jenny pack her bags and head to India for a second time to be with her catfishing love, Sumit. Upon moving, Jenny was scammed by Sumit, who was already married and living dual lives. A devastated Jenny then flew back home before returning this season to a Sumit who now finally has a divorce. Still, Jenny and Sumit have to convince his parents to support their relationship, and they seem to be unwavering in their thoughts about her being twice his age. Still, Jenny is trying her best to mend things – starting from the stove! The American grandma, who 90 Day Fiancé fans love most when she’s decked out in Indian “salwar-suits,” has also been working on mastering her kheer in the kitchen.
The latest episode of 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way had Jenny chopping nuts for a dish Sumit’s mother always made for him. “Tell me if it’s too sweet?” asked Jenny. “Everything is perfect,” replied Sumit. Jenny was preparing the “kheer,” a rice pudding that’s a quintessential dessert flavored with cardamom, nuts, and rose water, ideally prepared to finish off an Indian meal. Dawn notes that, according to food historian K.T. Achaya, when kheer is prepared as a ritual food, “the rice is first lightly fried in ghee before boiling with sweetened milk until thickened." The first mention of the dessert is derived from the Sanskrit word “kshirika” meaning “a dish prepared with milk” from the fourteenth-century Padmavat of Gujarat, though this is not rice pudding, but "a sweet preparation of jowar and milk,” mentions Indian Express.
Interestingly, as IndianExpress writes, 90 Day Fiancé’s Sumit’s favorite dish traces its roots back to the Romans, who used rice pudding as a detox diet, and the Persians, who introduced their version, “the firni,” to India. They were “the first ones to introduce the use of rose water and dry fruits in the dish, which till then was made by boiling rice first and then adding milk.” Iran and Afghanistan, too, have their famous “shola,” and a baked rice pudding also makes an appearance in the 1596 book Dining With William Shakespeare. In India, kheer, also known as payasam, is most famous for its religious association, with the white color “seen as a symbol of purity and divinity.” The temple of Jagannath Puri in Orissa uses it as their famous “kheer prasad,” or blessed food.
Today, it is said that a wedding is not fully blessed if kheer is not served during the tradition, and the custom is still practiced by newlyweds in India. Perhaps making kheer for her miffed future mother-in-law was Jenny’s way of impressing her and sweetening their ties. The meeting between Sumit’s parents and Jenny might not have gone as planned, but, who knows – maybe once they taste Jenny’s kheer, Anil and Sahna might just give Sumit their blessings for a wedding.
90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way airs Sundays at 8 pm ET on TLC.
Source: Dawn, Indian Express, My Food Story