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Egyptian

Roz bel laban (Egyptian rice pudding)

Vegetarian

رز بلبن · roz bel laban

Creamy, lightly sweet rice pudding slowly cooked in milk with vanilla, served chilled with nuts or a dusting of cinnamon. One of Egypt's best-loved everyday desserts.

Roz bel laban (Egyptian rice pudding) is an Egyptian dessert, ready in about 2 hours 50 minutes and made with short-grain rice and milk. It serves 6 and is rated beginner to cook.

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Creamy rice pudding topped with juicy cherries on a blue plate.
Photo: Gundula Vogel / Pexels · Pexels License
Prep
5 min
Cook
45 min
Rest
2 h
Total
2 h 50 min
Serves
6
Level
Beginner
Calories
225

Ingredients

6 servings

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Simmer the rice in the water in a heavy saucepan (opens in a new tab) until the water is almost absorbed.

    A curry simmering in a pot
    How it looks · Photo: Bachir Mamud on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Pour in the milk (opens in a new tab) and bring just to a simmer. Cook gently, stirring often and scraping the bottom, until the rice is very soft and the milk has thickened.

    • 30 min
    • low heat

    Stir more often towards the end — milk catches easily.

  3. Step 3

    Stir in the sugar (opens in a new tab), salt and the cornstarch (opens in a new tab) slurry, if using, and simmer for 3–5 minutes until it coats a spoon.

    • 5 min
    • low heat

  4. Step 4

    Off the heat, stir in the vanilla (opens in a new tab) and rose water (opens in a new tab). Pour into small bowls; it will thicken as it cools.

    • 2 min

  5. Step 5

    Cool, then chill for at least 2 hours. Top with pistachios (opens in a new tab) or cinnamon (opens in a new tab) before serving.

    About this dish

    Origin
    Egypt · Commonly attributedMilk-and-rice puddings are made across the Middle East and beyond; this name and style are characteristically Egyptian.More food from Egypt
    Dish
    Dessert · Snack · Desserts
    Cooking method
    Simmered, Boiled
    Taste
    sweet, creamy, mild
    Diet
    Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No gluten ingredients
    All labelsVegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · No gluten ingredients · Egg-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Low-fat · Low-sodium
    Without the optional extras: No nut ingredientsWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
    Good for
    Make-ahead · Child-friendly · Budget-friendly
    Cook more with
    Short-grain rice · Milk · Sugar · Vanilla extract
    Techniques
    Boiling · Simmering

    Allergens

    • Contains: Milkfrom milk
    • Contains, can be adapted: Tree nutsfrom pistachios

    Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

    Nutrition

    225 kcal per serving

    Calculated

    1 serving ≈ 246 g · recipe makes 6

    Where the energy comes from

    • Protein 12%
    • Carbohydrate 65%
    • Fat 23%
    Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
    NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
    Energy225 kcal91 kcal
    Protein6.5 g2.6 g
    Carbohydrate36.5 g14.9 g
    Net carbohydrate——
    Sugars——
    Added sugars15 g6.1 g
    Fibre——
    Fat5.7 g2.3 g
    Saturated fat3.2 g1.3 g
    Trans fat——
    Cholesterol17 mg7 mg
    Sodium101 mg41 mg
    Salt equivalent0.3 g0.1 g
    Vitamins & minerals per serving
    Potassium
    241 mg
    Calcium
    199 mg
    Iron
    0.2 mg
    Magnesium
    22 mg
    Vitamin A (RAE)
    —
    Vitamin C
    0 mg
    Vitamin D
    2.2 µg
    Vitamin B12
    0.8 µg
    Folate (DFE)
    10 µg

    How these numbers were made

    • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
    • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
    • Optional ingredients are not included: cornstarch, rose water, pistachios, cinnamon.
    • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
    • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

    Good to know

    Tips

    • Cooking the rice in water first softens the grains before the milk goes in, which shortens stirring time.

    Common mistakes

    • Cooking on high heat — the milk scorches and gives a burnt taste.

    Serve with

    • Serve cold, or bake briefly under a hot grill to brown the top (roz bel laban fel forn).

    Storage

    • Refrigerate, covered, up to 3 days.

    Variations

    • Oven-browned: Pour into clay pots and brown under a hot grill until spotted on top.

    Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

    Recipe DNA

    How this dish is built

    Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

    What the dish is built around

    Main ingredient

    Used in steps 1, 2

    Reviews & corrections

    Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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