Kolukattai Recipe | Pooranam Kozhukattai Recipe | Modak Recipe
Kolukattai Recipe | Pooranam
Kozhukattai Recipe | Modak Recipe | Ganesh Chaturthi Sweet Kolukattai
Kolukattai (aka Kozhukattai) in Tamil is an Indian sweet popular in many parts of India. The sweet filling on the inside of a modak(in Hindi) consists of freshly grated coconut, fried gram, groundnut, jaggery and cardamom for some extra flavor. The outer soft shell is made from rice flour.
The steamed kolukattai is called ukadiche modak and is often eaten hot. This variation is especially prepared during the time of Ganesh Festival.
They are handmade and cooked in a steamer/idly cooker. They are perishable and need to be consumed immediately.
Traditional Indian sweet dumpling is prepared with rice flour dough and coconut – jaggery stuffing is mainly served to lord ganesha during vinayagar chaturthi festival.
For all those who haven’t tried making kozhukattai before, you can start with this simplest way of making sweet kozhukattai. It cannot go wrong.
The procedure might look tedious, but its absolutely very simple.
You need not worry about the shape. You may simply flatten the rice flour dough, stuff it with the prepared sweet and place another flattened rice flour dough. Now, press/seal the sides. This could make your work simpler.
To make it even more simpler: try to use any modak/kolukattai mould(to shape) of your choice and your done.
Generally, the modak’s are steamed in idly steamer, but it can also be fried. Nowadays, there are several variations to the traditional kolukattai/modak recipe. The Coconut jaggery version is the most popular variety.
Kolukattai Recipe Preparation – Step by Step
For Outer Soft Layer
- In a bowl- Add rice flour and salt and combine well. Then add water (at room temperature) little by little and give it a good mix until no lumps are found. Use a whisk to break the lumps easily. Do NOT add water all at once, doing so will form too many lumps.
- Add water until it forms a milky consistency. i.e, it should be in a pouring consistency like milk. Refer Video & image attached. Keep aside.
- In a kadai -[Medium Flame] – Add oil (gingelly/sesame oil- gives you a very good flavor). Now pour the Rice flour batter into the kadai. Give it a mix once before pouring into the kadai, as the rice flour settles at the bottom of the bowl. Keep stirring continuously. Just don’t stop stirring else it might form lumps before getting cooked well.
- You will notice that the batter starts thickening. Continue stirring. Starts forming lumps. Slightly try to mash the lumps with the back of the spoon.
- Thickens faster. Continue stirring. Combine all the batter from the sides and keep mashing the lumps. {Medium Flame]
- Starts forming a thick dough. Doesn’t stick to the pan. Try to combine it as one dough.
- Forms slightly less thick dough than chapathi dough. Turn off the flame.
- Cover and keep it aside until you prepare the sweet stuffing or for about 15-20 minutes. Let it absorb the moisture due to the heated dough, which prevents it from drying. NOTE: Do Not leave it open.
For Sweet Stuffing
- In another bowl – Add all the ingredients mentioned above and in the exact measurement for the sweet stuffing.
- Combine the ingredients well and keep aside.
- Grease your hands with gingelly oil, knead the rice flour dough for about 5 minutes. Make sure the dough is at least warm and NOT dry/cold. So you need to be really quick in making this recipe to get them perfect.
- Grease hands again, take little dough like you make for puri/poori. And make small round balls.
- Using your fingers, try to spread or flatten the dough. Form cup shaped dough/ or just flatten as poori’s. Make sure you have flattened it thick, making it thin will leave cracks and the sweet stuffing will come out after you steam it. NOTE: You may also use moulds to prepare this modak. This method make your work even more simpler.
- Now place the sweet stuffing in the middle and start bring the edges together at the centre to form like a pyramid.
- Press gently to get the pyramid shape and make sure the edges are intact and the sweet stuffing doesn’t come out. Refer image/video attached. NOTE: You can also just place the stuffing in the middle, and then just fold into half and make a semicircle shape modak/kolukattai. Make sure you press the edges to seal them.
- In an idly cooker/steamer – Pour water like you do for preparing idlies. Bring it to a boil, now place all the modak/kolukattai’s in the idly plate over a damp cloth/grease idly plate. I prefer damp cloth.
- Cover and steam for 12-15 minutes. Just touch with your fingers on the sides of the modak to check if it is cooked well. Your fingers should come clean and the rice batter should not stick. Turn off once cooked.
- Do NOT remove from the plate immediately, just keep it aside until it cools completely. Once cooled, remove from plate and enjoy the taste!!!
- Tastes super awesome when consumed hot !!!
Also try:
- Homemade Ghee from Butter
- Peanut Brittle | Groundnut Chikki Recipe – Healthy & Tasty
- Sesame Ladoo | Ellu Urundai | Til Chikki Recipe
Ingredients
- For Outer Soft Layer
- 1 tbsp Oil ( Gingelly/Nalla ennai )
- 2 cups Rice Flour (arisi maavu)
- 2 pinch Salt ( Uppu )
- Water ( Thanni ) - ( as required according to consistency)
- For Sweet Stuffing
- 2 cups Jaggery (Vellam)
- 1/2 cup Peanut/Groundnut (verkadalai) - (Dry roasted & Crushed)
- 1/2 cup Fried gram ( Pottu Kadalai ) - (Crushed)
- 1/2 cup Coconut (Thengai) - (Grated)
- 1 tsp Cardamom (Elakkai) - (Crushed or powdered)
Instructions
For Outer Soft Layer
- In a bowl- Add rice flour and salt and combine well. Then add water (at room temperature) little by little and give it a good mix until no lumps are found. Use a whisk to break the lumps easily. Do NOT add water all at once, doing so will form too many lumps.
- Add water until it forms a milky consistency. i.e, it should be in a pouring consistency like milk. Refer Video & image attached. Keep aside.
- In a kadai -[Medium Flame] - Add oil (gingelly/sesame oil- gives you a very good flavor). Now pour the Rice flour batter into the kadai. Give it a mix once before pouring into the kadai, as the rice flour settles at the bottom of the bowl. Keep stirring continuously. Just don't stop stirring else it might form lumps before getting cooked well.
- You will notice that the batter starts thickening. Continue stirring. Starts forming lumps. Slightly try to mash the lumps with the back of the spoon.
- Thickens faster. Continue stirring. Combine all the batter from the sides and keep mashing the lumps. {Medium Flame]
- Starts forming a thick dough. Doesn't stick to the pan. Try to combine it as one dough.
- Forms slightly less thick dough than chapathi dough. Turn off the flame.
- Cover and keep it aside until you prepare the sweet stuffing or for about 15-20 minutes. Let it absorb the moisture due to the heated dough, which prevents it from drying. NOTE: Do Not leave it open.
For Sweet Stuffing
- In another bowl - Add all the ingredients mentioned above and in the exact measurement for the sweet stuffing.
- Combine the ingredients well and keep aside.
- Grease your hands with gingelly oil, knead the rice flour dough for about 5 minutes. Make sure the dough is at least warm and NOT dry/cold. So you need to be really quick in making this recipe to get them perfect.
- Grease hands again, take little dough like you make for puri/poori. And make small round balls.
- Using your fingers, try to spread or flatten the dough. Form cup shaped dough/ or just flatten as poori's. Make sure you have flattened it thick, making it thin will leave cracks and the sweet stuffing will come out after you steam it. NOTE: You may also use moulds to prepare this modak. This method make your work even more simpler.
- Now place the sweet stuffing in the middle and start bring the edges together at the centre to form like a pyramid.
- Press gently to get the pyramid shape and make sure the edges are intact and the sweet stuffing doesn't come out. Refer image/video attached. NOTE: You can also just place the stuffing in the middle, and then just fold into half and make a semicircle shape modak/kolukattai. Make sure you press the edges to seal them.
- In an idly cooker/steamer - Pour water like you do for preparing idlies. Bring it to a boil, now place all the modak/kolukattai's in the idly plate over a damp cloth/grease idly plate. I prefer damp cloth.
- Cover and steam for 12-15 minutes. Just touch with your fingers on the sides of the modak to check if it is cooked well. Your fingers should come clean and the rice batter should not stick. Turn off once cooked.
- Do NOT remove from the plate immediately, just keep it aside until it cools completely. Once cooled, remove from plate and enjoy the taste!!!
Read Further:
- Bread Halwa Recipe | Bread Sheera Recipe | Double Ka Meetha
- Beetroot Chips Recipe | Vegetable Chips Recipe
