Ammini Kozhukkattai

We make Sweet Kozhukattai (Vella kozhukattai) with coconut and jaggery filling, Uppu Kozhukattai (with ulundhu poornam/lentil filling) and also ammini Kozhukattai with left over modak rice flour dough. Ammini Kozhukattai can be served as evening snack. It is healthy as it is steam cooked and only rice flour is used to prepare these Mani Kolukattais.

Ammini Kozhukattai/Mani Kozhakattai

Ingredients needed

Raw rice - 1/2 cup
Sesame seed Oil - 1 tsp
Salt - a pinch
Water - 1 cup

For the seasoning

Oil - 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds -1 tsp
Asafoetida/Hing – pinch
Red chilli - 2
Green chilli - 1
Curry leaves - few
Grated coconut - 1/4 cup
Salt as per taste

Preparation of the dough  

• Soak rice for 4-5 hours. Grind it finely with little water from the 1 cup of water.

• Boil the rest of the water, add 1 tsp oil, a pinch of salt, simmer and add the grounded paste. Stir continuously to prevent formation of lumps.

• Cook till all the water evaporates and the dough leaves the sides of the pan. After it cools, grease your hands with oil and knead it well. Cover it with a damp cloth and let it sit for 10 minutes.

Make marble size balls out of the dough and steam cook for 10-15 minutes. Leave it to cool.

Now we will do the seasoning

Heat oil, add mustard seeds, when it splutters, add hing, red chilli, green chilli and curry leaves. Add the steamed balls, grated coconut, needed salt and mix well. Serve hot.

Mani/ Ammini Kozhukattai is ready to be served. If you want it spicy, sprinkle idli milagai podi/gun powder on it and mix it well. Serve hot.

Sweet Kozhukkattai

Vinayaga Chaturti /Ganesh Chaturti is the birthday of Lord Ganesha which is celebrated in a grand manner in India. It is a Hindu festival and also my favourite festival and Lord Ganesha is my favourite god. I love him so much that I have a wide collection of Vinayagar idols in terracotta, ceramic and what not. I still love buying the idol make of clay and the colorful umbrellas. You can see some of my collections in the pictures.

Kozhukattai is a favourite dish of Lord Ganesha. It is made with rice flour, coconut and jaggery stuffing. My mom makes varieties of kozhukattais and I am sharing the one I love most.

I am also sharing with you the method to prepare the rice flour for making Kozhukattai.The kolukattai will be hard if you use store bought rice flour. Either you have to prepare it at home or you must buy rice flour sold specially for making kolukattais.

How to prepare rice flour for making Kozhukattai/Kolukattai

Wash and soak raw rice for 2 hours. Drain the water well, spread it on a cloth for 15 minutes and grind it to a fine powder. You can give it to the rice mill or powder it in the mixie/food processor. Dry it well in the sun or shade. Sieve it and store it in an air-tight container and use whenever required. Now rice flour for kozhukatti is ready. (You do not have to fry the rice flour as you do for idiyappam.)

Ingredients needed

Rice flour -1 cup
Jaggery - 1 cup
Coconut -1 cup grated
Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp
Ghee -1 tsp

Method

Now heat 1 cup of water, add a tsp of oil to it and then add the prepared rice flour stirring continuously so that it does not form lumps. Cook for 5 minutes.

Knead it into a soft dough. ( mix little water with a tsp of oil and have it besides you). If needed your can sprinkle that water and knead the dough well.

Cover it with a wet cloth and keep it aside.

For the stuffing

Melt the jaggery in half a cup of water and filter to remove impurities.

Heat jaggery and when it starts boiling, add grated coconut and a tsp of ghee. Cook till it leaves the sides of the pan. Add cardamom powder and mix well. Now your stuffing is ready. When it cools a little, make small balls out of it and keep it aside.

Now your jaggery stuffings are ready. 

Preparation of Kozhukattai/kolukattais
 

Now take the rice flour dough and make small balls. Grease your palms with oil, keep the dough and flatten it into round shape with the other hand.

You can dip your fingers in the water+ oil mix if needed to make it easier. Now place the jaggery ball on it and close it.

Repeat the process for all the rice flour balls. If you have excess jaggery balls/stuffings, do not worry, you can eat it as such. I love it

Arrange all the prepared Kozhukattais on a greased idli plate and steam cook for ten minutes or till done.Wait for 10 minutes to cool down and then take it out. Delicious Kozhukattais are ready.
Enjoy Vinayaga Chathurti with delicious Kozhukattai/kolukattais. You will get around 12-15 kozhukattais for this measurement.  

 

 

Ulundu Kozhukattai

Ulundu kozhukattai is my favourite and when we eat sweet and uppu kozhukattai alternatively, it will taste heavenly. Ulundu kozhukattai is very flavourful, as well as healthy. I love the poornam sooo much that my amma used to make the poornam frequently.

Ingredients:-

1. Urad Dal - 1/2 Cup
2. Green Chillies - 4-5
3. Grated Coconut - 1/2 Cup
4. Salt - As needed
5. Hing - a Pinch
6. Oil - 1 Tsp
7. Curry Leaves - 1 Sprig

Outer Layer:-

1. Rice Flour - 1 Cup
2. Water & Salt - As needed
3. Oil - 2 Tsp 

Method for making the outer Layer:

1. Boil water with oil(add salt if the flour doesn't have salt in it..mine had salt in it so I dint add any salt)
2. Take the flour in a broad vessel.
3. Add the boiling water little by little and mix with the help of a ladle.
4. Let it cool for about 5 min ,it may be warm, still knead with your hands to make a smooth dough.The consistency should be like our chapatti dough...non sticky..
5. Keep covered till you use to prevent drying.

Method for making Poornam:-

1. Soak the urad dal for an hour.In a mixer, grind green chilies with salt and half the asafoetida and lastly add well drained urad dal and run the mixer only twice or thrice.(Use juice/inch option) to a coarse consistency.
2.  Take care that Urad dal should not be ground smooth.In a greased idly plate, steam this mixture in idly pot for 5-8 minutes. Cool down and crumble it. 
3. In a broad pan/kadai,heat the oil and season with mustard,asafoetida and curry leaves.Then add the steamed mixture and fry in medium flame till the mixture becomes dry..(3 min)
4. Lastly add grated coconut and fry for a minute.This mixture should be fluffy.. Adding coconut is optional, but it enhances the taste very well.
5. Your stuffing is ready and use a spoon to fill it in the kozhukattais.  
6. Soft and moist kozhukattais will be ready by steaming them in a greased idli plates for 5-8 minutes!