Uzhundhu Kozhukattai

This week for the Blogging Marathon I have selected Picnic hampers. I love to go on one-day picnics. Who doesn't love right? That too I love to go on a long drive, park the car somewhere and have packed snacks or packed lunches... yummmm. And of course we do this often. Travelling to our hometown has become one such picnic hobby for me.

The first recipe I would like to present as a picnic hamper is these uzhundhu kozhakkattai. These are steamed rice dumplings which have urad dal as the filling. Very healthy snack item since these are steamed and urad dal gives a lot of strength. So all the more ideal for picnic. Yeah these kozhukkattais are usually made during vinayaka or ganesh chathurthi in southern India.

Ingredients:

For the filling:

Urad dal - 1/2 cup

Green chillies - 4

Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

Salt - as needed

Mustard - 1 tsp

Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp

Oil - 1 tsp

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

For the outer covering:

Idiyappam flour - 1 cup

Water - 1 &1/3 cup,or as needed

Sesame oil - 1 tsp

Salt - to taste

Method:

• Boil water with oil and salt. Take the flour in a broad vessel. Add the boiling water little by little and mix with the help of a ladle.
• 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. Keep covered till you use to prevent drying. Make equal size balls out of it.
• 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. 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.
• 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)
• Lastly add grated coconut and fry for a minute.This mixture should be fluffy.. 
• Take each rice flour ball. Flatten it into a small round shape. 
• Place 1 spoon of filling in the centre. Fold the dough and seal it. You can make any shape as you like.
• Steam the kozhukkatais in a idli cooker for about 10 minutes until the rice flour dough is well cooked and looks shiny.

Notes:

• Adding coconut is optional, but it enhances the taste very well
• Keep the dough always closed and try to finish making the kozhukattais as soon as possible as keeping for long time may lead to cracking/dry kozhukattais
• Grease your hands generously with oil each time you make kozhukattai, to get it smooth.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#76