ONAM SPECIAL RECIPES

UNNIYAPPAM

Ingredients

Coconut (chopped into small pieces) – 1/2 cup 

Jaggery – 1 cup

Water – as needed

Rice flour – 1 1/2 cups

Wheat flour – 1/2 cup

Ripe Banana – 2 nos

Salt – a small pinch

Baking soda – a pinch

Cardamom powder – 1 teaspoon

Roasted sesame seeds – 1 teaspoon

Oil – for frying

Method

First heat a small pan. Add 1/2 teaspoon oil. Roast the chopped coconut pieces until it turns slightly golden brown.

To the same pan, add the jaggery along with 1/2 Cup of water. Heat in medium flame until the jaggery is completely melted. Filter the jaggery syrup.

Then, roughly chop the bananas. And, using a mixer grinder, grind it to a smooth paste.

Now, take a heavy bottomed pan and dry roast the rice flour and whole wheat flour for about 1 minute until a nice aroma arises. Do not roast until the colour changes.  

Now, take a large mixing bowl, add the rice flour, wheat flour, jaggery syrup, banana paste, coconut and mix well into a batter. Add water accordingly. Leave the batter to rest for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, add the salt, baking soda, cardamom powder, roasted sesame seeds and mix well until combined.

Now heat the paniyaram pan with some oil in each hole and fill 3/4th of the hole with prepared batter. Cook in low flame until small holes appears on top and the side turns golden brown. Now flip the appam using the spatula or spoon, and cook the other side until they are fully done. 

ELLUNDA

Ingredients

Black sesame seeds – 250 g

Jaggery – 150 g

Ghee – 2 teaspoons

Water – as needed

Method

Wash sesame seeds and roast them with 1 teaspoon of ghee in a pan until they start to burst. Heat a pan and melt jaggery along with a 1/4 cup of water. Strain all the impurities with a strainer. Add roasted sesame along with 1 tsp ghee to the melted jaggery and mixed it well. When it cools a little, make it into small balls.

KALIYADAKKA

Ingredients

Roasted rice flour – 1 cup 

Roasted urad dal flour – 3 tablespoons

Fresh grated coconut – 1/2 cup

Cumin seeds – 1/4 teaspoon

Salt – to taste

Ghee – 1 tablespoon

Boiling water – as required

Asafoetida – 1 pinch

Oil – to fry

Method

Grind the grated coconut with cumin seeds to a fine paste. 
In a bowl, add the slightly roasted rice flour, urad dal flour, ground coconut paste, salt, ghee, and asafoetida. Make a soft dough adding enough boiling water. Set aside for 15 minutes. Divide the dough into small even-sized balls.

Heat oil in a deep pan at medium-high heat. Drop some balls carefully into the hot oil. Bring down the flame to medium-low and deep-fry until golden-brown, stirring in between so that they will be evenly browned. It takes about 15 minutes. They should be crunchy inside. Drain on to paper towels to absorb excess oil. Cool and store in an airtight container.

SHARKARA VARATTI

Ingredients

Raw banana – 1/2 kg  

Jaggery – 1/2 kg

Jeera powder – 1 teaspoon

Dry ginger powder – 1 teaspoon

Cardamom powder – 1 teaspoon

Rice flour – 6 tablespoons

Oil – to deep fry

Method

Soak jaggery in warm water, crush it well. Then heat it up until it is slightly thick. Cool down, strain and keep it aside.
Take rice flour and roast for few minutes without changing the colour. When smoke starts to come, switch off and set it aside to cool. Take raw banana, first peel of the skin and chop them into bite size pieces. Heat oil in a kadai and deep fry it until golden.
Drain in tissue paper and set it aside. Heat jaggery syrup in a pan, meanwhile get jeera powder, dry ginger powder and cardamom powder.
Once the jaggery syrup nicely bubbles up and becomes thick like honey and starts to form single thread, add the powders and mix well. Then, add fried chips, and keep cooking until the syrup is absorbed well may be for 2-3 minutes. Finally, add roasted rice flour and keep mixing till it coats the chips.

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