Chaturthi special - Kozhukattai

I'd decided to make kozhukattai (S says momo), today being the angarika chathurthi. This is one of the dishes that always eluded me, and it's most often the rice dough that kills me. However, this time, it just turned out perfect!

Here's a step by step recipe:

Make the poornam (filling) first. Here's how:

To 1 cup of grated jaggery, add a cup of grated coconut and saute on low heat. Mix well until it thickens. Add cardamom powder, mix well and set aside. Cool a bit (just so much that the hand can tolerate)

If this mixture does not thicken, sprinkle a little flour and mix well.

Grease your hands (with ghee), and make small balls out of the mixture.

Note: The jaggery that we get here is not clean. My grandmom told me this tip - soak the jaggery in very little hot water (for about 10 minutes). The jaggery melts (you can also mash it with a spoon). Filter it, and you can see the sediments at the bottom. Additionally, slightly boil this mixture, and remove the foam from the top and we are done cleansing the jaggery.

Now for the outer cover:

Take about 1 cup of rice flour (sieved well). To this add 1/2 cup hot water, and mix well using a fork. It should form a sticky yet soft dough. The dough should be pliable, and if not, add hot water in installments. (If too watery, add some flour - you get the drift)

Let cool for a minute or two. The dough should still be warm enough to handle.

Take a small piece from the dough and make it into a ball. Make a crater in the center, and keep adjusting the dough, so it's thin all around, yet can hold the weight of the filling. Place one ball of jaggery mixture into this. Fold the edges and bring it to shape.

Likewise, complete the rest of the balls.

Steam in an electric cooker / pressure cooker for about 10 mins. The outer covering will become translucent.

Serve warm! (of course after the neivedhyam)

The left over dough will later be used for making salted vegetable momos :-)