Modaks are steamed or fried dumplings generally made of rice flour, jaggery, and coconut. The recipe of Modak is said to have originated from the state of Maharashtra. It is considered to be the favourite food of Lord Ganesha. Modaks are offered to Ganesha during Ganesh Chaturthi festival to invoke his divine blessings. Modak is called Kozhukattai in Tamil, Modhaka or Kadubu in Kannada, Kudumu in Telugu.
Modak is a wonderful delicacy whose soft shell is made of rice flour or wheat flour or Maida. Fried Modak is deep fried in oil with crispy outside shell stuffed with grated coconut filling. A lot of practice is required to make a perfectly shaped Modak.
Step by step recipe guide to make delicious fried Modak
Preparation Time – 10 minutes
Cooking Time – 20 minutes
Quantity – makes 15 small Modaks
Recipe Category – Snack
Recipe Cuisine – South Indian
Ingredients
For the outer covering
- Atta or All-purpose flour – ½ cup
- Water – as needed
- Salt – as needed
- Oil – as needed
For the filling
- Grated Coconut – 1/2 cup
- Jaggery grated – ½ cup
- Ghee – 1 Tsp
- Cashew nuts- a handful
- Almonds – few sliced
Method to make Fried Modak
- Heat ghee in a pan. To this add, chopped cashew nuts, and sliced almonds. Fry the nuts till they turn golden in colour. Then add, grated coconut till it leaves a nice aroma.
- When the coconut is cooked a little, add the grated jaggery to this mixture. Add jaggery based on your sweet preference. Stir the filling ingredients to a perfect consistency in the pan. Then set aside.
- To prepare the base or the outer shell of the Modak, you need Atta or Maida, oil, water, a small pinch of salt.
- Mix all the above ingredients together into a firm dough like consistency as you prepare chappati.
- Make small balls from the prepared dough. Then roll them out flat and even in shape.
- To the rolled out dough, take small quantities of the prepared coconut filling. Place the filling in the centre of the rolled out dough.
- Then seal the edges of the dough carefully and shape it up. While shaping, make sure the layers are not thick as it involves deep frying in oil.
- Seal the sides carefully so that the sides do not open while frying the Modak.
- Then heat oil in a pan and deep fry the shaped Modaks. Make sure the temperature of the oil is just right; neither too high nor too low, in order to get the perfect Modak, golden in colour.
- Fry and place the Modaks in an absorbent tissue paper to absorb excess oil before serving hot.