Kozhukattai recipe | Kadalai paruppu pooranam kozhukattai - Raks Kitchen (2024)

Kozhukattai recipe with kadalai paruppu pooranam, a traditional dish made for Vinayagar chaturthi festival.

Check out my easy mothagam recipe with just coconut, jaggery and do not forget to read my complete guide to celebrate vinayaga chaturthi.

Secret for softness

Yes, the readymade idiyappam flour available at grocery stores is the handy and best for the kozhukattai outer layer and the result is avery soft kozhukatais.

You do not need kozhukattai flour commercially available these days. Better than that, just buy a good quality idiyappam flour. As it is a processed flour, it gives softest results.

If you want to prepare rice flour from scratch, you can also do it, check out my post on how to make rice flour. You can use it in this kozhukattai recipe.

You can even prepare this 2 days before and use it for the festival.

Stuffing

The stuffing we make is always chana dal pooranam (kadalai paruppu pooranam). It has coconut too. We make a large amount and enjoy as such too.

Kozhukattai dough tips

Why my kozhukattai skin breaks?

Keep the dough covered all the times. Do not let it dry. If the dough is moist, it will never break.

Do not keep in fridge or keep for long time after shaping/ stuffing the kozhukattai / mothagam.

Always boil water before placing the kozhukattai inside steamer.

Why is my kozhukattai skin rubbery?

Use good quality, process rice flour. Idiyappam flour, kozhukattai flour works best. You can also usehomemade rice flour. The key is to use processed rice flour, good quality rice flour for making this kozhukattai recipe.

How to get softest kozhukattai?

Use boiling hot water, enough to get soft dough. The dough should get cooked as you prepare. This ensures best soft kozhukattai.

The dough should neither be tight nor be sticky. Adjust water or add one or 2 tablespoon flour to balance.

Use generous sesame oil while preparing dough.

Why my kozhukattai turns dry after steaming?

Once cooked, keep it covered in a container to avoid drying.

Related posts

• Kadalai paruppu pooranam, Sweet pooranam
• Mothagam recipe, Ganesh chaturthi recipes, Vella kozhukattai
• Moong dal modak recipe | Pasi paruppu pooranam recipe
• Peanut kozhukattai, verkadalai poornam kozhukattai
• Wheat rava upma kozhukattai recipe | Wheat rava recipes

Recipe card

Pooranam preparation

1. Soak chana dal for minimum an hour to begin with.

2. After that, pressure cook dal with water just to immerse it (Little less is also fine) up to 5 whistles.

3. Drain water if any and cool down to grind in blender. You can also mash it with masher just to make it a paste.

4. Take jaggery in a heavy bottomed vessel. Then pour water just enough to immerse jaggery.

5. Heat it and when jaggery dissolves completely, filter it in a metal strainer to remove impurities if any.

5. Then again start heating the jaggery syrup (wash the vessel as it will have impurities).

6. When it starts boiling, at one stage, the syrup will get frothy. At this stage add the ground dal paste and coconut.

7. Stir continuously without forming any lumps. Add cardamom powder and mix thoroughly.

8. Note that water we are adding should be very less. The lesser we add water to jaggery, sooner the stuffing will get ready.

9. Keep Stirring well till the mixture gets thick starts leaving the sides of the vessel.

Kozhukattai method

1. Boil water with oil (add salt if the flour doesn't have salt in it. Mine had salt in it so I didn't add any salt).

2. Take the flour in a broad vessel. Add the boiling water little by little and mix with the help of a ladle.

3. Let it cool for about 5 min.

4. After that, once warm enough to handle, knead with your hands to make a smooth dough.

5. The consistency should be like our chapati dough, non sticky.

6. Keep covered till you use to prevent drying.

7. Make small lemon sized balls with the prepared dough.

Shaping

1. For each step or whenever needed grease your hands with sesame oil.

2. Make the stuffing also same sized balls. I am showing with sweet pooranam (stuffing).

3. Take a dough ball and start flattening the ball with your fingers around he sides as shown in the picture.

4. Then continue towards the center of the ball so that you make a bowl shape as shown in the picture.

5. Keep the stuffing inside.

6. Gather all the sides and seal together in the middle and make a mothagam shape. Refer the video to see how to shape.

Now repeat the procedure to make more kozhukattais. Each time, work with each dough ball. Knead it and smooth it again to ensure it remains smooth.

7. Arrange it in a idly plate as shown or in a steamer and steam cook for 10 - 12 minutes.

8. Now carefully take it out from the idly plate and your kozhukattais are ready!

There are various methods of making stuffing for a kozhukattai.

You can prepare the same kozhukattai recipe, sweet with coconut jaggery, chana dal or with sesame seeds instead of chana dal. Salt version is with urad dal.