Thattai – How to make Thattai + Video

Thattai recipe with video. Thattai is a deep fried, crispy and crunchy snack that is made during festival times across South India especially on the occasion of Gokulashtami or Krishna Jayanthi.

It is made as one of the Neivedhyam along with Seedai and Murukku.

Thattai also finds a place in the  edible “seer” given to a new bride and it is a must in bakshanams made for “Thalai Deepavali” as well.

It is also a popular snack that sells in well in the packed snacks segment in most of the sweet shops.

One can make thattai in as many flavour as they may choose like this Pirandai Thattai.

It makes a good spicy crunchy side dish to eat along with sambar or rasam rice or even bisi bele bath.

For the same purpose crushed thattai is added to Burmese Atho as well.

During the olden golden days, several ladies will participate in the preparation of bakshanams and sweets. 

One reason is that they made in bulk quantities and work gets done quickly when there are many hands at work.

Also there was only stoves that used firewood for fuel. Regulating the flame to our wish was impossible. So speed is the key there.

But now with gas powered stove, you can moderate the fire and make it behave, making it possible for a single person to finish the entire job single handedly.

What type of flour is used to make Thattai?

• Thattai is made of rice flour which makes it crispy and crunchy.
• If making for neivedhyam, I usually use homemade rice flour for making bakshanams. You can also use Kozhukattai or Idiyappam flour.
• But if time is an issue, you can use either store bought Idiyappam flour, Kozhukattai flour or plain rice flour. 

Can I use store bought Urad Dal Flour?

Shops sell only plain urad dal flour whereas you need roasted urad dal flour to make crispy thattai.

So it is always better to roast whole white urad dal at home and then powder it in a mixie jar and use that flour.

How to check if the urad dal has roasted well?

You need not have to dry roast the urad dal to golden brown colour. 

This makes it difficult for a beginner to find out the right consistency of roasting.

To check, while roasting, scoop a spoon full of urad dal and place it in your palm and fist it.

You should be able to feel the sharp heat immediately. Take the pan off the stove at this consistency.

You can always store the excess urad dal flour for upto 3 months at room temperature and use it in any bakshanam like murukku that calls for roasted Ural dal flour.

Points to note:

• If using store bought flours, it is better to dry roast the flour in a pan over low flame for 3 to 4 mins taking care not to change its colour.
• Always keep the dough covered at all times as rice flour when exposed to air will soon dry out.
• If the dough dries out, the edges of the thattai while patting them will keep cracking or tearing.
• Even if the dough dries out, no need to panic. Simply sprinkle few tbsp water and knead softly once again.
• Once the oil reaches the perfect deep frying temperature, keep the stove on medium low.
• Don’t keep on regulating the stove to high and low.
• If you prefer a whiter looking thattai, either reduce the qty of red chilli powder or replace it with green chilli paste.
• Make sure that butter is at room temperature before using.
• You can also use ghee in place of butter.
• If small children or old aged people are going to eat, you can skip adding chana dal.

Though the process may look long, the recipe is a total no brainer and you simply cannot go wrong at all.

Check out this video below to see how easy it is to make Thattai at home:

Thattai recipe details with video below:

Thattai Recipe

Radhika

Thattai is a deep fried, crispy, crunchy and gluten free snack that is made during festival times across South India especially on the occasion of Gokulashtami or Krishna Jayanthi.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30 mins

Cook Time 20 mins

Course Snacks

Cuisine South Indian

Servings 30 Nos.

Ingredients

  

• Homemade Rice flour or store bought Idiyappam Flour – 1 cup
• Urad dal – 1/4 cup
• Red chilli powder – 1/2 tsp
• Butter – 1/2 tsp
• Asafoetida – 1 pinch
• White sesame seeds – 1/2 tsp
• Chana dal or bengal gram – 2 tsp
• Curry leaves – 4 to 5 leaves
• Salt – to taste
• Oil – to deep fry

Instructions

 

Preparation:

• Soak chana dal in water for 1 hour and set aside.
• If you have refrigerated butter, take it out so that it can thaw to room temperature when using.
• Place the sesame seeds in a tea filter and rinse well. Set aside till use.
• Wash curry leaves well and tear with your finger or chop it roughly with a knife.

Make urad dal flour:

• Heat a pan. Add urad dal and dry roast over low flame till it changes colour lightly.
• When you fist it in your palm you should feel the heat immediately. Transfer to a plate and let cool.
• Transfer the dal to mixer jar and grind to a fine powder. Sieve it well to get rid of any unground granules and discard it. You need only the fine urad dal flour.

Make the dough for thattai:

• If using store bought rice flour, dry roast in a pan for 3 to 4 mins without changing colour over low flame and set aside. This step is optional.
• In a mixing bowl, take rice flour, 2 tbsp urad dal flour, red chilli powder, asafoetida, salt and mix well with your fingers.
• Add butter and rub it well into the flour.
• Add curry leaves and sesame seeds. Drain the water from chana dal and add it to the bowl. Mix well to distribute evenly.
• Add water little by little to make a smooth dough. It took approx., 3/4 cup water.
• Keep the bowl closed with a plate or kitchen towel to prevent the dough from drying out.

Shaping the thattai:

• Meanwhile grease a plastic sheet with oil.
• Add oil to a deep fry pan and let it be on simmer to get hot.
• Make small goose berry sized balls from the dough. Place a ball on the greased sheet and pat it gently using your finger tips till the dough can spread around to form a disc.
• Dip your finger in water often to shape the dough easily.
• Once done patting down all the thattais, prick the surface using a fork. This is to prevent them from puffing up while deep frying.

Deep frying the thattai:

• Take a pea sized ball and drop into the hot oil. When it rises immediately to the top, oil is at the correct temperature for deep frying.
• Gently remove the thattai from the sheet, and slip it into the hot oil. Only drop as many thattais the pan can hold. Do not overcrowd the pan.
• Fry till thattai changes to golden brown and the bubbling of the oil subsides. Drain into a kitchen paper lined plate.
• Continue to deep fry the remaining thattais.
• After the thattai cools down completely to room temperature, store in an airtight container.

Video

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