Ulundhu Pidi Kozhukattai recipe with video. These easy, savory and steamed kozhukattais (dumplings) are made using rice flour and whole urad dal making it a healthy evening snack, breakfast or dinner.
This ulundhu kara kozhukattai is mildly spicy, vegan and gluten free that uses just 1 teaspoon oil for the tempering.
“Pidi” in Tamil means “to hold” or “to fist”. You make this kozhukattai by fisting or gripping the dough tightly in your palm. The tight grip of the dough holds the kozhukattai together. Hence the shape and the name.
Ulundhu kozhukattai makes a great dinner option. If you regularly make upma kozhukattai or noi arisi pidi kozhukattai for dinner, then this one will make a good alternative to break the monotony.
During my childhood, we used to make white urad dal by pounding the black urad dal in a “Ural” or a manual round grinding stone called as “Yendhara kal” which literally means “machine” in Tamil.
The broken ones which look almost like “noi arisi” were used to make this kozhukattai for dinner during the “ulundhu” harvesting season.
The resulting kozhukattais of course will not look this white as they had the skin too but nevertheless they were much more healthy than this one.
Serve this ulundhu kara kozhukattai with either coconut chutney or any kaara chutney of your choice.
Last year when I found that I was sensitive to gluten, I started making this much forgotten kozhukattai of my childhood times once again as it is gluten free.
I double the recipe usually and stored the remaining in the fridge and while the eating time came, I sprinkled a little water and microwaved these kozhukattais for 1 min.
This saved me a lot of time from having to make dinner separately just for me when I made rotis & side dish for the rest of the family.
What flour to use for making kozhukattai?
I have used homemade kozhukattai flour that I have made in bulk over this weekend for the upcoming Vinayaka Chaturthi festival.
Using homemade flour is always best. You can also grind it in a mill.
If time does not permit, then you can use store bought Idiyappam or Kozhukattai flour. Before buying check the manufacturing date for recent date to ensure freshness.
You can also use plain rice flour, in which case the water added have to be increased to ensure the softness of cooked kozhukattais. Check the notes section below.
You can also replace one part of rice flour used with any type millet flour. Before using just dry roast in a pan. The time will depend on the quantity of flour you use
Points to note:
You can use either green or red chillies. Adjust the quantity according to your spice level.
You can use either grated coconut or chop the coconut into very small pieces before adding.
Do not skip the ginger and asafoetida as they not only enhance the taste but also helps in easy digestion.
The flour to water ratio given here is perfect provided the flour is fresh.If the flour you are using is aged or if you use plain rice flour, the dough may appear a bit dry.
In that case increase the water by ¼ cup or you can also sprinkle warm water and knead it once again before making pidi kozhukattai.
You can replace oil with ghee while tempering.
Simmer the flame before you start adding ingredients to the boiling water as the dough comes together quickly.
Ulundhu Pidi Kozhukattai Recipe Video:
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Ulundhu Pidi Kozhukattai Recipe with Video below:
Ulundhu Pidi Kozhukattai
Ingredients
- Kozhukattai or Idiyappam flour - ½ cup
- Whole white urad dal - 4 tbsp
- Ginger - ½ inch piece
- Green chilli or dry red chillies - 2 nos
- Coconut - 3 tbsp grated or finely chopped
- Water - 1-¼ cup
- Salt - to taste
For tempering:
- Mustard seeds - ½ tsp
- Curry leaves - 1 sprig
- Asafoetida - 2 pinch
- Oil - 1 tsp
Instructions
Make Urad dal paste:
- Rinse urad dal well and soak for an hour. Drain the water completely and set aside.
- In a mixie jar, add green chillies or dry red chillies, ginger run the mixer on pulse mode to crush the chillies and ginger coarsely.
- Add the urad dal and once again grind it to a coarse and gritty paste without adding water. Pulse at regular intervals for even grinding. Set aside.
Prepare the dough:
- Heat a pan with oil and once hot add mustard seeds and let it crackle.
- Add asafoetida and curry leaves.
- Add water, salt and let it come to a boil.
- Once water comes to a rolling boil, simmer the flame completely.
- Add ground urad dal mixture and mix it well while breaking away the lumps. A wooden spatula works well for mixing.
- Add coconut and kozhukattai rice flour. The mixture will begin to thicken immediately, so keep stirring to avoid burning at the bottom.
- When the dough begins to come together, switch off and take the pan off the stove.
- Cover with lid and let it rest for 5 mins. Transfer to a bowl and knead it once. Keep the dough covered always.
Steaming the kozhukattai:
- Add 2 cups water to a steamer and let the water come to a boil.
- Meanwhile grease an idli or steamer plate and your fingers with oil.
- Take small lemon sized balls and fist it in your palm (see the video).
- Make either a round or oblong shape.
- Arrange the pidi kozhukattais on the greased idli or steamer plate one next to the other. Steam for 8 to 10 mins over medium low flame.
- Ulundhu pidi kozhukattai is ready. Serve with any chutney of your choice.
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