Kudumulu | Modak with three stuffings for Ganesh Chaturthi

Happy Ganesh Chaturthi to all my viewers and friends!!!
All my fellow bloggers have already posted the recipes for Ganesh Chaturthi,though I am bit late I wanted to post this on the festival day itself.This year I am celebrating the festival at mom's place and I have just finished eating a platter of kudumulu before started writing this post.
Ganesh chaturthi is a very big festival for us and also it is the most favorite one for me as I have sweet memories associated with this festival.Right from the childhood I used to wait for this big festival as it was always fun to arrange the things for the festival and also indulge in one of my favorite sweet(kudumulu).This was my last year's Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations at mumbai.

Every year on the day of festival morning I used to accompany my dad to bring the colorful Ganesh Idol and all the other necessary items for the festival.It was always fun to decorate the pooja room and arrange the idol and decorate with flowers and all and it was my fixed job every year while mom would be busy making prasadam and festival specials.Though the pooja process is bit lengthy it was really fun as this is the only festival where our entire family sit together and do pooja till the end with so much of attention.The menu for this festival is almost fixed every year due to the restrictions of the ingredients to be used and also they are apparently lord Ganesha's favorites.

Our usual menu on this festival includes Nooka Idli(not the regular idli rawa one) with coconut chutney for breakfast and of course kudumulu are served along with breakfast and the lunch menu varies with different vegetables,sundal,rasam,dal and also we make different lentil dumplings for this festival especially.

Kudumulu or popularly called modak in Maharastra is done in different ways all over the country with minor modifications and the outer cover being made with rice flour and mostly the filling would be made with coconut.But we make the other fillings with sesame,ground nut and khus khus which are equally delicious and are preferred by me than the regular coconut fillings.My mom has to make more quantity of the fillings as I eat them just like that in a cup even after the ganesha festival.
Check out other important recipes for Vinayaka Chavithi:

• Steamed Kudumulu - with 3 fillings
• Karida Bele Kadubu | Fried Modak
• Bellam Kudumulu | Vella Ammini Kozhukattai
• Paal Kozhukattai | Undralla Payasam
• Puran Poli
• Dry fruit Modak | Kharjur Modak
• Pappulo Undrallu
• Palathalikalu
• Undraalu with Biyyam rava - Andhra recipe
• Avarekaalu Kadubu/Spiced Steamed Rice flour Dumplings
• Chintapandu pulihora - Andhra style

For a complete list of various options for Ganesh Chaturthi menu, check out here.

Kudumulu | Modak Recipe:
(Serves 3-4)

Ingredients:

for the outer cover(dough):
1 cup Rice flour *(use freshly home made)
1 handful Maida
2 cups Water
a pinch of Salt
1 tsp Oil

for coconut filling:
1 cup grated Coconut
1 cup grated Jaggery
1/2 tsp Elaichi powder

for sesame filling:
1/2 cup white Sesame seeds
1/2 cup grated Jaggery

for groundnut filling:
1/2 cup roasted and skinned Groundnuts
1/2 cup grated jaggery


Method:
making coconut stuffing:

• In a kadai mix grated coconut and jaggery and cook it on a low-medium flame until the jaggery melts and coats the coconut and form a thick dry and sticky lumpy mixture.It takes 10-12 minutes and keep stirring it occasionally.
• Add cardamom powder to it and mix well and let the mixture cool completely and store it in air tight container.
• You can make it on the previous day itself and store at room temperature which eases the process on the festival day.

making sesame stuffing:

• Dry roast sesame seeds overmedium flame for 3-4 mins until they smell nice.
• Grind sesame seeds to a powder in the mixie and add grated jaggery to it and run it again to get a uniform mixture.
• Store it in air tight container.Make this on the previous day itself to ease up the process on the festival day.

making groundnut stuffing:

• Grind roasted and skinned groundnuts to a powder in the mixie and add grated jaggery to it and run it again to get a uniform mixture.
• Store it in air tight container.Make this on the previous day itself to ease up the process on the festival day.

making dough:

• Boil 2 cups of water and add salt and oil to it and let it bubble properly.
• Add rice flour and maida to it and do not mix it and reduce the flame for 10 mins.Let it cook over the steam either by covering the vessel only half the portion with a lid or cook without lid.
• Now remove half glass of water from the sides and mix the flours into the remaining water vigorously until it is properly mixed.While making this process if you feel the dough is hard keep adding the water which is removed aside.The water quantity depends on the flour quality and hence it is always better to remove some water and add it if required.
• Cover it with lid and let it come to the room temperature but still warm.
• Now grease your hands well and knead the dough in small portion until you get a smooth and lump free dough,this helps in making smooth and crack free kudumulu.

making kudumulu:

• Grease your hands and divide the dough into small amla sized balls.
• Cut a polythene sheet into two equal squares or rounds and wash and dry them and grease one of the sides.

• Place them on one each side of a poori press and place a rice flour ball in the center and press in the poori presser as shown in the picture.Do not make it very thin or very thick,it should be of the thickness as shown in the pic.You can even make like a cup with hands,but this process needs so much of practice or you can even use modak mold to shape it,but the method I mentioned is the most easiest and less time consuming process.

• Now pick it up with the cover and keep a tbsp of your desired stuffings which are made and press it(press along with the cover)to make a semi circular shape.Remove the ready kudumu and place it in a greased plate which fits in the cooker/steamer.You can even twist the edges to give a design or you can leave it as it is.
• Repeat the process and make all the kudumulu with all the different three stuffings and place them in three different plates and steam them in cooker/steamer with out whistle for 8-10 mins.The outer cover would be bit shiny and light colored.Keep them covered.

Serve them hot/warm with some ghee over it.

*Rice flour Preparation at home: Wash the rice nicely and spread on a cloth and let it dry in shade completely.Grind it to a fine powder in a mill or at your house in a mixie and sieve the floor.You can use it immediately,if you want to store then spread the floor on the cloth for a day in shade and store it in air tight container.This stays fresh for 2-3 months and can be used for many varieties.For modak/kudumulu especially this kind of rice flour is used.

Notes:

1. It is always better to make the filling a day before which will save lot of time on the festival day.
2. Always use good quality rice flour for kudumulu otherwise they might not turn good and some might even break.
3. I have made kudumulu in a easier way,if you want to shape them into modaks,check this page for more details with a video.
4. For a vegan version avoid adding ghee to the finished product.

Variations:

1. You can use sugar instead of jaggery in all the three fillings,just replace grated jaggery with equal quantity of sugar in the recipe and follow the same procedure.
2. You can even use ghee roasted finely chopped cashew nuts in coconut filling,however it is optional.

If you want an easy deep fried version of Modak which is called Karida Kadubu (Fried modak), please check out this recipe.