A heavenly sweet

Pakundalu is an authentic sweet from Andhra Pradesh, prepared especially for Sankranti. Pakundalu is also referred as Pakam Undalu, Paniyaram and as Rice Flour & Coconut Fritters as well. A must for the celebration of Sankranti in Andhra, it is a simple recipe made with damp rice flour, coconut grate, and jaggery/sugar. Pakundalu has a chewy and crunchy feel in every bite. We can find different variants like Nuvvula Pakundalu and the plain one. Some also say it’s an alternative for Ariselu, with only the shape being different.

Serves: 5

Preparation time: 8 hours

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

Whole rice (doddu biyyam) : 1/2 Kg

Jaggery grated: 1/4 Kg

Sesame seeds: 2 Tablespoons

Coconut grate: 2 Tablespoons (fresh or dried)

Cardamom powder: 1/2 Teaspoon

Oil: for deep frying

Method:

• Wash and soak whole rice (doddu biyyam) for minimum of 8 hours or overnight.

• Drain off the water and place them in a sieve to remove excess water.

• Add the rice to the mixie jar and grind it into a powder. The flour should be damp.

• Sieve the ground flour, we can see the flour is moist / damp. Place the flour in a vessel for a while.

• To a pan, add 1/4 kg grated jaggery and 1/4 glass of water, keep stirring it till the jaggery melts.

• To check the consistency of the syrup, add a few drops of jaggery syrup in a bowl of water.

• If it thickens, take the syrup and mould it if it rolls and forms a roll/ball the syrup is perfect.

• To the syrup add 2 tablespoons of sesame seeds and coconut grate (fresh/dried), add 1/2 a teaspoon of cardamom powder to enhance the taste of Pakundalu.

• Add ground rice flour slowly to the syrup, without any lumps, stirring it continuously, till it forms a dough.

• Heat oil in a pan for deep frying the fritters.

• Take a small portion of the rice flour dough and mould them into small balls.

• Deep fry the balls on all the sides till they are brown and crisp.

• Pakundalu/ Pakam Undalu or Rice Flour and Coconut Fritters are ready.

(Stay tuned to Hyderabadi Ruchulu column for more recipes. YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/hyderabadiruchulu. Website: www.hyderabadiruchulu.com.)

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