Lord Ganesh's Favorite - Modak (Steamed Dessert Dumplings)
Ingredients
For the filling:
2 cup shredded fresh coconut
1 cup jaggery *(see below)
1 teaspoon roasted poppy seeds
1 teaspoon rice flour
3-4 cardamoms
For the outer cover:
1 cup rice flour
1 cup water
1 teaspoon ghee / butter (Ghee is a clarified butter without any solid milk particles or water.)
½ teaspoon oil
a pinch of salt
Preparation
1. Combine and cook coconut and jaggery together on medium heat.
2. Stir continuously until they are mixed properly. Do not overcook.
3. Add cardamom, roasted poppy seeds and 1 teaspoon rice flour to the mix. Cook for some
time.
4. Remove from the heat and allow it to cool.
Outer Cover:
5. Boil 1 cup of water. When bubbles rise on top, add ghee, salt and oil and immediately add rice
flour. Stir well.
6. Cover for some time. Remove the lid and stir and cover again for a minute.
7. Remove from heat. Take all the mixture in a flat plate.
8. Knead it properly while hot (You can use a flat bowl for kneading to keep the hands from
burning). Make a soft pliable dough.
(Do it very carefully. The dough should be neither too sticky nor too dry.)
Method :
9. Divide this dough into small balls. Roll each ball into 1.5 inch diameter circle. Hold it in a
hand and make a small bowl of it. 10. Put some coconut filling into this bowl shaped dough.
11. Dip thumb and index finger in the oil and make 5-6 small pinches side by side on the edges
of the bowl.
12. Bring them together, join to form a peak. It should look like a whole garlic. Prepare all other
modaks like this.
13. Spread a damp cloth onto a flat round sifter and arrange all the modaks onto it.
14. Place the sifter in a steamer and cover. Steam for about 15 minutes. (Use a big size
saucepan or pressure cooker if you don't have a steamer. Do not put the whistle if you use
the pressure cooker.)
15. Serve with the ghee.
What is Jaggery?
Jaggery (Panela) or Gudh is a "natural" sweetener made with the concentrated sugarcane juice. It did not have any chemicals or synthetic additives or preservatives. Jaggery (Panela) is rich in nutrition and contains lot of minerals, protein, and vitamins.
Tip:
The proportion of water and rice flour for the cover should be accurate as written above. In addition, it is advisable to sieve the flour once.
Source : Recipe courtesy of Mumbai Masala
