Paal kozhukattai as the name suggests is a melt in the mouth sweet dish that is made by cooking rice balls in coconut milk and sweetened with jaggery. For me paal kozhukattai brings back the memories of my school days since it was my breakfast on most the days. And considering the fact that, this is quite a time consuming dish I must applaud my mother for making this in the rush hour madness.
I haven’t perfected my mothers recipe yet, but I am closing in. The first time I made this , I had to bin the whole thing. It turned out to be like a sweet edible glue. The dough had become very sticky and hence the bad result. I then observed my mothers recipe when she made this during my pregnancy and realised my mistake. After that I got it right but still haven’t got the same taste as my mother’s ( she makes the worlds best paal kozhukattai).
And since it’s my sisters birthday today I have decided to post this tried and tested recipe as the latest post on my blog.
Let’s get to cooking shall we?
INGREDIENTS
Serves – 3
- Rice flour (Idiayappam flour)- ½ cup
- Water- ¾ cup
- Salt- a pinch
- Sesame oil- 1 tsp _ extra for greasing the palms.
- Powdered jaggery- ½ cup+3tbsp
- Thin coconut milk- 1 cup
- Thick coconut milk- ½ cup
- Cardamom – 2
- Saffron (optional)-a pinch
METHOD
- Bring the water to boil along with salt and sesame oil in a wok.
- Add in the rice flour slowly, constantly stirring to avoid lumps with a wooden spatula. It will form into a dough Take the wok off the flames and keep it closed.
- When warm enough to handle knead for few seconds and make small balls and arrange of a plate. Keep the balls covered.
- Heat the thin coconut milk. When it starts boiling add in the prepared rice balls in the milk . The balls should be completely immersed.
- Let it cook for few minutes. The balls will float once they are cooked.
- Add in the jaggery and crushed cardamom to this. Let the jaggery melt. Cook for about 2 minutes on a low flame.
- Finally add in the thick coconut milk and mix well. Switch off the flame after about 10 seconds. Add in the saffron strands and mix well.
- Keep closed until ready to serve.
- Serve hot or cold. Tastes best when its warm.
NOTES
- Don’t add more water than specified, because the dough may turn sticky and you wont be able to shape the balls properly.
- The size of the rice balls should be smaller than a marble, ideally the size of small blueberries,
- Add more or less jaggery as per your sweetness level.
- Do not cook for a longer time after adding the thick coconut milk. The whole dish will curdle.
- Paal kozhukattai tends to thicken after it cools down. So do not worry if you feel its of a runny consistency even after adding the thick coconut milk.
The Greedy Tummy 
Superb. Expecting more receipie
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