puranache modak
Ingredients
jaggery - 1-1/4th cups
nutmeg powder - one fourth teaspoon
saffron strands or syrup - 1 teaspoon
All purpose flour / whole wheat flour - 1 cup
water - 3/4th cup or enough to form firm dough
vegetable oil - enough for kneading the dough and deep frying
salt - a pinch
Recipe for Puran
1. Soak split chickpeas/ chana daal for 2 hours.
2. Pressure cook split chickpeas using soaked water for 6-7 whistles or until soft.
3. Remove and drain out excess water using strainer, leaving the daal absolutely dry. Preserve drained water to make special Maharashtrian curry - Katachi aamti.
4. Mash cooked split chickpea and make a smooth paste.
5. Mix jaggery , mashed daal paste , saffron and nutmeg powder into a sauce pan and cook on low flame. Stir constantly. The mixture will be liquidish in the beginning of cooking. Stir continuously to avoid sticking and splattering.
6. After 8-10 minutes of cooking , the mixture will start contracting. Keep stirring.
7. There is an easy way to know if the puran is done or not - Keep the spatula in the middle of the mixture while cooking. If spatula stands without your help, that's it. It means the puran is done. Remove from heat and cool down. But if the spatula fails to stand , keep cooking.
Recipe for modak
1. Place 1 cup of all purpose flour / whole wheat flour in a large mixing bowl. Add a pinch of salt and water.
( do not add the whole measured water at once, add it gradually to form a firm dough.)
Knead it thoroughly for 5-7 minutes on a lightly floured surface adding some oil until you get smooth, firm dough. Keep the dough covered for 20-30 minutes.
2. Divide the dough into 10-12 small portions/balls. These portions/balls should be half the size of each ball you take for
chapatis/rotis.
3. Take one portion of dough, roll it with a rolling pin in a circular shape. Place one small ball (the size should be similar to dough balls ) of puran in the middle of the rolled out dough. Or make a small bowl of rolled out dough and stuff some puran inside.
4. With the help of your thumb and index finger , make 5-6 pinches/folds on the edges of the bowl.
5. Now, bring all the folds/pinches together at the top and stick them. As the dough itself is sticky, no need to use anything else. Repeat the procedure for rest of madaks. Heat vegeable oil in a wok and deep fry modak one by one.