Onam Special Rice Puttu (Steam Cake)

Onam is an important annual festival in the state of Kerala celebrated by Malayalis all over the world. The celebration lasts for five days, particularly on day 2 (Thiruvonam). Day 1 (Uthradam) involves a lot of preparations, including chopping the vegetables and cooking dishes like pachadi, ginger curry, lemon curry etc. Although snacks and sweets are prepared almost ten days prior. This is necessary as the Onam Sadhya is a vegetarian meal consisting of 15-24 dishes and payasams. 

The Hindus also adorn deities with flowers and jewellery. Poovidal or Pookkalam are made using a variety of flowers for ten days leading up to Thiruvonam. Other activities include wearing new clothes (called onapudava) and swinging. Thiruvonam is typically celebrating in your own house, and subsequently friends and relatives get together. Onam 2020 is a little different due to the pandemic, but it can still be enjoyed with family. 

In my house, breakfast for atleast one day of Onam would have been “puttu”, boiled moong dal, pappadam and banana. We usually soak a large quantity of white rice or brown raw rice (unakkalari) for thirty minutes, drain it, and get it ground and roasted from the mill. It is stored for upto 3 months. You can choose to buy a good quality roasted puttu podi from the store. If not, raw powder can be roasted at home within 5 minutes. 

Although Puttu or steam cake is a traditional breakfast of Kerala it has an important role during Onam season too. You need a puttu maker to prepare this dish, which can be bought from the supermarket. 

Click here for my Moong dal stir fry recipe that pairs well with Puttu. 

Let us pray to God Almighty for the 2021 celebrations to be peaceful and healthy.

Ingredients

Rice flour, 1 ½ cups

Water, ¾ cup

Salt, 1 tsp

Grated coconut, 10 full tbs

Preparation

• Take rice flour in a bowl and mix in salt.
• Add water little by little and mix with your hand until moistened.
• Try to roll a ball with your palm, it should hold. If it falls apart, continue to add water little by little to wet the mixture. If you add excess water, it will turn lumpy. In case there are large lumps, add a tablespoon of dry flour, and pulse in the grinder a couple of times. 
• Bring water to boil in the pot of the puttu maker.
• Put two tablespoons of coconut in the cylinder and fill halfway with flour.
• Repeat and close the lid. Place the cylinder on the pot to cook. 
• Once you see steam over the lid, continue to cook for 6 more minutes.
• The lid would be very hot, so carefully take the cylinder and remove the lid with a kitchen towel Push the puttu onto a container or plate using a rolling pin or long ladle.
• Repeat the process.

Your puttu is ready. Enjoy with your favourite side dish or banana. Please share and comment, thank you! 😊