Recipe: Quick and Easy Murukku

When you think of Deepavali treats, one of the first things that come to mind is murukku. In the past, making murukku was a labourious task. The rice and black gram had to first be washed, dried in the sun, dry roasted and then sent to the grinding shops to be processed into flour.

These days however, many brands of pre-mixed flour are available so there’s no need to go through all that trouble. By mixing some additional ingredients and spices to the pre-mix, you can serve up murukku as tasty as those made from scratch. Try this easy recipe the next time you have friends over for a party – it goes well with beer too.

Makes: 30

Ingredients:
1 packet Alagappa’s murukku flour – sifted
¼ teaspoon perungayam (asafoetida) powder
1½ tablespoons white sesame seeds
¾ tablespoon omam (carom seeds) – grinded or pounded and sifted
1 tablespoon unsalted butter – softened
2 ½ cups water
Oil for deep frying

Method:

Step 1: In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together with a whisk. Add butter and mix together.

Step 2: Next add in the water, a half cup at a time, and knead the flour to form dough mixture.

Step 3: At this stage the dough will be quite soft and sticky. To prevent the dough from sticking to you, coat your hands with a thin layer of oil or water.

Step 4: Fill the murukku mould with the dough and secure the cover. You’ll want to form the murukkus before dropping them into the hot oil.

Brush the back of a large flat ladle with oil. Position the murukku mould above the ladle and turn the handle with your right hand to squeeze out the dough while guiding the mould with your left to make three medium circles

Step 6: Turn the ladle over and gently drop the murukku into the hot oil. Fry till golden brown.

Step 7: Once the murukku cools, store in an air-tight container.

* The spices used in this recipe area available in Mustafa Centre and most Indian grocery shops.

Tips:
1. Dough consistency:
Dough is dry and cracked. There is too little water in your dough, and this makes it difficult to turn the handle of the mould. The texture of the fried murukku will also be hard. To remedy this, add a tablespoon of water at a time till you get the right consistency.

Dough is too mushy and breaks easily. This means you have too much water in your dough, as the strands of dough break easily as you’re turning the handle of the mould. Add a bit of flour at a time and try again.

2. Murukku mould: This usually comes in two varieties. One type requires you to push the dough out by the pressing on the handles, while the mould that you see in the pictures above has a handle that you turn. The latter requires less strength and is easier to use. The moulds may come with metal plates that have different patterns on them. Use the plate with three holes for this recipe. Murukku moulds are available at Mustafa Centre. Prices vary from $15 to $25.

3. Variations: You can substitute the spices in this recipe with others such as cumin and coriander. For a murukku with a kick, try adding chilli powder or cracked black pepper.