Sukrundo with Layee Pitto (Powdered Puffed Paddy Rice) ... A Sweet that Lord Ganesha Loves.

"Sukrundo with Layee Pitto (Powdered Puffed Paddy Rice) ... A Sweet that Lord Ganesha Loves" ... Sukrundo is a sweet dessert prepared pby GSB Konkani Saraswaths during auspicious occasions. It is a sweet dish prepared as Naivedyam to God during festive season specially during Ganesha Chaturthi. It is believed that Lord Ganesha loved this sweet as much as modak and always demanded for it with his mother Goddess Parvati ... My Mother prepared the same during Krishna Janmashtami and Laxmi Puja during Diwali every year as all of children were fond of this sweet. We eagerly waited for the pooja to be over so that we could relish this sweet to heart’s content ... So go ahead and Enjoy this sweet Sukrundos this festive season and Enjoy it with your family and friends .... Yummy ....

**  These traditional delicacies are something I yearn for even now. This one is a lit bit tedious and I really wonder how those days women of the family catered to large family demand’s toiling all the time happily in the kitchen. I have never once heard my Mother crib about being tired of kitchen work. She always saw to it that she prepared everything that was traditionally prepared for the festive occasion. If I can achieve even 10% of what she has done I will indeed feel blessed. Coming to Sukrundo these are traditionally prepared in two ways. Though for an innovative mind the choice is off course endless. Those days our ancestors just followed their elders without any questioning. Also there was no technology which helped them learn new dishes and methods of preparing the same. They relied on word of mouth and learned by experience. We are much more luckier having technology at our finger tips. Yet we cant match them in their desire to prepare dishes for large families and relatives who always dropped in. There are 2 parts for this dish. One is the inner filling and the other is the outer covering. 

** There are 2 different types of Sukrundo’s prepared to the best of my knowledge. The puran poli stuffing prepared is dipped in maida batter and deep fried, which is one method. But my Mother used to prepare a little bit differently and I simply love her method. The inner filling is prepared by bring jaggery to soft ball forming consistency and preparing churan out of the same with coconut and then adding in layee pitto (puffed paddy rice powder), preparing lemon sized balls / laddoos out of the same and then dipping them into maida batter to evenly coat them and finally deep frying the same. The consistency of the churan is of utmost importance here. If that goes wrong then the whole process is gone as when you deep fry they will burst open. 

** The trick here lies in the correct consistency of binding the inner filling as it should not erupt and break off when deep frying nor should the filling be hard like undo/ laddoo that is hard to eat. It should be soft when you bite on the same. So it all depends on the thread consistency of the jaggery when you bring it to boil. Once you get the grip/ better understanding off the same it is easy to prepare.  With practice you will learn the same. The first time I prepared even I found it difficult and they opened up while frying and spread out all on oil. So plz. read the recipe properly before proceeding. Yummy … I simply love these Sukrundo, though like my Mom, I too prepare it only once in a year. 

** For the Filling :

Jaggery / Gud : 200 gms

Freshly grated Coconut : 1 cups 

Layee Pitto / Puffed Paddy Rice Powder : As much as needed (keep ready about 200 – 250 gms)

Cashew nut pieces : 2 tblsp

Black Til / Sesame : 2 tsp

Ghee : ½ tsp

Cardamom Powder : ¼ tsp

** For the Outer Covering :

Maida : 1 – 1.5 cups.

Water

** Oil For Deep frying

** Roast finely chopped Cashew Nuts and Black Til separately and keep them aside.

** Melt gud /goda / jaggery cut into pieces or grated in a thick bottomed kadai on low heat. You can add in a tablespoon of water if desired, ie if you feel it will be burnt at the bottom. I have not as with practice, you adjust the heat and melt the jaggery by stirring often.

** Let the jaggery completely melt, now on medium heat bring it to a boil. Once it comes to a full boil, lower the heat and let cook of 3-4 minutes only. You should be careful at this step as the jaggery should not get overcooked or else it will turn hard. You should get just about one thread consistency.

** For testing Jaggery Consistency : In a small bowl add in half a cup of water. Add in a tablespoon of melted jaggery. Wait a few seconds, if it thickens and settles well its done. Remove and try rolling it to a ball, it should be soft and sticky. The other method is to check it between thumb and index finger stretching the syrup called string thread consistency. 

One thread like string will be formed to indicate it has reached one string consistency. Also most important is to remember to either off the gas or keep it on very low when you check the consistency coz. if the jaggery if done by the time you finish testing in any of the method given above it may get overdone if the flame is high and reach harder level of binding consistency. So be very careful coz. this is the most important step. 

** Once the jaggery is tested and done, immediately add in the finely grated fresh coconut (only the top white part of the coconut should be used). Mix well and keep stirring for 3-5 minutes. Keep the heat low and do not overcook this or else again the chances are high of the jaggery getting caramelized. 

** Add ghee and mix well, leave to cool completely. This is called churnu/ churan. Once the churnu has cooled a little bit. Add in the roasted nuts, cardamom powder, ghee and til. Mix well and then finally add in the layee pitto/ puffed paddy rice powder. Keep adding little by little till you get the mixture right. You should be able to form small tight laddoos / ladu smoothly out of the same. 

** Note : I have not given the exact quantity of the layee pitto, coz I add it as per my own experience and eye ball judgement. The addition of the same depends on a lot of facts, like the texture and wetness of the churan the jaggery stickiness etc. Just be your own judge and mix well. Its sort of a little bit panchkadayi mixture but a little bit harder in consistency. 

** Now make small lemon sized balls out the mixture and keep them ready. When you drop the balls from a few inches above the plate they should not break easily. If it happens then the same is of no use as it may open up while deep frying. If this happens you can either use it as just panchakajjaya or try out next method if you have a microwave oven.

** Rectifying in Microwave Oven: Just put the prepared mixture in a microwave glassware and run on high for a minute allow to cool for few seconds and try binding the same. It will have cooked a little bit and hardened. Still if not done run for another minute and try the same procedure. By now it will def. harden up. Do not at any point run it continuous as then it will harden too much and again sukrundo cannot be prepared out of the same. And yes I assure you I have tried out this technique often when I have gone wrong with getting the correct jaggery thickening consistency. 

** To prepare the covering Batter : Mix maida with water to a smooth thick batter. See to it that there are no lumps. The batter should be thick and of dropping consistency similar to bajia mixture. It should coat the back of the spoon evenly in which case the batter is of right texture. Do not make it thin or else the balls will break open when frying. Also do not prepare excess and waste the batter. For this recipe if the outer batter falls short you can always prepare the same again back in a jiffy. So take it easy. 

** To Deep Fry : Heat plenty of oil in thick bottomed kadai, when the oil has reached the smoking point, lower the heat and wait for 5 mins. Add in a drop of the outer batter mixture, if it sinks down and sizzles and bounce back immediately on top, it mean the oil has reach the right temperature for deep frying. Now keep the flame on medium and see to it that you keep a constant temperature throughout frying of the sukrundos.

** Gently drop each prepared balls / laddoos of the mixture into the thick outer cover batter and roll it gently with a spoon so that the batter gets spread and evenly coats the balls. Now gently with the help of the spoon lower it into the hot oil one by one. Do not overcrowd the kadai. There should be enough space for the sukrundos go get evenly fried and browned.

** Once you add in about 6-8 sukrundos into the oil, allow them to get deep fried without disturbing them immediately. If you try stirring the sukrundo immediately, it will break open. Let it cook evenly for a few minutes and see to it that the heat is not high. After a few minutes with the help of a spatula gently try loosening them a little bit by shaking and once you notice that they are bound well and are firm and cooked evenly over turn them and fry them on all sides evenly. You will learn this with practice. Once you understand the process properly and the reasons for doing it gently you will not go wrong. 

** Once the sukrundos have turned crisp from outside and evenly browned remove on an absorbent paper for the excess oil to get drained off. Repeat the process with the remaining mixture balls till all are done. If the out batter falls short you can prepare a little bit again and continue till done.

** “Sukrundo ... A Sweet that Lord Ganesha Loves” is done and ready to be offered to God as Naivedyam. You can prepare this also a day ahead and keep ready so that it lessens you work load. Remains good for at least 2 weeks. Enjoy this sweet dish with your family and friend on festive occasions and do let me know how it turned out. Do not be disheartened if you go wrong the first time. You will learn where you missed the correct method and be perfect the second time. Please go through the recipe properly so that you do not do any mistakes and get perfect sukrundos.