“Ponosu- Khajura Godi Idly (Ripe Jackfruit- Dates Sweet Idly)” … ponsa muddo is a common sweet dish from GSB Konkani Saraswat Cuisine prepared when ripe jackfruit is in season … the same mixture can be steamed differently like in a large bowl, idly vati, keli paan (banana leaf), haldi paan (turmeric leaf), as khotto (prepared in jackfruit leaf weaved baskets), in tumblers etc. and the reference goes as muddo, khotto, idly, patholi etc. depending upon the steaming method used … here is another delicacy prepared by replacing half of jaggery with khajur syrup … tastes awesome served hot topped with ghee/ butter … plz. don’t go by the color; the darker tinge is coz. of the dates syrup used here … Yummilicious …
** This is one sweet dish I never tire of preparing whenever I am able to get ripe jackfruit. Surprisingly despite preparing it atleast a dozen times every year I had not shared the idly version until last year. Well that’s life, we all somehow go through this phase of jumping to conclusion only to find otherwise. Today I prepared the same jackfruit idly but by replacing half of the jaggery used with khajur syrup, somewhat a healthier version. Well, it does taste great, so try it and if you are not able to find khajur syrup in stores, then just soak some khajur and grind to a smooth paste, that’s all.
** I must mention that traditionally it is prepared either with rice or rava and I have shared both variations in the blog before. However, I must mention that you can try them with millets too and they taste wonderful. Here I have kept it simple and used rice rava used while preparing Idlies just like in my older recipes, the only difference being addition of khajur syrup. I am sharing a common link to all the jackfruit/ ponosu recipes below, just browse through and prepare as per your desire/ convenience. Do prepare and enjoy them with family soon as ripe jackfruit/ ponosu is now in season.
** Here is my recipe for “Ponosu- Khajura Godi Idly (Ripe Jackfruit- Dates Sweet Idly)” … try it for a change, tastes wonderful …
** Clean, remove the center seed of the ripe Jackfruit bulbs/ ponosu, rinse under running water, let drain well then cut it into small pieces. You should have in all about 3 cups of chopped pieces. Keep it ready aside.
** Heat half a cup of water and add 1 cup of jaggery/ goda/ gud cut into pieces and melt it. Remove and let cool, strain and keep aside. You can also grate and add jaggery while grinding or use powder if you prefer it that way.
** To be ground : Add 1 cup of ripe jackfruit pieces into a mixer and grind to a coarse paste using pulse mode. The pieces should be just crushed. Remove and put it into a wide bowl. Now add about 1 cup of freshly grated coconut (soyi/ nariyal) and grind to a fine paste using the prepared jaggery water adding little by little. You can add grated/ powdered jaggery and grind directly too adding little bit of water.
** Add remaining 2 cups of jackfruit pieces to the ground paste and further grind all together to a smooth paste. Remove and add this into the bowl along with ½ - ¾ cup of khajur/ dates syrup, 1/4 tsp of kala namak (rock salk/ black salt) and 1/2 to 1 tsp of cardamom (ellaichi/ yellu) powder and mix well to thick mixture.
** Note : I have first used 1 cup of jackfruit pieces and ground coarsely to get small pieces in final prepared Idly as it tastes wonderful with each bite. The rest is added to finer texture to get it perfectly softened and done. You can ground all to a fine paste and add to the mixture too, just try my method once, you will love it.
** Note : I have used readily available kajur/ dates syrup from stores which I always have in stock at home. However, if desired, you can soak one cup of seedless dates in hot water for 20 minutes and then grind it to a smooth paste in a mixer grinder, sieve if needed and use the same too, it serves the same purpose.
** Note : Sweetness of any dish is always a matter of individual taste, so adjust addition of jaggery and dates accordingly. You can increase or decrease either of the two as per your judgment or just taste a little bit and proceed.
** Now wash, drain and add about 2-3 cups of Idly rava/ rice rava and mix well. The quantity of Idly rava depends upon the amount that will hold on to mixture. To avoid excess add 2 cups of rice rava first, mix well, and then keep adding little by little until the mixture a bit watery as when left to rest the rice will soak up the same.
** Note : Add Idly/ rice rava little by little, keep mixing, while checking the mixture. The mixture should be thick and water should not leave from the sides, like that of which we prepare for rava bhakri etc. I have shared step by step picture collage in other similar posts to which link is shared, please check if necessary.
** Cover the mixture well, cover and keep it aside to rest, say for about 20-30 minutes. This helps the mixture settle well and absorb the liquid in batter make it slightly dry. This procedure is a must, otherwise the result will not be soft Idlies. After resting period, if you find it too thick you can add some water or if there is more liquid, you can add some more of rice rava to balance the mixture to required consistency.
** Note : If for any reason rice rava/ idly rava is not available or you do not want to use the same, then you can just soak about 2.5 cups of normal surti kollam or idly rice for 2-3 hours and then grind it to a coarse rava texture and use in preparation of the muddo/ khotto too. This same dish can be also prepared with wheat rava or kanik bansi rava too. I have shared common link which includes the same too.
** In a tablespoon of ghee fry handful of cashew nut (kajjubi/ kaju) pieces until evenly lightly browned, remove and keep it aside. Now add handful of raisins (dry grapes/ sukkale draksha) into the same ghee, fry for a few seconds, remove and keep them aside. Add both to the prepared mixture keeping aside some to be added to the base of the vati before adding mixture (this is optional and can be skipped).
** To prepare the Steamed Ponsa- Khajura Godi Idly : Mix well and add prepared mixture only to ¾ level in Idly mold/ small stainless steel vati which is greased thinly with melted ghee from within and few fried raisins+ cashew nut are added. Greasing is must, as it ensures that the ponsa godi Idly comes out cleanly in one go without crumbling once the Idly is steamed and cooled a bit. Avoid greasing with oil as these are sweet idlies that taste awesome when ghee is used, please do try it, sure to be loved.
** Bring adequate water to boiling point in pedavana/ Idly steamer on high heat. Now, place the prepared jackfruit mixture filled mold/ vati in layers using separators depending upon how many you want to prepare. Cover the lid tightly, steam on high heat for 5 minutes or till you see steam escaping through the lid, lower the heat to medium and continue steaming for 15-20 minutes or until idly is steamed and done.
** Note : Steaming time depends upon number of Idly molds used and size of molds used and the steamer etc. However, maximum steaming time is approximately 30 minutes and does not really need more time. Again, excess steaming turns the Idlies hard textured as the water content within them gets over dried, so be careful, and steam accordingly. If still unsure you can check by inserting a knife or wooden stick just like how we check out the cooking of a cake, if it comes out clean it’s done.
** When steamed and done, remove molds immediately from steamer with the help of tongs, keep them aside and let cool a bit. Run a blunt knife through the edges on inner side of molds and gently flip it over in one go, they come out beautifully intact. Ponsa- Khajura Godi Idly is ready and done, you can follow the same procedure with remaining batter if any or you can use the batter in preparation of Idlies only.
** “Ponosu- Khajura Godi Idly (Ripe Jackfruit- Dates Sweet Idly)” is done and ready to be served. Tastes best served hot topped with homemade melted ghee/ toop or loni/ butter (I served with Amul butter). You can enjoy theses as a snack/ tiffin or as a breakfast item or just anytime you want to enjoy them. Do try this one if you have not yet prepared dishes including dates/ khajur syrup, it tastes wonderful and is healthier. I often use it be it for appos, idly, dosa etc. and each one of them turns out excellent.
** Children and aged people love sweet dishes, so try preparing these traditional dishes and enjoy them with family, they are much more healthier compared to the store bought sweets of which you are never sure of both hygiene and quality. Remember, we should continue to prepare these age-old dishes so that they remain in circulation for our future generations. Do continue to remain attached to our roots be it in case of food or lifestyle, it is an important asset our ancestors handed down to us.
** We GSB Konkani Saraswat's, prepare these sweet ponsa/ ripe jackfruit Idlies and serve as snack for evening tea when children came home hungry from school, though these days the change of school timings have changed all patterns of eating in almost every household. I prepare it and serve for breakfast as the evening snack habit is no longer continued in my home. We just enjoy 1 idly topped with ghee/butter served along with usli/ upma for breakfast, to avoid going overboard with sweet items.
** Our ancestors had this habit of serving combo breakfast items and I have followed that habit from my Amma, this helps in balancing sweet dishes making breakfast healthier. I have shared many and you will find them in blog if browsed through along with an article on it. Coming to the sweet idly, if desired you can prepare it in a larger bowl like that of a tin cake too, the method remains the same except timings, just be sure its steamed well. All you will need to do is cut them then to pieces and serve.
** Sharing links below to similar recipe but prepared in different molds along with a common link to all the ponsa/ ripe jackfruit steamed recipes ….
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