Unda puttu- Rice Dumpling with Prawns- Malabar Snack

Undaputtu- Rice Dumpling with Prawns- Malabar Snack

Today's recipe is Unda puttu, a north Kerala seafood delicacy. People of Kerala love their seafood, and rice and fish is a staple everyday meal. But will you be surprised if I say that they can even snack on seafood delicacies? This recipe is a classic example. It is a steamed rice dumpling with spicy prawns filling.

This is a snack from Malabar region of Kerala and is easy to make and very appetizing. It is a popular Iftar recipe and is made during the fasting months. It is served along with black tea or lemon tea. To me, this is brunch or a meal that I can have at any time of the day. You'd be surprised at how simple and filling, this can be. It is a full meal in itself with carbs and protein in one. Undaputtu is a gluten-free and guilt-free snack with so much flavor and taste.

Do these round dumplings look familiar to you? Yes, it is very close to kozhukatta, the steamed rice dumplings with the sweet coconut filling. This is the savory version of kozhukatta. It is the spicy prawns masala that makes it so good. When I first made this snack hubby would not believe that there exists a snack called undaputtu. This is because of an old habit of mine, adding prawns to almost everything from vegetables to stir-fries. But I promise the prawns filling of undaputtu is the most popular one. Yes, you can use other fillings like fish or chicken, so feel free to experiment. You can always add vegetables like mushrooms, carrots, green peas, bell peppers, etc to the filling. Kids will love this rice dumpling,you can make small balls with filling as a fun snack for kids. It will look cute and is tasty. Give this recipe a try, let me know how it turned out for you :)

The main ingredient in this recipe is roasted rice flour. The rice flour is the same that you use to make idiyappam or kozhukatta. The flour should be dry and fine powder variety. It will be fine powder silky smooth to touch. You can find Kerala rice powder in Indian grocery stores. I usually buy the Nirapara and Brahmins brand idiyappam rice flour to make recipes like idiyappam, pathiri, ammini kozhukatta, ila ada.
Now for the prawns filling use medium or small sized prawns.If you are using the large variety chop them into smaller pieces. The subtle peppery heat from black pepper and the sweet aroma of fennel seeds. There is a little amount of garam masala, but it is optional. Try to make the filling as dry as possible. You can add tomatoes and also veggies of your choice to make it more nutritious and filling.
The dumplings are coated with freshly grated coconut. It enhances the flavor when you steam the undaputtu. You can also use dry desiccated coconut

How to make Undaputtu- Rice dumplings with prawns

Cooking time- 25 minutes
Recipe type- snack
Cuisine- Kerala/India

Ingredients
Rice flour- 2 cup

Salt -to taste
Sugar- 1 tsp
Coconut oil- 2 tbs
Crushed fennel seeds- a pinch
Coconut for garnish- 1/4 cup

For the filling
Prawns- small size-100 grams
Onion- 1 medium finely chopped
Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp
Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp
Pepper powder- 1/4 tsp
Garam masala- 1/4 tsp
Fennel powder- 1/4 tsp
Chopped coriander leaves- 2 tsp
salt to taste and coconut oil

To make the filling

Heat oil in a pan and saute onion till translucent. Next, add ginger garlic paste and saute till raw flavors disappear. Add spice powders and fry for a minute. Add the cleaned prawns, mix and then cover cook for three minutes. Stir fry till the masala gets completely dried up. Sprinkle coriander leaves and allow this mixture to cool down completely.

To make the dough

Boil two cups of water along with salt and sugar. In a bowl add rice flour and make a well in the center. When the water comes to a rolling boil, carefully add the water little by little into the flour and mix with a wooden spatula till all the dough comes together. Add fennel seeds and coconut oil, cover and let it rest for a few minutes. When it cools down a bit knead the dough. You need a smooth soft dough. It feels stiff to add a little more water and knead. If sticky add more flour. The coconut oil enhances the flavor and reduce the stickiness of the dough and make it easy to handle. Make into a large lemon sized ball. Cover and set aside.

To make undaputtu

Take one ball each and flatten into a circle on your palm. Form it into a cup shape. Place spoonfuls of prawn filling in the center. Carefully bring in the edges together and seal. Smooth it into a ball. Roll this on grated coconut and gently press so that the coconut sticks on top of each ball. Steam this in a steamer for 10 to 15 minutes. Allow it to cool and serve with tea.