UPPU SEEDAI RECIPE ~ Salt Seedai

Sri Krishna Jayanthi also known ad Gokulashtami is nearing and I wanted to post this Uppu seedai recipe which is a main traditional snack that is prepared during this festival. We usually make seedai, murukku and some kind of payasam, assorted nuts dilkush mixture and maladdus for the pooja.  Making any kind of seedai is always a nightmare, I have seen amma making these and she always warns of them bursting suddenly and I have personally encountered a few terrible attempts and learned my lessons. One thing for sure….never attempt this snack alone, have a partner, friend or someone in your home to help.  I always pray and fingers crossed whenever making these, i did follow a few tricks which i learned from my trial and errors and from my own grandma. She usually makes with homemade rice flour which taste much better than store bought and has little extra steps involved and is time consuming. I’ve used the short cut method by substituting with store bought rice & urad flour.

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Please read Disclaimer – Seedai is a very traditional snack item which needs to be made with caution as there is always chances for the seedai to burst anytime. If something goes wrong, it will burst splashing hot oil all over. Not that it will burst every time but if there is any water content, air bubbles or any little particle stuck in the seedai, it has this tendency to burst.  Please do not attempt when you are alone,  you may need someone in case of emergency.  Please do not stand close to the oil while frying.

Some snack recipes to try…

1. Mullu Murukku
2. Butter Murukku
3. Pottukadalai Murukku

Lets see how to make this Uppu Seedai

Take store bought rice flour and roast them dry in a kadai for few minutes. (About 3-4 minutes over low medium flame). Remove and set aside.

You may also roast the urad dal in the same kadai for few minutes and set aside.

In same kadai dry roast the grated coconut until they are slightly golden. Remove and set aside.

Now put the roasted rice flour & urad flour in a fine mesh (jalladai) and sieve twice to make sure they are fine and smooth. Take the sieved flour in a bowl, add butter, grated coconut, asafoetida powder and salt. Mix well and then slowly add water little by little and knead to make a soft smooth stiff dough. Let the dough rest for 5- 10 minutes. 

Now grease your fingers with little oil and take a small portion of the dough and roll them into tiny balls. Place the seedai balls on a paper towel or any dry cloth or even newspaper for them to dry out. While making the seedai – do not press to hard to make the balls, air bubbles may get trapped and that will make them burst while frying in hot oil. Gently roll to get into tiny balls. Let these rest on the paper for at least 30 to 40 minutes before frying.

Heat oil in a pan. Always check oil temperature before dropping the seedai. Try frying one and if the seedai raises to the top as soon as its dropped in hot oil , then thats the right oil temperature. Try dropping a few and stay away from the stove for few minutes. Let it fry and if there is no bursting then continue. Once the oil is ready drop 10- 15 seedais at a time and deep fry over low medium flame for 5-6 minutes, use a long jalli karandi (spatula ) and keep stirring in between while frying. Once done they should look golden on all sides.  Remove the crispy seedai from the kadai and place it over a paper towel to drain excess oil. Repeat the step until you finish frying all the seedais. Let cool completely and store in an air tight box for a week.

Notes

1. I have used store bought rice flour and urad flour, you may use homemade rice flour and urad flour too. (Wash and soak raw rice for about 2 hours and dry in a clean dry towel. Grind and then seive the flour and dry roast in the kadai. For urad fliur- take 1/4 cup urad dal and dry roast in a kadai until slightly golden and then grind and sieve.
2. Whichever flour you use- dry roasting and sieving is a must for this recipe. It will remove all the moisture from the flour.
3. Dry roast the coconut to remove all the moisture from it.
4. Always use soft butter or melted butter for this recipe.
5. You may use cumin seeds instead of sesame or both.
6. Seedai should be always fried over low medium flame.
7. Dry the seedai on a paper is a must to remove all the moisture… at least 30 minutes is a must.
8. Roll the seedai balls gently and do not roll very tight, it will make the trapped air bubbles to burst while frying.
9. Make sure you make tiny balls and not too thick and big as it may not get cooked inside. Also make even sized balls to ensure even cooking.
10. Adding coconut is optional but gives nice flavor to the seedais.
11. Warming- Please do not stand close to the oil, stay away while frying.
12. If all these steps followed properly there is no fear of bursting seedais! Good luck!