Modak is a delicacy made during festivals in India. There are many types and varieties of modak. The variations are in the different types of filling, the shape, and the way it is cooked. They can be steamed, shallow fried, or deep-fried. Today's recipe is a deep-fried version of modak made with all-purpose flour and semolina. The filling for the modak is made using jaggery, coconut, and cardamom powder.
We first begin with the preparation of the sweet filling. After it is ready and as it cools, the dough for the covering is prepared. The dough is then rolled into small balls and small rounds and filled with the coconut jaggery mixture. They are then neatly folded into place and joined together at the top as shown in pictures below. A little milk is used to bind the folds. It takes a little practice to get a neat little dumpling. It is quite fun making it as well. There are also moulds available these days in the store or online if you have trouble getting the shape right. Please read on for the full recipe and details with steps and pictures. Hope you enjoy making them as much as I did!
Modak (Sweet Fried Dumpling)
Ingredients
Filling
- 2 cup coconut shredded
- 1 cup jaggery
- ½ tsp cardamom powder
Dough for outer covering
- 1 cup All-purpose flour(Maida)
- ½ cup Semolina(Rava)
- 2 tbsp oil
- 8 tbsp milk
- 1 pinch salt
- 5 cups oil for deep frying
Instructions
To Make Filling
- Heat a pan and add coconut and jaggery to it.
- Keep stirring gently. As it gets heated, jaggery will melt. Cook for about 7 to 8 minutes .
- Add cardamom powder and continue stirring .The stuffing should be just about dry or semi-dry , not too wet or too dry as it can get hard.
- Transfer into a bowl and let it cool.
To Make dough and modak
- Take the all purpose flour and semolina in a bowl .
- Add the oil and mix well.
- Next add the milk and knead well.
- Cover with a damp cloth and let it rest for about 10 minutes.
- Divide the dough into small portions to make small balls and roll into small circles about the size of your palm.
- Wet the circumference of the circle with a little milk.
- Holding the rolled circle on your palm , place about a tablespoon of filling in the center of the circle .
- Make neat little pleats by pinching the sides which will stick together as they are wet.
- Join all the pleats at the center and glue them together by pressing them all together.
- Keep all the modaks filled and ready to be deep fried.
- Heat oil with a medium flame .When hot enough fry the modaks till they are golden brown in color. Drain the modak out into a container lined with paper towel .
- Modak is ready to be served.
I love to eat moral when I was a kid. Your recipe recalled my childhood days😍😍😍
Modak*
Thank you so much Liba for the comments, so glad it brought back memories!
Welcome dear and thanks again for recollecting my days😍
These look so very tasty and pretty!
Thank you so much Ronit , they are indeed very tasty and look good as well!
This looks absolutely delicious! One can never go wrong with fried dough, in my humble opinion 😉 I love the idea of a sweet filling, but I bet a savory one would be yummy too!
That's a good point Lynn, fried dough can never go wrong. Yes indeed savory one is a good option as well , once in a while sweet is great especially for festivities 🙂 Thank you so much for the comments!
These sound delicious and are so pretty!
Thank you so much , they are indeed very delicious!
Yum yum yum Nisha....
Thanks a lot Jyo !
Must admit I'd never heard of Modak before, but these look very more-ish! And the recipe looks far more straightforward than I thought it would, you make it so easy to follow 🙂 Can I ask what jaggery is? I feel stupid asking but it's another thing I hadn't heard of! xx
Very well said Caz , the modaks are more-ish indeed. I'm glad to hear that my recipe steps were easy to follow.Thank you so much, appreciate your kind comments! Great that you asked about jaggery , I should have mentioned a little note about it.It is not heard of much in the UK and US , but is available in the Asian groceries. It is very popular in South Asia and is a form of unrefined sugar ,obtained by boiling the sap from palm trees, like date or coconut or even sugar cane juice . Here is a great link on Jaggery https://www.huffpost.com/entry/jaggery_n_6264038 .
Such perfect looking modaks 👌🏻 Love them Nisha
Thank you so much Smitha , happy to read your comments!
These modak look so cute & delicious! Your beautiful photography makes me feel hungry.
Thank you so much for the wonderful comment Megala!
Wow.. Looks scrumptious!❤
Thank you so much!
So cute and look fabulous! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you so much Diane!
Your posts really inspire me and motivate me...even these modaks looks mouth watering😇...please guide me to be as good as you ..and also visit my page and posts 😊
Thank you so much for such a lovely comment, truly appreciate it! I will definitely visit your site and am sure you will do great.Good luck!