Ukadiche Modak or Steamed Sweet Rice Dumpling, it is an authentic Maharashtrian dish. It is made specially on Ganesha/Ganpati festival as a Prasad of Lord Ganesh. Modak is Lord Ganesha’s favorite food. Ganesh Puja is incomplete without modak.
There are so many versions of modak like fried modak, wheat flour modak, mawa modak, kesar modak and yes modern chocolate modak, but this steamed rice flour is most favorite. Ukadiche Modak is made with the rice or wheat flour and the sweet filling of grated coconut and jaggery. It is very easy and quick to make.
In India there are so many festivals and every festival have their own special sweets related to the god. There is no festival which can be completed without its offering. Each festival comes with its special sweets according to the season like Makar Sankranti come with its til chikki, laddu, Holi come with its gujiya and Ganesh Chaturthi with its ‘ukadiche modak and ‘laddu.
Traditionally modak are steamed or fried and known as kadubu kudumu or kozhakkattai in south India. Modak is the favorite sweet offering to Lord Ganesha and you can find them in every Marathi households during Ganpati festival.
Ingredients:
For Stuffing
• 1-2 tbsp Ghee
• 1-2 tsp Poppy Seeds/Khus Khus(opt.)
• 2 cup Fresh/Frozen Grated Coconut
• 1 cup Grated Jaggery
• ¼ tsp Cardamom Powder
• ¼ tsp Nutmeg Powder
For Covering Dough
• 2 cup Rice Flour
• ¼ tsp salt
• 2 cup Water
• 1 tbsp Ghee/Oil
For Garnishing and serving
• 2-3 tbsp Milk + 4-5 Threads Of Saffron (Soaked Together)
• 2-3 tbsp Ghee
Method:
For Stuffing
1. In a pan add ghee, once hot enough on medium flame, add poppy seeds/khus khus, then add grated coconut, then roast it for a few mins on medium flame.
2. Add grated jaggery, cardamom, nutmeg powder and cook it while stirring until it becomes thick mixture.
3. Remove the mixture into the plates, let it cool down and make small small tiny marble sized balls out of it and keep aside. Depends on size of modak molding tool.
For Dough
1. In a pan add water, salt and a few drops of ghee, bring it to the boil, then add rice flour slowly, mix it well. Switch of the flame and cover it for 4-5 mins and keep aside. Do not Cool it down completely, dough should be warm.
2. Now take the prepared mixture and knead it until smooth soft dough, if dough mixture is hot and difficult to handle use cup to break it down and make smooth texture, using little ghee or oil. You can use food processor for kneading the dough, instead self kneading.
Process:
1. Now take a mold and grease it with oil or ghee. Take small amount of dough and insert the small portion of dough in it, make a space using finger, then stuff the prepared stuffing in it, cover it using dough and make modak. Use the same method for rest of the dough and stuffing, and make more modaks. While making modak, keep covered all the modak under wet muslin cloth, until you steam them.
2. If you don’t have mold, then take a small ball of dough, roll it into a small circle, put the stuffing in the center, pull the side edges on top and seal it. Check My Instagram Reel for demonstration.
3. In a big deep pan add 2 cups of water and put the stand in it, let it boil the water before steaming. Take a steaming plate, grease it with oil or line with banana leaf, dip modak into the water. then arrange on greased plate, make sure there’s space between them to avoid being stick to each other. Put modak plate in the steamer, cover the lid and steam it about 10 mins. Switch of the flame and let it cool down for 5 mins.
4. Once cool down remove it and put it on serving plate. Modaks are ready, top with saffron milk and ghee, serve fresh and enjoy.
Tips:
• Do not cook stuffing too much, otherwise it would be hard and chewy.
• Do not add too much water in rice dough, otherwise it would make dough sticky.
• Make a space between each modaks while steaming, otherwise they would stick to each other and difficult to remove it.
• You can garnish the modaks using saffron threads and soak in milk.
- For Stuffing
- 1-2 tbsp Ghee
- 1-2 tsp Poppy Seeds/Khus Khus(opt.)
- 2 cup Fresh/Frozen Grated Coconut
- 1 cup Grated Jaggery
- ¼ tsp Cardamom Powder
- ¼ tsp Nutmeg Powder
- For Covering Dough
- 2 cup Rice Flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 cup Water
- 1 tbsp Ghee/Oil
- For Garnishing and Serving
- 2-3 tbsp Milk + 4-5 Threads Of Saffron (Soaked Together)
- 2-3 tbsp Ghee
- For Stuffing
- In a pan add ghee, once hot enough on medium flame, add poppy seeds/khus khus, then add grated coconut, then roast it for a few mins on medium flame.
- Add grated jaggery, cardamom, nutmeg powder and cook it while stirring until it becomes thick mixture.
- Remove the mixture into the plates, let it cool down and make small small tiny marble sized balls out of it and keep aside. Depends on size of modak molding tool.
- For Dough
- In a pan add water, salt and a few drops of ghee, bring it to the boil, then add rice flour slowly, mix it well. Switch of the flame and cover it for 4-5 mins and keep aside. Do not Cool it down completely, dough should be warm.
- Now take the prepared mixture and knead it until smooth soft dough, if dough mixture is hot and difficult to handle use cup to break it down and make smooth texture, using little ghee or oil. You can use food processor for kneading the dough, instead self kneading.
- Process
- Now take a mold and grease it with oil or ghee. Take small amount of dough and insert the small portion of dough in it, make a space using finger, then stuff the prepared stuffing in it, cover it using dough and make modak. Use the same method for rest of the dough and stuffing, and make more modaks.
- If you don’t have mold, then take a small ball of dough, roll it into a small circle, put the stuffing in the center, pull the side edges on top and seal it. Check my Instagram Reel for demonstration.
- In a big deep pan add 2 cups of water and put the stand in it, let it boil the water before steaming. Take a steaming plate, grease it with oil or line with banana leaf, dip modak into the water. then arrange on greased plate, make sure there’s space between them to avoid being stick to each other. Put modak plate in the steamer, cover the lid and steam it about 10 mins. Switch of the flame and let it cool down for 5 mins.
- Once cool down remove it and put it on serving plate. Modaks are ready, top with saffron milk and ghee, serve fresh and enjoy.
Do not add too much water in rice dough, otherwise it would make dough sticky.
Make a space between each modaks while steaming, otherwise they would stick to each other and difficult to remove it.
You can garnish the modaks using saffron threads and soak in milk.
