The modak is a unique Indian sweet dish that is often prepared during festivals like Diwali & Ganesha Chaturthi. Just like all Indian festivals, this calls for sweetening your mouth. You can find some popular sweet dishes prepared at home like the ladoo, burfi, rasgulla, and the modak.
The modak is like a dumpling that is filled or stuffed with jaggery and sweet stuff. You can add your variations like coconut gratings, and so on. In North India, the festival goes on for ten days. You can design & create your own colorful decorations and like clay idols of Lord Ganesha.
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The festival is a time for dancing, music, prayers, and of course snacks. The modaks neatly placed on a tray is a sight to behold. It truly makes the festival even more special.
Significance of Modak
Modaks are believed to be the favourite dish of Lord Ganesha. So, the dish is prepared and placed in front of the Lord and his blessings are taken. Then it is a free for all. New friendships are made, old friends are remembered.
The sweet dish has an integral part of the festivities. Basically, they are prepared from rice flour and filled with jaggery and coconut. You can also use mawa and coconut. You can steam them or fry them.
This can be done according to your taste & preferences. You can add some colour to the rice dough as well. Likewise, you can try to add your own elements that give it a rich and luscious flavour.
Chocolate Modak
The Chocolate Modak is a chocolatey version of the original recipe. As you may know the original modak is white with jaggery & coconut stuffing. However, this one comes prepared from chocolate powder. It is an easy chocolate modak recipe.
We prefer to use Cadbury. Below is the chocolate modak recipe.
Ingredients:
For the outer covering
1 cup or around 200 gm rice flour
1½ cups water
1 tsp ghee or oil
Salt to taste
10 gm cocoa powder
Oil for greasing the plate
For the filling
100 gm fresh grated coconut
50 gm sugar
2 gm green elaichi or cardamom powder
For the garnish
Chocolate sauce, to serve
Chopped pistachios
Preparation:
You need to take a pan, and boil some water on medium flame.
Then add some ghee & salt to it.
When the water is getting hot, you can reduce to low flame, and add the cocoa powder, and rice flour.
You have to add them gently, and keep stirring.
Now, remove it from the gas, and cover it for sometime.
Knead the rice dough well once it cools down.
You can rub your fingers with water, and then begin kneading.
You can make small balls from the dough.
Cover the balls with a damp cloth.
Please make sure that the balls are smooth, and don’t have cracks in them.
To make the filling, take a pan, and place it on low flame.
Use all the filling ingredients, and when the sugar melts, remove from the heat.
Allow it to cool, and then prepare the modak.
Take an idli steamer, and add water inside it, and place on medium flame.
Flatten each of the balls, and give the shape that you desire.
Press the edges to reduce the thickness.
Make sure that you pleat the edges of the balls well, after adding the filling.
Steam it for 10-15 minutes. You know they are done, when they are soft, and well-steamed.
You can pour the chocolate sauce and garnish with any element before serving.
Motichoor Modak
Our next dish is the motichoor version of the modak. If you have eaten the motichoor ladoo, then you will be familiar with this version as well. It tastes almost the same as the original version of the modak, with a hing of the motichoor.
Ingredients:
1 bowl besan or gram flour
1½ bowl sugar
1½ bowl water
1 tbsp vegetable oil
½ tsp green elaichi or cardamom powder
1 tbsp chopped pista
Strands of kesar or saffron
Oil or ghee
Preparation:
Take a half-bowl of water, and then add the gram flour. This gives a small batter.
It should be somewhat thick, and not too runny.
Use 1 tbsp oil and mix for 5 minutes. This gives you a fluffy batter.
Take a medium size pan, and add some oil or ghee to it. Then place it on medium flame, and use a large round spoon with small holes. The spoon could be the same one that you use for preparing ladoo bondi.
Then you need to pour batter on the large spoon with holes.
Now, fry the contents for 5 minutes.
Use another pan, heat a bowl of the water.
Pour sugar and boil for 10 minutes on medium flame. Please keep stirring. You need a thick sugar syrup. You can take some of the syrup in your thumb and forefinger, and rub it gently to notice the thickness. This aspect is very important for making this dish.
Now, you can add the cardamom powder, pista and saffron.
Mix the contents, and remove from heat.
You can pour the sugar syrup on the fried boondi. Allow it to cool.
You can use the boondi and shape them into a modak.
Better to use a modak mould.
Serve it hot.
Coconut Modak
Finally, we have the coconut modak, which consists of large amounts of grated coconut used as the stuffing inside the modak. If you love coconuts, then this modak should be on your list of eateries for this year’s festivities.
Ingredients:
1 cup fresh grated coconut + extra for garnish
200 gm mava or milk solid, crumbled
1 cup sugar
Seeds of 4 pods of green elaichi or cardamom
2 tbsp ghee
Preparation:
Take a blender, and add the cardamom and sugar. You need to blend the mixture until the sugar is finely powdered. Then place it aside.
Take a pan, and add some ghee to it, and place it on medium flame.
When the ghee is hot, reduce to low flame, and add the grated coconut.
You have to keep stirring, until there is no moisture left. This ensures that the coconut is dry. It should also change the colour.
Use the crumbled mava and powdered sugar-elaichi. You have to keep stirring the mava and sugar.
Please don’t add water to melt the sugar or mava. Doing that affects the thickness of the modak.
Now, you have to stir the ingredients, until the mixture combines.
The ghee begins to separate.
Transfer the contents to a bowl, and allow it to cool.
You may want to use a modak mould, and shape them before they become stiff.
Now, garnish with fresh coconut.
Serve hot.
Conclusion
These were some of our simple recipes. We hope that you try a Modak recipe with a twist during your free time. Moreover you can add your own elements and variations to them. It is all about some creativity & imagination.
You will be surprised by your own skills. Go ahead and impress yourself with this Ganesha Chaturthi.
