Site icon Mayuri's Jikoni

Ukadiche Modak/Steamed Modak

mayurisjikoni
Jump to Recipe - Print Recipe

EVENT: FOODIEMONDAY/BLOGHOP

THEME: #161 GANESH CHATURTHI RECIPES

FoodieMonday/Bloghop group decided to celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi with recipes. Recipes we would make to offer Lord Ganesha. Undoubtedly its the best time to make the famous Ukadiche Modaks or steamed Modaks.  Steam or fry them. I steamed these traditional Maharashtrian mithai.

Ganapati Bappa Moriya, Mangal Murti Moriya

All those celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi chant the above and get ready for the Ganesh Chaturthi, Vinayak Chaturthi or Vinayak Chavithi festival.  To find out what the chanting actually means watch this video. In fact, the festival marks the birthday of Lord Ganesha, the son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati.

The Story:

The story goes that when Lord Shiva was away, Goddess Parvati created Ganesha from sandalwood paste to guard the door when she went for her bath. Lord Shiva returns and Ganesha doesn’t recognize Him. Shivji does not know that Parvati had created Ganesha. Ganesha does not allow Him to enter. Subsequently, a fight takes place between the two. Enraged, Lord Shiva cut off Ganesha’s head. When Goddess Parvati gets to know about this, she takes on the form or avatar of Goddess Kali. She threatens to destroy the world if her child is not brought back to life, As a result, Shankara (Lord Shiva) orders his followers to find the first baby whose mother has her back to him/her and bring his/her head. A follower found a baby elephant and brought the head to Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva brought Ganesha to life.

Ganesh Chaturthi Celebration

Generally, Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations last for 10 days. A clay statue of Lord Ganesha is installed in pandals, temples and homes on the first day. These are decorated with flowers. Lord Ganesha is worshipped for 10 days and offered a variety of food. Chanting of songs(bhajans) praising Ganesha and dancing takes place. On the 11th day, with much pomp and celebration the Idol of Ganesha is submerged in the water. Followers request Him to come back soon the following year.

Why Ganesha Idol/statue is immersed in water?

It is believed that during the 10 days that He visits us, he takes all our wishes to the heavenly abode. In addition, He also takes any negative energy with Him when he is sent back to Mt Kailash, his abode. When immersed in the water, this symbolizes that the devotees are sending him back to his abode.

Importance of Ganesha in Hinduism

Hindus believe in worshipping Lord Ganesha first before starting any new work, celebrations, poojas, havans, etc. We believe that He is the remover of all obstacles. Lord Ganesha is considered the friendly God and is loved by all.

My Experience

While growing up in Nairobi, I’d not seen huge celebrations of Ganesh Chaturthi. Neither did I see it when I was schooling in Mt. Abu. Much later on during our visits to India, I began to see huge celebrations. Incidentally, my first visit to a big pandal was near the ISKCON temple Juhu. Subsequently, got to witness more and more pandals coming up even in Bangalore. 2 years ago I was fortunate enough to be in Bangalore during the festival and our society had huge celebrations for 10 days.

 Ideas what to make for Ganesh Chaturthi Celebrations

Some Laddoos – Ganesha’s favourite

Modaks

Kozhukkatai 

Other Sweet Dishes

 

Check out Poonam’s 101 Ganesh Chaturthi recipes

Panchakajjaya by Veena. Its a special preparation of 5 ingredients that is offered to Lord Ganesha.

Deciding to Ukadiche Modak

I had to try making the famous modak that Lord Ganesha loves so much for this festival. Ganesha loves Modaks and laddoos. Generally, modaks are rice dumplings with a sweet stuffing. However, there are a variety of modak recipes right from chocolates ones to the authentic ones. I searched for ideas and methods on several blogs and You Tubes.Took me a long time to shape the modaks even with the mold. But, it was definitely worth the effort. The first one was a disaster as most photos show how to stuff them but not how to seal the bottom. At the end the taste of modak was awesome so worth all the work. I shaped a few without the mold but to get nice pleated ones, it takes a lot of practice.

 

Ingredients required for Ukadiche Modak

Dietary Tips:

 

Print

UKADICHE MODAK/STEAMED MODAK

Lord Ganesha's favorite, Ukadiche Modak are gluten free and steamed dumplings with a sweet filling. Its a famous traditional Maharashtrian sweet or mithai.
Course festival recipe, Indian Sweet
Cuisine Indian, Maharashtrian Cuisine
Keyword festival recipe, homemade, indian sweet, modak recipe, steamed modak, traditional modak recipe, using a modak mold
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings 16 pieces

Ingredients

FOR THE DOUGH:

  • 1 cup rice flour
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tbsp ghee
  • 2 tbsp milk
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • ¼ tsp salt

FOR THE FILLING:

  • ¼ cup jaggery powder
  • ¼ cup grated coconut fresh
  • 2 tbsp sesame seeds roasted
  • 1 tbsp poppy seeds roasted
  • 3 tbsp mixed nut powder coarse
  • 1 tbsp ghee
  • 1 tsp cardamom powder
  • ½ tsp nutmeg powder
  • some water for dipping fingers in
  • extra ghee for greasing

Instructions

PREPARATION OF THE DOUGH:

  • Add the water in a pan and place it over medium heat.
  • Add salt, sugar and ghee and bring it to a boil.
  • Add the rice flour and mix it well till not much dry flour is left.
  • Switch off the heat and cover the pan with a lid.
  • Let the dough rest for 10 minutes.

PREPARATION OF THE FILLING:

  • Add jaggery to a wide pan over medium heat and stir it constantly till it begins to melt.
  • Add ghee and coconut. Mix well.
  • Add sesame seeds, poppy seeds, nut powder, cardamom and nutmeg powder and mix well.
  • Take the pan off the heat.
  • The mixture should appear moist and when a bit cool you should be able to form a tiny ball easily. If not sprinkle very little milk and mix.

PREPARATION OF MODAKS:

  • Open the modak mold and grease it lightly with ghee.
  • Close the mold. From the hole at the bottom push in a some rice dough.
  • Using wet fingers press the dough to the sides of the mold.
  • Remove any excess dough that comes out. You should have a hole in the middle to fill it with the jaggery filling.
  • Take a tiny ball of filling and stuff it in by pressing it in through the hole.
  • Take a small piece of dough and flatten it into a small thin circle.
  • Cover the bottom with it.
  • Open the mold and remove the modak.
  • Gently press and shape the bottom part well. Press the modak gently on the surface to get a flattish bottom.
  • Place it on a greased tray.
  • Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.

STEAMING:

  • Add little water to your steaming device.
  • Line the perforated tray with parchment paper or a thin muslin cloth.
  • When the water begins to boil arrange the modak in the tray.
  • They should not touch each other.
  • Steam for 10 minutes.
  • Slowly remove the steamed modak from the steamer.
  • Arrange on a plate that will be used for offering to Lord Ganesha.
  • Drizzle a few drops of ghee over the modak to give that nice shine.

Notes

  • If you find the rice dough is drying out then add a few drops of water or milk and knead the dough.
  • My steaming device is a big pan with a lid. I place a stand in the middle of the pan and place my perforated colander over it. You can use a idli steamer or your rice cooker steamer too.

Pin for later:

 

A little request:

If you do try this recipe then please either

 

 

 

 

Exit mobile version