Huli avalakki is indeed a synonym for a festive prasada at home. So it was certainly one such, on Shivraatri last week. As most of you know it is merely an inter mixture of the 4 basic tastes and is savored by all ages.My nieces( 8&6) who make up reasons over some foods never say no to this and in fact binge on it. My granny loved it too !! Hence my conclusion of ages there. It is probably one of the easiest recipes to cook up. It actually does not even include cooking on the flame. Probably that is the reason why it is considered as a pure food and something which can be offered as a prasada to god with out any contamination. Well, all that apart, for me it is comfort food and I wouldn't mind eating it any day any hour hour !I make it quite often and don't surely wait for festivals to eat this. Also I follow a very simple version of the recipe and this is how it goes.
Serving size: 2 people
The ingredients:
- Avalakki/Flattened rice: 3 cups powdered in grinder to a fine consistency like rava
- Tamarind extract from pulp: about 3 tbsp
- Jaggery/brown sugar: 1 tbsp
- Rasam powder: 3 tsp
- Hing: to taste
- Salt: to taste
- Mustard:for seasoning
- Oil : for seasoning
- Peanuts: A few as per your liking
- Coconut: fresh/dry 3 tbsp
- Curry leaves: A few
- Coriander[optional]
- Water: as needed
- Mix ingredients 2-6 together in a small bowl.
- Set aside this liquid mixture.This is the gojju part of the dish.
- In a big bowl take the ground mixture of the flattened rice . Stir in the liquid mixture to this dry mixture and mix it well. Add in a few spoons of water if needed .The mixture should resemble the consistency of idli batter at this point.Set it aside to soak for about 20 minutes.
- Prepare a tempering of mustard, peanuts [use as much as you like] and curry leaves . Add this to the soaked avalakki and give it a stir.
- Add in the coconut and coriander and mix once again .See to it that all the ingredients are well incorporated and I suggest using the hand to do this, if you have no inhibitions in doing so. And now... what more, it is done and ready !!!
I actually saute` the whole mixture on a low flame for a few minutes. It is optional.
