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My 306th recipe, "Kai Murukku", aSouth Indian snack which is slightly tricky to make, but one which is soo very delicious. A classic recipewhich is equally beautiful and crafty to look at and a treat for the eye, in addition tobeing tasty.
While there are different types of murukku made with different combination of flours, in any typical Tamil household, Kai Murukku has been one of my favorite for a very long time. I simply love the fact that it is painstakingly shaped with hand, just to make it ever so gorgeous. For the effort needed to make this murukku, I would usually prefer making other varieties of murukku at home using a murukku press. I used to heavily rely on getting this kai murukku from a store like Grand Sweets or Ananda Bhavan, but with the options being far and few, I started making these frequently at home now.
Preparing the dough for this murukku is the easier part. However shaping the murukku is no mean task. My first try was sometime last year. While it is obvious that the shape was not anywhere close to perfect, the taste and texture also seemed to be slightly off target. That time around it even got into the 2015 Bloopers post. However, never giving up, I would give it a try whenever I have spare time. After a few trial and errors, even though the shape did not turn out to be perfect, I was able to nail the taste and texture. It isnow deemed worthy enough be to shared with you folks 🙂
Usually, Kai Murukku would be made for festivals like Krishna Jeyanthi. Krishna Jeyanthi is way past us now, however I am here right on time for the next major festival and my favorite Diwali. In case you are looking for a delicious snack recipe to prepare for Diwali, or even for Navarathiri, you need not look beyond here. This Kai Murukku would be a perfect fit and loved by one and all. 😉
The base of the kai murukku, like most of the other murukku recipes, is the rice flour. Just that this recipe works only with a moist rice flour. You would get that only when you grind the flour at home and not from rice flour bought from the store. Patience truly is not my cup of tea, but becomes quite essential when making this murukku. The urad dal roasted until golden and powdered give a nice aroma, color and flavor to this murukku. Just the flavor combination of freshly ground rice and urad dal flour is quite sufficient for this murukku. However to make it even more flavorsome, a little bit of jeera and asafoetida is added.
This kai murukku is one of those snacks which you can keep munching away anytime of the day. But just like any other snack, I prefer to have it along with my cup of evening tea. Sitting down to relax, reading my favorite book, a sip of hot chai and a bite of this crisp kai murukku is all I need to make a memorable evening 🙂
Kai Murukku
Kai Murukku
Revathi Palani
Kai Murukku is a classic South Indian snack recipe made primarily with rice and urad dal flour and painstakingly shaped by hand. A classic Tamil recipe.
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Prep Time 3 hours hrs 30 minutes mins
Cook Time 30 minutes mins
Total Time 4 hours hrs
Course Snack
Cuisine Indian
Ingredients
- 3 Cups Raw Rice (about 6 Cups after ground)
- ½ Cup Whole Urad dal (about ¾ Cup after ground)
- 5 Tbsp Butter (softened at rom temperature)
- 2 ½ tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Asafoetida
- 1 tsp Jeera
- 3 Tbsp Hot oil
- Water - as needed
- Oil - For frying
Instructions
First wash and soak the rice in sufficient water for about 3 hrs. Drain the water from the rice.
Spread the rice on a clean cloth and leave it to rest at room temperature. The excess water from the rice should dry off, but the rice should still be moist to touch. Transfer the rice to a mixie / blender and grind to a fine powder. Sieve the rice flour. Grind the coarse rice which was filtered out and repeat the process of sieving. Keep it aside.
Now, Dry roast the urad dal until golden brown. Turn off the flame and leave it to cool down to room temperature. Grind the urad dal to a fine powder and sieve it similar to the rice.
Measure the finely powdered rice and urad dal and add it to a large mixing bowl. Add the remaining ingredients (butter, salt, asafoetida, jeera and hot oil) and mix well until combined.Sprinkle sufficient water and knead it into a smooth dough.
Place a plastic bottle cap in the center of a parchment paper. Grease your hand with oil and take a small portion of the dough. Roll it out using your fingers and stick it to the cap. Then gently using a twist and turn motion, roll out the dough into the shape of murukku.
Meanwhile heat oil in a kadai for frying. Once the oil is hot turn the flame to medium. Slide the murukku dough into the oil and fry until nicely golden.
Store it in an airtight container and enjoy.
Notes | FAQ
- The urad dal should be roasted until golden brown. Take care not to burn it.
- The dough should be soft, smooth and pliable. It should not be dry or else you will not able to shape the murukku. It should not be wet or else the murukku will absorb oil.
- Fry in medium flame or else the murukku will change color quickly but will not be crisp.
- The butter should be softened at room temperature to get the right texture for the murukku. Do not melt and add.
- If the dough dries out and you are not able to shape the murukku, sprinkle a little water and knead to make the dough pliable again.
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Reader Interactions
Comments
Sowmya says
Congratulations Revathi on this benchmark. I agree .it takes time and patience to achieve mKing perfect Kaimurukku. I was and am still trained by my Paati. Though I can make it successfully now, I feel I am still yet to achieve my Paati s finesse in this. Continue to rock and my best wishes for many more years of happy blogging. Do visit my humble space when you find time. Cheers and happy cooking.
Reply
revifood says
Thanks Sowmya. Such encouraging words from folks always keeps me going 🙂
Reply
muni says
can anything used insted of butter
Reply
revifood says
Hi Muni, Butter is important for the flavor and texture of this murukku. I am not too sure if any other alternative would work.
Reply
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