If you ever meet a mallu away from home, just mention puttu kadala and you will be friends immediately. I am yet to meet a mallu who doesn’t sigh dreamily at it’s mention. Or for that matter, anyone who’s eaten it. This is something special. Beware though, for it is also deceptively filling!

What’s more, the kadala is one of the healthiest vegetarian forms of protien to have. Pairing these two along with coconut makes it a nearly perfect breakfast.

Ingredients:

2 cups coarse rice flour or chemba puttu podi (red rice flour)
1 cup freshly grated coconut
½ cup water
Salt

Special Equipment:

The puttu vessel is traditionally used to prepare puttu

Substitutions: A coconut shell with one eye pierced and placed over the valve of a pressure cooker might be used as a substitute.
A steamer could also be used.

Method:

Mix half of the grated coconut and salt into the rice flour.

Mix water into it in small quantities. The water is mixed in by rubbing it into the flour, so that the flour becomes granular. It should not be too dry or too wet.

Place a layer of 2-3 tbsp of coconut at the bottom of the puttu vessel and then put the rice flour mixture, followed by another layer of coconut.

Steam for 5 minutes.

Remove the puttu from the vessel and serve hot with kadala or payar curry, plaintains or just sugar and ghee.