Adhirasam

Adhirasam is a type of Indian sweet derived from Tamil cuisine. The pastry is similar to a doughnut with the shape of a vadai. But unlike the savory vadai, adhiarasams are sweet; they make excellent desserts. Many people use adhiarasam as offerings for the gods during puja prayers, both at home and in Tamil Nadu temples. They are also distributed as a treat during festivals like Christmas and Diwali in India.

Ingredients

Jaggery: 1 cup

raw rice: 1-1/4 cup

dry ginger powder: 1 tsp

elaichi powder: 1 tsp

Sesame seeds: 1 tbsp

Ghee: 1 tsp

cooking oil: for deep frying

How To Make Adhirasam

1. Wash rice and soak for 4-5 hours. Drain and spread over a cotton cloth (preferably white).
2. Let the rice dry for about 15 minutes.
   Note: Do not let the rice sit for too long; this will lead to the adhirasam becoming rubbery. There should be little moisture left.
3. Grind the rice into 2 batches of flour in a mixer.
   Note: The rice flour should not be too fine like the types found in stores.
4. If it’s too coarse, sieve it. Keep the flour covered and pressed while sieving.
5. Meanwhile, grind the jaggery into powder and heat while fully immersing in water.
6. Remove impurities once the it has dissolved completely, by filtering it and heating the jaggery syrup again.
   Note: The heat should be at a medium setting.
7. Stir occasionally while boiling.
8. Continue to check the consistency of the syrup by pouring in water.

• At the 1 st stage, the syrup will dissolve when you pour water into it.
• At the 2 nd stage, a fine thread will be laid in the boiling water, but will dissolve when you touch it.
• At the 3 rd stage, the syrup will become thicker as you pour water in and it won’t dissolve. You’ll be able to use your finger to gather it and form a loose ball (this is known as soft ball consistency). Turn off the heat at this stage.

1. Pour in the rice flour gradually, and then add elachi powder, dry ginger powder, and sesame seeds to the flour.
2. Use a spatula or ladle to keep mixing. It is possible you won’t need all of the sugar syrup. You should be careful after you’ve added about ¾ of it.
   Note: The dough will likely be very loose and gooey. It will become absorbed after some hours and become stiff.
3. Leave it overnight in an airtight container at room temperature.
   Note: You can keep it like that for up to 3 days.
4. Roll into balls of equal sizes (each one should be the size of a small lemon).
   Note: When you roll, you can apply a little sesame oil because of the slightly sticky dough.
5. Heat oil in a kadai until very hot and then lower the temperature.
6. Use ghee to grease and flatten the dough in a Ziploc bag.
7. Carefully drop the dough in oil then flip it and let cook as soon as it rises.
8. Drain the oil when the color turns to a golden brown.
9. Press it with a different ladle to remove the excess oil.
10. Repeat this process for the remaining dough.

Trivia
Inscriptions from the time of Krishnadevaraya have revealed that adhirasam was traditionally made from jaggery, rice flour, pepper and butter.

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