The nice crispy crunchy Kuzhi Paniyaram is a very popular dish in Tamilnadu. Its a favorite for many. Its made in a special mold called the paniyarakkal. The shape of the dish is very similar to that of the Japanese Takoyaki, Danish Æbleskiver-appleskives and Indonesian Pinyaram. The Paniyaram can be made sweet or savoury. This is a savoury version where a tempering is added to the idli/dosa batter. I like to use idli batter for this recipe and you can find the recipe for idli batter here.
Here is how to do Kuzhi Paniyaram. Soak Sago (“Tapioca Sago – Sabudana” is called ஜவ்வரிசி (javvarisi) in Tamil) in 1/2 cup of water for half an hour. Grind to a paste. Dont add any extra water while grinding. The water used for soaking should be enough. Set aside. Sago gives the Kuzhi Paniyaram a very crispy and crunchy bite.
Heat a heavy bottomed pan and add in the oil. When the oil is hot, add in the mustard seeds. Let it splutter. Add in the shallots and the green chillies. Its very traditional to use shallots for Kuzhi Paniyaram. But I have used onions today as I did not have shallots.
Fry the onions till they are soft. Once the onions are soft, add in the coconut. Fry for a minute. Remove off heat. Add in the onion coconut mixture and the sago paste to the dosa batter. I do not add extra salt as the idli batter already has salt. If you think you might need salt, add very little salt to the batter. Mix batter well. Set aside.
Heat the paniyaram pan / paniyarakkal until hot. Add 3/4 teaspoon of vegetable oil into each mold. Drop the batter to fill the mold. Cook for a minute. Then turn and cook on the other side. Turn again if necessary to make sure the paniyaram is evenly cooked on both sides and its nicely golden in colour.
The paniyaram is ready if it has become crispy and golden on both sides.
I like to serve Kuzhi paniyaram with a spicy kaara chutney or poondu kuzhambu. Here is the link to buy a sturdy Paniyaram pan / Paniyarakkal
- 500 ml Idli Batter
- 3 tablespoon Sago/Sabudana/Javvarisi
- ½ teaspoon Salt (if required only)
- 2 teaspoon vegetable oil
- ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
- 20 shallots or one big onion, chopped fine
- 4 green chillies, chopped fine
- ¾ cup fresh shredded coconut (half of one medium sized coconut)
- ½ cup Vegetable Oil
- Soak Sago in ½ cup of water for half an hour. Grind to a paste. Set aside.
- Heat a heavy bottomed pan and add in the oil. When the oil is hot, add in the mustard seeds. Let it splutter. Add in the shallots and the green chillies. Fry the onions till they are soft.
- Once the onions are soft, add in the coconut. Fry for a minute. Remove off heat. Add in the onion coconut mixture and the sago paste to the idli/dosa batter. Add salt if required.
- Heat the paniyaram pan / paniyarakkal until hot. Add ¾ teaspoon of vegetable oil into each mold. Drop the batter to fill the mold. Cook for a minute. Then turn and cook on the other side. Turn again if necessary to make sure the paniyaram is evenly cooked on both sides and its nicely golden in colour.
- The paniyaram is ready if it has become crispy and golden on both sides.
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