Pottukadalai murukku is an easy, crispy South Indian savory snack made with rice flour and roasted gram flour. This instant murukku recipe needs no soaking or grinding of rice, making it convenient to prepare for Diwali or whenever you crave homemade murukku.
Perfect to make for your home tea time snack or for festivals like Diwali and gifting to friends, family, relatives when you meet them and want to make something homemade.
Check out my wet grinder method murukku and this Thenkuzhal recipe in this website.
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When I was a kid, if we get to taste some store bought murukku, it will be having an unique flavor, which we don't get in the thenkuzhal murukku we make usually with urad dal and rice flour. My mom used to say it is made with pottukadalai in place of urad dal.
Later we used to try pottukadalai murukku at home. But always ended up in oil drunken soft murukkus. The mistake we did was adding too much of pottukadalai flour.
So after many years, with some knowledge that we need less flour along with the rice flour more in ratio, I saw a recipe in my cookbook mom gave. But it involved wet grinding of the flour.
I am yet to try that version but this instant version is really easy to adapt as we can buy store bought rice flour and just powder the pottukadalai we have at home and make this murukku anytime.
This can be made so easily in a jiffy, I tried with less amount, you can make the same for this Diwali. Everyone gonna love this one!
About Pottukadalai Murukku
Pottukadalai murukku is a crispy South Indian savoury snack made with rice flour and pottukadalai flour (roasted gram dal flour). It is a variation of traditional murukku, known for its crispy, light texture.
What is pottukadalai?
Pottukadalai is an easily available ingredients in south Indian households. We use pottukadalai (Tamil term) it for chutneys mostly. It looks same like chana, but just that it will be bigger, pale and light weight.
Pottukadalai called roasted gram or fried gram in English commonly in India. Some people also call it roasted chana dal. Pottukadalai is also known as Udacha kadalai in Tamil. It is also called chutney dal or dharia dal. It is creamy white, light, crispy and pre-cooked/ ready to eat as a crunchy snack.
Want to understand more what is pottukadalai? It is prepared from Brown chana (Brown chickpeas). It undergoes process of roasting, peeling and splitting the chana.
But it will not be the same if you dry roast chana dal at home. It's light texture is achieved only by factory roasting. It's great to have it as such because of the roasting process.
Pottukadalai is very nutritious just like chana. So it is widely used in households in Tamil Nadu, even for kids.
Pottukadalai murukku Ingredients
Here are the simple ingredients needed to make murukku:
- Pottukadalai - Roasted gram dal - One of the star ingredient. Gives murukku the light and crisp texture.
- Rice flour - I used idiyappam flour for crispy results. I use a finest flour for murukku not breaking while squeezing or while frying.
- Ajwain - omam - carom seeds - Adds a great flavour for the murukku
- Hot oil in dough - For the crispy results
- Oil for deep frying
- Salt
You can use either homemade pottukadalai flour or even store bought ones. Same goes for rice flour. Make sure both are really fine and good quality. If it is coarse, it will break or even turn hard.
Check my Recipe card below for quantities.
Murukku press
I made this murukku with the press my MIL bought me in Kumbakonam Kumbeswarar temple street shops. She got one murukku press last year for herself and loved it, so she wanted to buy me as well.
You can buy yourself one in such temple street shops. When you visit, you can look for it.
It can also be found in south Indian vessels shop or bought online in Amazon. There are different types, like traditional press, gun model, even screw model. I have screw model as well.
When you buy which ever you decide, make sure to check the murukku mold's plates. Check if they have this disk and if it fits well too.
It is small comparatively and even the plates have tiny holes than the regular ones. She loves tiny things and so do I. The murukkus made with tiny holes plated press is more whiter in color, more crispier as it gets fried easily in the hot oil.
Try yourself to see the difference!
Stepwise photos
1. First powder the pottukadali in a mixie and sieve it (not shown in picture). Sieving is IMPORTANT as otherwise it might break or even affect texture. You can powder more quantity than needed and store for future use.
2. Heat required oil in a kadai. Meanwhile you can make the dough. Place all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. 1 & ¼ cup Rice flour, ¼ cup pottukadalai flour, 1 teaspoon Ajwain, salt, Asafoetida.
Add 1 tablespoon hot oil from the kadai and mix well. Add water gradually and carefully to make a smooth soft dough. The amount of water varies with the rice flour variety you are using.
3. I used the regular 3 eyed thenkuzhal plate for this murukku, you can use the star shaped ones too.
Fill the press ¾th with the murukku dough and squeeze it either directly over the hot oil or over few greased ladles and then carefully flip to the oil. I did the later as I can't handle the heat when we squeeze over the hot oil as steam will be too hot.
Also squeezing in ladle then transferring aids good shape. I always do this from the beginning which I learnt from my MIL. Make sure oil is hot enough by checking dropping a small piece of dough, it should come up immediately.
4. I fried 3, shaped murukkus at a time. Cook both sides until golden in colour in medium flame. Shh sound should cease and bubbles should be reduced.
5. Drain in paper towel and cool down before transferring to the airtight container.
Enjoy these crispy murukku as snack along the coffee/ tea, the unique flavor of ajwain goes well with the pottukadalai murukku!
Top tips
- Oil should always be hot when you drop the murukkus, otherwise murukku will drink oil and be oily.
- You can replace ajwain with white sesame or jeera, but I like ajwain the best.
- DO NOT add more oil in dough than required, otherwise the murukku will disintegrate in oil.
- If murukku breaks while you press, then sprinkle little more water to make it smoother dough.
- Keep the dough always covered to avoid drying.
- Also. if doing in large quantity, I suggest you to do in smaller batches, otherwise if you make dough bulk and let it sit, the last murukkus will turn red.
- Make sure you keep enough oil to fry the murukkus, otherwise, it will get burnt at the bottom of the murukku.
- Top up oil if needed when doing in large batches. But wait for oil to get hot again.
My notes
I prefer to use thin murukku holes as it gets fried fast and ensures crisp, white results of the murukku.
You can also use sesame seeds instead of ajwain.
While flipping the murukku in hot oil, be gentle and careful otherwise hot oil will spill.
Regulate heat so that the oil remains hot enough, yet not fuming or low temperature.
Substitutions & Variations
Instead of hot oil, you can use 2 teaspoon melt butter for this recipe.
FAQs
Murukku is crisp when I taste immediately, but next day become hard. Why?
After dropping the murukku, cook the murukku in medium flame to ensure even cooking and golden colour murukkus. If you cook in high flame, it will brown fast and flavor will change. Also inside will not cook properly and after cooling down, next day become hard.
Why murukku break while pressing?
The dough may be too dry. Sprinkle water to make it soft and moist. Or flour is coarse. Sieve well before making dough.
Why murukku bread while frying?
The dough may be too dry to hold together. Sprinkle water to make it soft and moist. Or flour is coarse. Sieve well before making dough.
If it dissolves in oil, then either oil is not hot enough or you used too much hot oil while preparing the dough. You can fix by adding 2 tablespoons of more rice flour and water as needed to make a soft, moist dough.
Recipe card
Pottukadalai Murukku Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 & ¼ cup Rice flour I used store bought
- ¼ cup Pottukadalai powder
- 1 teaspoon Ajwain Omam
- 1 pinch Asafoetida Generous
- 1 tablespoon Hot oil
- Oil to deep fry
- Salt as needed
Instructions
- First powder the pottukadalai in a mixie and sieve it(not shown in picture). You can powder more than needed and store for future use.
- Heat required oil in a kadai. Mean while you can make the dough. Place all the ingredients in a mixing bowl, mix well. Add hot oil from the kadai and mix well. Add water gradually and carefully to make a smooth dough.
- I used the regular 3 eyed thenkuzhal plate for this, you can use the star shaped ones too.
- Fill the press ¾th with the dough and squeeze it either directly over the hot oil or over few greased ladles and then carefully flip to the oil.
- I did the later as I cant handle the heat when we squeeze over the hot oil as steam will be too hot.
- Also squeezing in ladle then transferring aids good shape. I always do this from the beginning which I learnt from my MIL.
- Make sure oil is hot enough by checking dropping a small piece of dough, it should come up immediately.
- I fried 3 at a time. Cook both sides until golden in color in medium flame. Shh sound should cease and bubbles should be reduced.
- Drain in paper towel and cool down before transferring to the airtight container.
Video
Notes
- While flipping the murukku in hot oil, be gentle and careful otherwise hot oil will spill.
- Oil should always be hot when you drop the murukkus, otherwise murukku will drink oil and be oily.
- After dropping the murukku, cook the murukku in medium flame to ensure even cooking and golden colour murukkus.
- You can replace ajwain with white sesame or jeera, but I like ajwain the best.
- DO NOT add more oil in dough than required, otherwise the murukku will disintegrate in oil.
- If murukku breaks while you press, then sprinkle little more water to make it smoother dough.
- Keep the dough always covered to avoid drying. Also if doing in large quantity,
- I suggest you to do in smaller batches, otherwise if you make dough bulk and let it sit, the last murukkus will turn red.
- Make sure you keep enough oil to fry the murukkus, otherwise, it will get burnt at the bottom of the murukku.
- Top up oil if needed when doing in large batches. But wait for oil to get hot again.
சாருஸ்ரீராஜ் says
i can feel how crispy it is .mouth watering
Kurinji says
yummy murukku...we also make with wet grinding rice flour... but yours sounds good....
Durga Karthik. says
Only today i thought of this and u posted it thanks.
jeyashri suresh says
Super tempting murukku, very crispy too. Love the muruku uzhakku.
PRIYA RAGHURAMAN says
Please inform the procedure for rice flour; whether it is the store bought one or the one which is made by soaking the rice at home
Raks anand says
Store bought works fine.
lakshmi kumar says
tried this murukku..added litlle red chilly powder and jeeragam...very nice..thank you
Jayanthi Sindhiya says
A perfect snack for a perfect evening
Pooja says
Wonderful easy method..tried so many but this is the best.
Raks Anand says
Thanks a lot
Fanciest says
Yummy...Please inform the procedure for rice flour home made...
SHARMILEE J says
Love the clicks very much, murukku looks very tempting too!
priya says
is it mandatory to sieve the pottu kadalai flour
Raks anand says
Yes yes
visuarchie says
Tried out the murukku.Came out well.Thank you.
Unknown says
Looks lovely, I am planning to try this recipe. Water is hot or cold ?
Raks anand says
Plain, room temperature
Yugandradevi A says
Looks tasty!
Gita says
is it raw rice flour or pulungu arisi flour
Raks anand says
Raw rice flour.
akshaya says
Excellent Raks...... i have never made so tasty muruku ever in my life.... Thanks alot dear!!!!
gaya says
very tasty murukku,tried 2 times in last 2 months, everyone liked it,thanks for the easy recipe
gaya says
very tasty murukku,tried 2 times in 3 months, excellent texture, very easy with rice flour too.thanks for the recipe
bhanu says
Hi, Tried the recipe but my muruku is little harder when we eat.What wrong it would be?
Raks anand says
If you take out the murukku before it is fully done, it turns harder. Make sure its cooked well. Cook in medium flame for long time to ensure its cooked well.
Tharani Sundar says
Hi raks... Can I use butter instead of hot oil
Tharani Sundar says
Hi raks... Can I use butter instead of hot oil..if possible tell the quantity
Raks anand says
Sure, same softened butter one tbsp
Gayathri Ramamurthy says
Hi Raks .. thanks a Lot.. it came out real well for me but one doubt i always have is about the salt quantity. Some people felt the salt was a pinch more in the murukku I did.. so any tips on that ..
I tasted the maavu powder after adding Salt and roughly added salt.
Thanks for sharing clear and concrete information , step by step to help anyone and God Bless for this Good quality of yours..
Regards
Gayathri
Raks anand says
Yes you can make the salt taste little less before frying, then may be after frying it will taste right.
Unknown says
Hi Raks, I cook very rarely and thought of making something special for Diwali and tried these murukkus - it came out really well. Thank you for the recipe.
Just a suggestion, while writing recipes can you also include the amount of salt that you use? While I understand that salt used may differ but for a novice like me figuring out whether I need to use a pinch o salt or a spoon of salt itself is difficult.. 🙂 🙂
Sujitha Vishnu says
Hi Raks, tried the murukku today. It tasted good, but did not hold shape.... it was more like omapudi, what could have gone wrong?
Unknown says
Hi Raks, tried this murukku today, the taste was good, but did not hold its shape..... came out more like omapudi :(........ What could have gone wrong?
Unknown says
Hi Raks, tried this murukku today, the taste was good, but did not hold its shape..... came out more like omapudi :(........ What could have gone wrong?
Raks anand says
Haha, I tried to add salt quantity for beginners, but got severe negative reactions from readers so stopped 😀
Vanitha Loganathan says
I tried this for Diwali. Everyone liked it and was praising about the crispness and taste of the murukku.My hubby's clients also liked it very much.Thanks for recipe.
Unknown says
Great recipe ! Tried it, tweeted a little bit with ingredients like, cumin seeds and sesame seeds....
Hina Vakharia says
Wet grinding gives better result than readymade flour.
Renu Kumari says
Madam. I need your help.. Your press is nice n small so where I can get this?
Raks anand says
I got these in Kumbakonam
Sangini says
Happy Diwali to you and your family! Your blog has become a holy cooking book for me 🙂 I have tried several recipes from here and they have never failed. thanks a load for such detailed recipes. God bless you!
susi ammu says
tried this murukku today..came out so well...but its hard to pilunjify d dough for me..wats reason??? anyway murukku turned out awesome for me??wats the ri8 consistncy of d dough?? will u tell that
Riaraj says
Hi raks, love all recipes of urs. It is always i feel hard to press the murukku achu.. Any tips to overcome the difficulty?
Priyanka Shukla says
Hi Raks,
I am usually very wary of fried stuffs. But tried this one and everyone loved it. Thanks for the beautiful recipe
deepika vasanth says
I have tried your adhirasam,murrku,now i became expert in this two,thank ,i got the best compliments for your recipes
Unknown says
This is the first time I have tried something for Diwali. It turned out very well. My husband liked it and my 1.5 yr old son is enjoying iit.I still remember, when my mom was alive she used to do this for me. Thank you so much for making my day 🙂
Angeline Jesudasan says
Hi raks, please post that wet grinding method. I lost that recipe.
Raks Kitchen says
Here it is https://www.rakskitchen.net/2015/10/puzhungal-arisi-murukku-recipe-diwali.html
Latha says
Hi, do we have to use plain rice flour or idiyappam flour if we buy? Is processed rice flour better than the raw one?
Raks Anand says
Hi, I find idiyappam flour yield better results. Here in singapore, other rice flours are very coarse, but the idiyappam flour brand I buy is very fine and gives smooth results. I still have to find out if it is because of the texture or if because of the processing.
Diana says
Hi Raks,
Thank you for sharing this lovely recipe. Would like to try this week. Could you please let me know the amount of salt needed for this recipe in teaspoons or grams? I am not experienced in adding salt according to the ratio or proportion of the flour or ingredients? It would be helpful. Thanks!
Raks Anand says
Hi, It is very hard to mention the salt quantity as each salt brand has different salinity 🙂 For this recipe, you can try adding 3/4 tsp approximately, since you are asking.
Roseline says
Hi, tried this recipe today, it tasted great but cudnt squeeze to murukku shape,it kept breaking, not sure what went wrong ...
Raks Anand says
Murukku breaks when there is not enough water or if the rice flour or pottu kadalai flour is coarse. If you add more water and try and could not fix, then its because of coarse flour only it breaks. Hope this helps you next time.
Jayanthi Muthuvel says
Tried this murukku fr this diwali and its a super hit...perfect measurements thanks a lot dear 🙂
Raks Anand says
Yay, thanks a lot 🙂
Shamala says
Excellent measurements, very crisp ,tastes really good.
Only mine were darker did not get your pale creamy colour.
Raks Anand says
Thank you for your feedback 🙂 Darker colour could be of two reasons. One, Oil temperature too high. Two, rice flour quality. Try using idiyappam flour, it gives whiter murukku.