Paal kozhukattai recipe

Updated on September 19, 2023 by Raks Anand 99 Comments / Jump to Recipe

Paal kozhukattai is a delectable south Indian dessert with tiny rice balls cooked in coconut milk. Let's see how to make paal kozhukattai with step by step images and video.

Prepare during any special occasion, but specially made for Vinayagar chavithi or Navaratri.

Check out my Paal paniyaram recipe and Milk kesari recipe in this website.

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About
Ingredients
Method
My notes
Substitutions & Variations
Recipe card

About

Paal kozhukattai is basically tiny dumplings made with rice flour, simmered in creamy rich coconut milk flavored with cardamom.

This is one of my hubby’s favourite sweets. I hardly remember the way my mom used to make this sweet, also I was not fond of this before marriage.

After we came here to Singapore, when we go yearly to my in-laws place, my MIL made this sweet twice or thrice especially for her son.

Her way of making is very different and I am determined to learn it from her, when she makes it next time. I have posted it here.

This recipe is one I tried from Prema’s Cookbook, which never fails and my hubby loves this version equally as his mom’s.

After long time I made this today and in the evening he is going to get this as surprise, when he is back from office💝💝.

Ingredients

Rice flour - Any good quality rice flour works for this. I used idiyappam flour (processed)

Milk - Paal - I have used both dairy milk and coconut milk but can be easily made vegan. Used store bought coconut milk but have given the procedure to extract coconut milk below.

Cardamom - Added for flavor, infused in the coconut milk.

Sugar - I have used white sugar earlier and then in the updated video, unrefined sugar. You can also swap with jaggery.

Method

Prepare kozhukattai

1. Take a non-stick pan firstly and mix milk, 1 cup water, ghee and the rice flour (add a pinch of salt if you are using rice flour. I used store bought idiyappam flour and it had salt in it, so didn't add).

2. Then heat this in medium flame with constant stirring until the water evaporates and forms a dough.

3. After that, add 1 or 2 teaspoon sesame oil or ghee and knead the dough.

Tip: The dough should have got cooked almost and this can be confirmed if the dough is non-sticky. (Don't cook in high flame, cook in medium flame as this will make sure that the dough gets cooked)

Immediately, keep covered and take your convenient portions little by little.

4. Then make tiny balls of desired size. I made it in size of seedai, it should look cute right?

Make paal kozhukattai

1. Firstly start heating thin coconut milk.

2. Secondly, add the rolled tiny rice balls in two parts. Add half of the kozhukattai firstly and wait until the milk boils again and again add the remaining kozhukattai.

3. Then cook in medium flame for 3 minutes or until the kozhukattai float on the top. By now the milk would have turned thicker.

4. After that, add cardamom powder, sugar and mix well until sugar gets dissolved.

5. Then lower the flame and add thick coconut milk and mix well. Heat furthermore in low flame for a minute and switch off flame.

Serve hot or chilled as per your wish and enjoy this delightful sweet.

Coconut milk

I used store bought coconut milk, but here's how to extract coconut milk from fresh coconut.

Extracting fresh coconut milk. - Grind 1 cup of grated coconut (maximum 2 tbsp lukewarm water). Squeeze and collect first milk. Use this in the last step.
Again place the squeezed grated coconut in mixer and add ½ cup to ¾ lukewarm water, grind and extract the thin milk. use this in step 5. Adjust quantity as mentioned. That is the thin coconut milk should be 2 cups. So add water accordingly.

My notes

Some rice flour variety gives too soft kozhukattai, especially if processed flour. This will give you a feel it has not cooked properly. Keeping refrigerated and serving gives firmer kozhukattais.

Substitutions & Variations

Vegan - Avoid ghee and dairy milk, use just coconut milk and sesame oil for softness and greasing.

Rice flour - If you do not have rice flour, soak raw rice, grind and cook it to make dough. Check out my post here to see how to make dough with rice.

Use saffron for lovely flavor and colour.

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5 from 8 votes