Ukadiche Modak / Steamed Modak- Maharashtrian Cuisine

To prepare the covering, in a heavy bottomed sauce pan or wok, heat 3/4 cup water and add the milk and ghee in it. Once the mixture starts bubbling add the rice flour.

Now start mixing the flour vigorously with the milk and water mixture. Stir for 1 minute or so on low heat and then turn off the flame. Keep the mixture covered for 5-7 minutes.

Mean while we can prepare the stuffing, heat a non-stick wok and add the grated jaggery to it. Once the jaggery starts melting add 1 tbsp of ghee and mix well.

To the melted jaggery add the scrapped fresh coconut and mix properly. Keep stirring for 1-2 minutes.

Now add the roasted Sesame seeds and Poppy seeds and mix properly. You will get a nice aroma while making this stuffing. Keep the flame low to medium. Now add in the nuts and raisins followed by Sweet Masala( Cardamom and Nutmeg powder).

Put off the flame. Do not over cook the stuffing as it may lead to further hardening of jaggery. The stuffing is ready.

By now our cooked rice dough must have become cool enough to handle. Remove the entire dough on a working platform and using little ghee bind together and knead the dough really well. Now keep it covered as we make modaks.

Pinch out a small portion and roll into a ball shape using your palms. If you do not have a Modak mould, using little ghee flatten the dough ball into a small disc , there should be no cracks on it.

Place small amount of stuffing on it and try to form pleats on the edges of the disc and then gather the edges to seal the modak.

For those using moulds, take the greased modak mould and from its lower open end push the ball inside the mould and press it alongside the walls of the mould using your fingers. This is to create space for our stuffing.

Stuff little mixture of the filling inside this space and using small disc shaped rice dough close the bottom. Now delicately open the sides of the mould to remove Modak.

Similarly prepare all the Modaks. You can steam the Modaks for 7-8 minutes using a steamer or Pressure Cooker without a whistle just as we cook momos.

I have lined the colander of rice cooker with muslin cloth and placed the Modaks on it and steamed for 7-8 minutes. The texture of the Modak changes and we can see that they have cooked.

Slowly remove each Modak from the steamer and place on Banana leaf and offer to Lord Ganesha as Naivedhyam.