Thenkuzhal / Seepu Seedai / Pachai Thenkuzhal

Thenkuzhal & Seepu seedai is a traditional snack in Chettinadu,  while thinking about Seepu seedai, first thing strikes in my mind during childhood days while my Mom preparing this snack, me and my Bro wear it as rings in each finger and taste it. Its really fun for kids, Good thing for ladies making in this snack is it will  not burst like normal Seedai. My daughter loves Thenkuzhal, so my mom prepare murukku flour and send it to me, always there will be stock in my freezer to prepare for her, while store it in freezer, flour will be fresh and bug free. I alter Thenkuzhal flour to Seepu Seedai by adding Roasted gram - Pottukadalai & Coconut milk.

Ingredients:

Flour preparation for Thenkuzhal:

Raw Rice or Pachai arisi - 7 cups
Broken Urad Dal - 2 cups (as whole Urad dhal will not be roasted quick)

Adding some ingredients for Seepu Seedai with Thenkuzhal floor:

Roasted gram or Pottukadalai - 1 cup
Warm Coconut milk - 2 cups (mixture of first and second milk)

Method of making Thenkuzhal:

1. Wash the rice and dry it in the Sun or you can wet the towel in water, squeeze it nicely, take a handful of rice, rub it in towel, do the same for entire rice, dry it under fan by spreading up in paper.

2. Then dry roast the Urad dhal, by taking handful quantity into the pan, keep the fire as low and roast it else it will become red and not roasted. May be five to six times u need to roast the entire quantity of Urad dhal.

3. Allow the Urad dhal to cool, add it with the rice and take it to the Mill.

4. Take additional two cups of rice, as this flour has to be grinded only if rice floor is grinded before else Muruku floor, any other ingredients has been grinded than rice taken by us can be used to grind, later we can grind Murukku mavu. If Thenkuzhal mavu is grinded after wheat flour or ragi, it will spoil the taste of the murukku you are making. In Chettinad we don't add anything else to the mavu, like chilly powder, omam or jeeragam, that will make the murukku to crack and burst in oil causes a danger, so that murukku will be plain, white and no cracks.

Once the mavu is ready, things are simple. Just add enough water and salt, mix the flour. Fill the kuzhal or kattai, we call muruku pillium kattai, mine has seven different sills or plates to make different dishes and shapes like Idiyappam....

Pls note the following while making murukku:

1. Wash the kattai with sill before using it.

2. Make the shapes of flour to fit in kuzhal and keep it ready, more helpful to fill the kuzhal every time.

3. Fit the sill, for Thenkuzhal it has five openings, shape is straight, for mullu muruku, shape will has its teeth, fill the mavu in the kattai, press it in the oil directly, slightly rotate it, my youtube channel video describes how to press thenkuzhal, after finishing it, break the joint for next one. Some use to press in Spatula and drop it in oil, it changes the crispiness of the murukku, its well and good to drop it in Oil directly.

4. While making dough nicely mix it, all should be blend properly, else murukku will burst, stay away for safety purpose for some time while murukku is getting cooked. Fire should be medium not too high and too simmer else murukku will be burnt or it will drink so much oil. 

5. Make ready of air tight container, while oil is dripped from murukku, you can store it in but don't close immediately. then crispiness will be gone, once all murukku comes to room temperature, you can close it.

6. Before taking out the murukku from oil, check its cooked, sound should be reduced & oil should not be too hot, rather u will lose crispiness. 

7. Store it in air tight container, enjoy it for a month.

Pachai Thenkuzhal:  This murukku will be served with evening tiffin in the marriages, which will not be cooked properly. This murukku is taken out from the oil after few seconds, it has bit more oil content while compare to normal murukku. Diet conscious will skip this one, tastes good, can be served immediate while guests are arrived with maavu urundai as its a instant one.

Method of making Seepu Seedai:

        I usually make Seepu seedai by altering murukku mavu by adding above mentioned ingredients like one cup of pottukadalai powder and 2 cups of warm coconut milk. Definitely you need to a helping hand to make shapes like press, cut and shape it, one person need to roast it.  

Pls note the following while making seepu seedai:

1. Wash the kattai with sill before using it.

2. Make the shapes of flour to fit in kuzhal and keep it ready, more helpful to fill the kuzhal every time.

3. Sill is like flat one with one drop, fit the sill, fill the mavu, and press it the paper.

4. Then cut by leaving proper length to make it round by turning it in Index finger.

5. Follow the same to allow the shapes fill a plate.

6. Make ready of air tight container, while oil is dripped from seedai, you can store it in but don't close immediately. then crispiness will be gone, once all seedai comes to room temperature, you can close it.

7. Before taking out the seedai from oil, check its cooked, sound should be reduced & oil should not be too hot, rather u will lose crispiness. 

8. Store it in air tight container, enjoy it for a month.

Tips & Tricks:

1. While making dough nicely mix it, all should be blend properly, else murukku will burst, stay away for safety purpose for some time while murukku is getting cooked. Fire should be medium not too high and too simmer. Else it will be burnt.

2.Make ready of air tight container, while oil is dripped from seedai, you can store it in but don't close immediately. then crispiness will be gone, once all seedai comes to room temperature, you can close it.

3. Before taking out the seedai from oil, check its cooked, sound should be reduced & oil should not be too hot, rather u will lose crispiness. 

4. Wash the kattai and sill before use to avoid hard press.

5. Some use to press in Spatula and drop it in oil, it changes the crispiness of the murukku, its well and good to drop it in Oil directly.

6. While store the flour in freezer, flour will be fresh and bug free.

7. If Thenkuzhal mavu is grinded after wheat flour or ragi, it will spoil the taste of the murukku you are making.