Punugulu

I saw a video of Aditya Madiraju on Tiktok eating Punugulu - a popular street food snack in the Indian State of Andhra Pradesh. I've never had it before and they looked really good so I had to try it! But as always instead of going out to a restaurant to try it I decided to make it myself. I looked online at the various recipes to make it and decided on this method I will share here.

Ingredients: Punugulu:

1/2 cup idli rice - 105g

1/4 cup urad daal - 50g

4 tbsp water

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

2 green chillies chopped

1/2 tsp grated ginger

6 curry leaves - thinly sliced

2 - 3 tbsp chopped red onion

Salt to taste

Chutney:

Grated coconut

Coriander leaves - including the stalks

Green Chilli

Yogurt

Salt to taste

Oil

Mustard seeds

Method

The first step is to wash the idli rice and urad daal separately 3 to 4 times or until the water is clear and then leave them to soak for around 4 hours in clean water to allow them to swell.

After 4 hours you want to drain the water and grind the idli rice and urad daal separately until smooth. Add enough water to get a thick smooth batter. I added around 2 tbsp of water in the idli rice and the same in the urad daal. Once ground mix the batters together and leave to ferment.

I left my idli rice and urad daal batter to ferment for 20 hours covered in a warm place. After 20 hours the batter was airy/fluffy.

Now it's time to season the batter mixture with the cumin seeds, chopped green chillies, grated ginger, thinly sliced curry leaves, chopped red onion and salt. Leave to rest for 10 minutes.

While the batter was resting I made a quick coconut chutney. I did not use any measurements for this. I blended some coriander leaves (with the stalks), a green chilli and yogurt together to form a smooth green liquid. I added this to some fresh (frozen) grated coconut and salt. I then added a vaghar on top made from mustard seeds in hot oil. Mixed everything and the chutney was done.

Now back to the rice and urad batter. Using your hands drop small amounts into some hot oil. You do not want to make these too big as they will puff up. Fry on a medium heat until golden.

Once the Punugulus are golden brown, drain these on some kitchen paper to remove excess oil.

Serve these hot with your chutney of choice. These are perfectly crispy on the outside and airy on the inside. The added spices to these Punugulu give it a lovely flavour. This is a recipe to try!

#indianstreetfood #southindian #punugulu