Uppu Cheedai

Uppu Cheedai is a marble sized fried savoury especially made on Krishna Jayanthi. Vella cheedai is the sweeter version made with jaggery.

Ingredients:
Processed rice flour ----1/2kg( see below how to make processed rice flour)
Roasted urad dal flour--- 1 ladle
Gratings of coconut ---- 1 ladle (optional)
Soaked channa dal ---- 1 table spoon
Jeera ----- 2-3 teaspoon
Butter ---- lemon size(50 gms)
Salt and asafoetida to taste

Mix all the above ingredients with butter and sprinking of water to make a scrambled dough. Make small marble sized balls of even size and fry them in cooking medium.

Note: If the dough is watery , the cheedais are likely to burst while frying, also while making the balls ensure all are of the same size.

Processed rice flour:
This is the base flour for making traditional tamil savories like thattai, kai suttu murukku, cheedai and a sweet called adhirasam.
Raw rice is washed well and the excess water is drained through a colander. After a resting time of 30 minutes, the wet rice is spread on a clean cloth like dhoti and dried under shade. After an hour when the rice is still wet, It is ground finely in a mixer. This wet rice flour is then roasted lightly on an wok. It can be stored in air tight containers when dry and can be used as and when required.