Whole Green Gram Nuggets

There was a phase when Ovie was around 2 and refused to eat dal / lentils or gravy of any sort. That's when my mom reminded me of a snack that I used to eat a a kid and loved. We call it 'Sukhiyyan'. Its a traditional Kerala snack that is rich in protein. I recently made this for my daughter and she said 'It looks funny but tastes yummy'.........

Whole Moong Dal / Green Gram Nuggets


Ingredients:
Green Moong Dal: 1/2 cup
Jaggery: 1/2 cup
Rice Flour: 1/4 cup
Cardamom / Elaichi Powder: 1 tsp
Dry Ginger Powder: 1/2 tsp
Roasted Cumin/Jeera Powder: 1/2 tsp
Salt : a small pinch
Canola Oil: for deep frying

1. Wash and drain the green gram. Cook it in a pan with water until done but not overcooked.The grains should still be individual. Alternately cook it in a pressure cooker for 2 whistles with just enough water to cook it dry.
2. Melt jaggery with 2 tablespoons of water in another pan and strain and keep aside.
3. Add melted jaggery to the cooked dal and cook on low heat until well done and all the liquid has dried up. Cook it until the color changes to a darker shade. You should be able to make a ball with the mixture.
4. Remove from heat and add the cardamom, dry ginger and jeera powders. Cool the mixture.
5. Make a thick batter with rice flour, salt and water.
6. Heat oil in a deep pan.
7. Shape mixture into small lemon size balls. Dip into rice flour, coat it well and deep fry until crisp.
8. Remove excess oil by dabbing with paper towels and serve immediately.

PS: the green gram mixture is great to eat on its own in case you want to avoid deep fried food.