Chakkuli Recipe | Murukku | Easy and Quick Chakli Recipe : Festive foods.

Wishing you all a very happy Ganesh Chaturthi. 

Looks like September 2013 is a happening month for my blog. I am hosting the 'Only' Sandwiches, Burgers & Panini event, participating in one (signed in for VeganMoFo) and announcing a winner for my very first give away too. So, stay tuned....

I make chakkuli often but always get lazy to take step by step pictures to post it. Chakkuli preparation is not as hard as you think. It's just time consuming & needs some patience. I make chakkuli in many ways & this one is the easiest of all.

Preparation Time: 30-45 mins
Cooking Time: 30-45 mins
Makes around 60-75 chakkulis
Shelf Life: 10-15 days

Ingredients:
Rice flour: 4 cups
Gram flour/besan/kadle hittu: 1 cup
Hot oil: 3/4 cup (I used Crisco Vegetable Oil)
Salt: As needed
Chilli powder: 1 tsp
Asafoetida: 3/4 tsp
Sesame seeds: 2 tsp
Water: As needed

Oil: For deep frying the chakkuli.

Some tips to get perfect chakkuli:
Never skip sieving the rice flour & the gram flour.
Always prepare a small batch first to try.
I add 3/4 cup of oil & get perfect chakkuli every time. If you feel the chakkulis are turning out hard, try adding 2-3 tbsp more of oil.
Always keep the batter covered, else the batter would dry. If you use dry batter, the chakkuli will become brittle.
Do not press all the murukku/chakkuli at a time. Make it in batches.
Do not use very less oil for frying. These cannot be shallow fried.

Method:
Sieve the rice flour & gram flour separately. Mix the flours & sieve them again.
Add the salt, sesame seeds, asafoetida, chilli powder to the flour & mix well.

Heat the oil & add the hot oil to the mixture.

Mix it using a spoon first & then proceed to mix the flour using your hands thoroughly.
Add couple of tbsp of water at a time & prepare a smooth yet stiff dough.

Heat enough oil in a saute pan or sauce pan. (oil should be about 1 inch deep)
While the oil is getting hot, prepare the chakli mould.
Use the chakli plate.
Divide the dough into 5-6 parts (this depends on the mould used).
Add one part of the dough to the mould & press it. Close the mould & start pressing the chakli.

         

You could press the chakli directly on the hot oil or you could press it on the wax paper & flip it carefully in oil.

I prepared it on the wax paper & flipped it on to the oil. (Grease the wax paper if needed)
Do not press all the chakli at one go. Make it in batches. Depending on the amount of oil used for deep frying, press the murukkus. I could fry 5 chakli at a time & hence pressed only 5 chaklis each time.
Slowly slide in the pressed chakli to the hot oil.
Do not disturb the chakli for the first minute. Later you could slowly move the chakkuli.
Fry it both the sides on medium heat.
While the chakli is getting fried in oil, press the next batch of chakli.
Each batch took about 4-6 mins for me. Drain the chakkuli on a kitchen towel & allow it to cool.
Repeat the above procedure of pressing & frying the chakli.
Allow the chakli to cool completely. Once cool, store it in a air tight container. They stay good for 10 days.

Notes:
Generally the rice flour is prepared at home too. However, I use store bought rice flour.