Ukdiche Modak is an Indian steamed rice dumpling stuffed with jaggery and coconut. This gluten-free recipe is the highlight of Ganesh Chathurthi! The festival is celebrated in honour of Lord Ganesh.
Modaks are said to be his favourite and are often the most popular “prasad,” an offering. It is a healthy and delicious sweet dish perfect for the season. You can also watch the video I have shared below!
Ukdiche Modak and deep-fried Modak are traditional offerings to the Lord Ganesh. Now we have chocolate and other kinds of fusion Modak being offered. The steamed dumpling is also made for “Sankasthi Chathurthi” which falls every month. On Sankasthi day in the evening after moonrise worship and offerings to Ganesh are a norm.
Bhadrapada Chathurthi is when we welcome Gajmukh Ganpathi into our homes and hearts. Since he loves Modak an offering called prasad of 21 modaks is customary. The story about why 21 you can check here. This prasad is then distributed among the devotees.
Ukdiche modak has a special place in my heart. Every year, without fail, my daughter Akanksha and I would make these together. It was noisy and messy, but we’d always end up giggling at the shapes we managed to pull together. It also helped that over the years we actually got good at them.
Making Ukdiche Modak is not easy you need practice and patience. But they are well with the effort as they are steamed, light for digestion, vegan, gluten-free and healthy
The other sweets you may like are Kann, Mangane, Rava ladoo, and Besan ladoo. Do not forget to make some Panchamrut for Abhishek.
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Ingredients
These are your ingredients for quantities, please check the recipe card.
For the cover of the dumpling called Ukad:
- Rice flour
- Water
- Oil
- Salt to taste
For the Filling called Saran:
- Jaggery
- Fresh coconut
- Elichi/cardamom powder
Optional ingredients:
- Poppy seeds
- Cashew nuts
- Raisins
- Chilli powder
Instructions
How to make rice dough (ukad) for the outer covering of modak?
- In a pan, add water and oil. Add a little salt to taste. Bring the water to a boil.
- Lower the flame Add rice flour. Switch off the flame. Mix with a wooden spoon or a spatula and cover it well. It is okay if there is dry flour in the mixture.
- After about half an hour, the dough mixture will be cooler and you can touch it. Transfer to a platform, mixing bowl or a parat (a wide plate with edges used for kneading dough). Knead the mixture.
- If it is still hot or sticks to your hand, dip your hand in the water and knead. You can also apply a little oil to your hands.
- This is important so that you get a nice, smooth and lump-free dough.
How To Make Stuffing For Ukadiche Modak?
- In a pan heat the coconut and jaggery. I prefer to mix the two and let it stand for an hour or so. After some time the jaggery dissolves, mix well. Then cook on medium flame.
- The mixture comes together and the jaggery will melt completely. Stir and cook for a few minutes.
- You can add poppy seeds, raisins, cashew nuts and cardamom powder. I prefer to add chilli powder in a small part. For the rest, I add cardamom powder.
- Mix and let the moisture evaporate. Remember it will keep cooking in the pan too, once cool, the mixture should be semi-dry.
- It takes about 5-10 minutes depending on the batch size. The more filling, the longer you will need to cook.
- Keep it aside and let it cool down completely. Remember jaggery burns are more intense.
How to shape modak by hand?
- Grease your palm with oil. Take a small ball of dough.
- Make a smooth ball. Oil your thumb and forefinger. Push into the ball with your thumb. Start pressing with your thumb and forefinger and smoothen out the cup.
- Gently press the cup and shape it into a thinner cup. If the dough sticks to your fingers, apply a little oil.
- Start pinching the dough with your thumb and index finger and start making pleats. Make the pleats as close as you can; the modak looks beautiful.
- Halfway through, add a teaspoonful of the stuffing and finish making pleats.
- To finish making the modak, pinch the opening together. Seal the mouth of the modak.
- Keep the modak on a plate and keep it covered until you make the rest. Generally, as soon as 5-6 modaks are ready, I will start steaming them.
You can use the mould to shape your modak in 2 ways.
Method 1
- Keep some refined oil in a bowl as you will need it to grease the inside of the mould.
- Depending on the size of the mould take a small ball and press it in the mould with your finger. The centre should remain hollow. Keep some of the flour overhanging outside the mould.
- Add a teaspoon of the filling in the hollow.
- Make a small disc of the dough and apply to the base. Press well but gently.
- Open the mould and get the modak out for steaming. Keep it covered till you get a batch ready for steaming.
- Repeat the process to finish all the dough and the filling.
Method 2
- Grease a Modak mould using very little oil.
- Using your fingers and thumb make a cup.
- Add the filling and close the opening then transfer it to the mould and close the mould. In this method, you need less dough and the modak tastes as good as the hand moulded ones.
How to steam sweet dumplings?
- If you have a steamer get it ready, I use a vessel on which a colander sits snugly. In the vessel, I add water and let it come to boil.
- Apply a little oil to the base of the colander. You can also lay a small piece of banana leaf or turmeric leaf. Apply a little oil to the base of the modak and arrange the modak on the colander. remember to keep some space between the modak. Do not crowd the colander.
- Steam them for 15 minutes on medium heat.
- Once done remove from the tray and arrange the next lot on the colander.
- As the modak cooks, they become more firm.
- Steamed modak is ready to offer to Lord Vignhesha.
How to serve Steamed Modak?
- Serve these steamed dumplings warm, drizzled with ghee. Drizzle some saffron-soaked milk on the modak.
- If you are vegan avoid the ghee, the modak tastes great without ghee too!
Substitutions
- The only ingredient you can substitute here is jaggery use either sugar, palm jaggery. The colour of your filling will depend on the jaggery. Palm jaggery will give you a deep brownish colour.
Variations
- A simple chocolatey treat is Chocolate Khoya Modak, deep fried version.
- Now, we make Kari Kadubu the stuffing here is chana dal and jaggery. This can be used to make deep-fried modak. My mother used to steam them.
Equipment
- Kadhai/ wok for the filling
- Pan for dough
- Bowl for mixing the dough
- Steamer
- Spoons and ladles
Storage
- The steamed modak is perishable and the shelf life is 1 day.
- The fried ones have a shelf life of say 2-3 days.
Pro Tips
- Buy good quality fine rice flour from the shop or make your own rice flour. This is essential to make a smooth dough called ukad. If your flour is coarse you will find it difficult to make the paari.
- Remember, rice is gluten-free and it loses what little stickiness it has as it gets older. With the older rice flour, it gets difficult to mould plus you need more oil.
- Add a teaspoon of oil/ghee to the boiling water you can get a smooth dough fast.
- Knead the dough when warm to a smooth dough. Do not let it cool it makes shaping very difficult.
- Keep the dough covered and use only a small part out.
- Make the filling in advance so that it cools down when you start making your modak. I make the stuffing a day in advance keeping it cool, soft and delicious. (Remember jaggery burns are more intense).
- Do not cook the filling a lot if it dries out the modak and it does not taste good.
- Steam the modak only for 15 minutes.
FAQ
What is Modak?
Modak is an Indian sweet dumpling made as an offering to Lord Ganesh. Steamed modak and fried modak are the traditional modak.
Are Ukdeche modak difficult to make?
Rice flour is gluten-free and difficult to shape. To make the steamed sweet dumpling the outer cover, the shell called paari, uses fine rice flour. The modak looks better if it has more petals, called paakli. Again, experts, especially from Konkan, make the shell so thin that the paari is translucent and there are up to 21 paakli in one cup.
Why should I use fresh rice flour to make the Modak?
Not only fresh you need fine rice flour to make the Ukad or covering for modak. Fine flour makes shaping these gluten-free dumplings easier. Rice flour is gluten-free so the stickiness decreases as the flour ages. Fresh flour will give you better results.
How do I make rice flour at home?
In a bowl add 2 cups of rice like Sona Masoori, Kolam is best. Add water to the rice, scrub the rice. Drain add more water and rinse again. Drain well and spread the rice on a cloth. Dry the rice in the shade for 1 day or 2. Once the rice dries add to a mixer jar and grind to a fine powder. Sieve, and the coarse part you can grind again. Sieve.
You can also get the flour ground in a flour mill. But take care they add rice over rice.
Why am I unable to shape the rice dough and make modak?
First, was the flour fresh? If it is older you will find it difficult to shape the dough.
Second, have you kneaded the dough well? Take a small ball and knead it again before you shape it. Use some oil to knead it if you still cannot shape it. Had your dough cooled down when you took it for needing? Lastly, do not lose heart I could never make them initially so keep practising.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favourite dishes to serve with Ukdiche Modak:
You can use the mould to shape your modak in 2 ways.
- Method 1
- Keep some refined oil in a bowl as you will need it to grease the inside of the mould.
- Depending on the size of the mould take a small ball and press it in the mould with your finger. The centre should remain hollow. Keep some of the flour overhanging outside the mould.
- Add a teaspoon of the filling in the hollow.
- Make a small disc of the dough and apply to the base. Press well but gently.
- Open the mould and get the modak out for steaming. Keep it covered till you get a batch ready for steaming.
- Repeat the process to finish all the dough and the filling.
- Method 2
- Grease a Modak mould using very little oil.
- Using your fingers and thumb make a cup.
- Add the filling and close the opening then transfer it to the mould and close the mould. This method you need lesser dough and the modak tastes as good as the hand moulded ones.
How to steam sweet dumplings?
- If you have a steamer get it ready, I use a vessel on which a colander sits snugly. In the vessel, I add water and let it come to boil.
- Apply a little oil to the base of the colander. You can also lay a small piece of banana leaf or turmeric leaf. Apply a little oil to the base of the modak and arrange the modak on the colander.
- Steam them for 15 minutes on medium heat.
- Once done remove from the tray and arrange the next lot on the colander.
- As the modak cook, they become more firm.
- Steamed modak is ready to offer to Lord Vignhesha.
How to serve Steamed Modak?
- Serve these steamed dumplings warm, drizzled with ghee.
- If you are vegan avoid the ghee, the modak tastes great without ghee too!
Storage:
- The steamed modak is perishable and the shelf life is 1 day.
- The fried ones have a shelf life of say 2-3 days.
- Like all food, Man has developed modern versions of modak. These are chocolate modak, mawa modak, Kesri modak, moonga dal modak, moti chur modak dry fruit modak to name a few. The modern modak has a shelf life of about a week. So when gifting use one of these.
Ukdiche Modak
Equipment
- Kadhai/wok
- Spoons and Ladles
- Pan
- Steamer
- Bowl for mixing
Ingredients
For the Cover/Ukad:
- 2 cups rice flour
- 2 -½ cups water
- 1 tablespoon oil
- Salt to taste
For the Filling:
- 1 cup jaggery grated
- 2 cups coconut freshly grated
- 2 teaspoon elichi/cardamom powder
- ½ cup oil you will not need all of it
Instructions
Making the Cover Dough/Ukad: (Cook Time:2minutes)
- In a pan, boil water on high flame. Add a teaspoon of oil and salt to taste.
- Lower the flame Add rice flour. Switch off the flame. Mix with a wooden spoon or a spatula and cover it well. It is okay if there is dry flour in the mixture.
- After about half an hour, the dough mixture will be cooler and you can touch it.
- Transfer to a mixing bowl and knead the mixture. If it is still hot or sticks to your hand, dip your hand in the water and knead. You can also apply a little oil to your hands.
Stuffing For Ukadiche Modak:(Cook Time:20minutes)
- In a thick-bottomed kadhai/wok, heat the coconut and jaggery cook on medium flame.
- The mixture comes together and the jaggery will melt completely. Stir and cook for a few minutes. Mix and let the moisture evaporate. Remember it will keep cooking in the pan too, once cool, the mixture should be semidry.
- You can add poppy seeds, raisins, cashew nuts and cardamom powder. I prefer to add chilli powder in a small part. The rest I add cardamom powder.
- Keep aside and let it cool down completely. Remember jaggery burns are more intense.
Shaping Modak by Hand: (About 5 minutes for 2)
- Grease your hand with oil. Take a small ball of dough. Make a smooth ball.
- Apply oil to your thumb and push in the ball and start pressing with your thumb and forefinger and smoothen out the cup.
- Gently press the cup and shape it in a thinner cup. In case the dough sticks to your fingers, apply a little oil.
- I start pinching the dough with my thumb and index finger start making pleats. Halfway through add a teaspoonful of the stuffing and finish making pleats. Make the pleats as close as you can the modak looks beautiful.
- To finish making the modak pinch the opening together. Seal the mouth of the modak. Keep the modak on a plate and keep covered until you make the rest.
2 ways to shape modak using moulds
Method 1: (About 5 minutes for 3)
- Keep some refined oil in a bowl ready as you will need it to grease the inside of the mould.
- Depending on the size of the mould take a small ball and press it in the mould with your finger. The centre should remain hollow. Keep some of the flour overhanging outside the mould.
- Add a teaspoon of the filling in the hollow.
- Make a small disc of the dough and apply to the base. Press well but gently.
- Open the mould and get the modak out for steaming. Keep it covered till you get a batch ready for steaming.
- Repeat the process to finish all the dough and the filling.
Method 2: (About 5 minutes for 3)
- Grease a Modak mould using very little oil.
- Using your fingers and thumb make a cup.
- Add the filling and close the opening then transfer it to the mould and close the mould.
Steaming the Ukdiche Modak: (About 15 minutes for 10)
- If you have a steamer get it ready, I use a vessel on which a colander sits snugly. In the vessel, I add water and let it come to boil.
- Apply a little oil to the base of the colander. You can also lay a small piece of banana leaf or turmeric leaf. Apply a little oil to the base of the modak and arrange the modak on the colander.
- Steam them for 15 minutes on medium heat.
- Once done remove from the tray and arrange the next lot on the colander.
- Serve them warm drizzled with ghee. If you are vegan avoid the ghee, the modak tastes great without ghee too!
Video
Notes
- Buy good quality fine rice flour from the shop or make your own rice flour. This is most essential to make a smooth dough called ukad. If your flour is coarse you will find it difficult to make the paari.
- Remember rice is gluten-free and it loses what little stickiness it has as it gets older. With the older rice flour, it gets difficult to mould plus you need more oil.
- Add a teaspoon of oil/ghee to the boiling water you can get a smooth dough fast.
- Knead the dough when warm to a smooth dough. Do not let it cool it makes shaping very difficult.
- Keep the dough covered and use only a small part out.
- Make the filling in advance so that it cools down when you start making your modak. I make the stuffing a day in advance keeping it cool, soft and delicious. (Remember jaggery burns are more intense).
- Do not cook the filling a lot if it dries out the modak and it does not taste good.
- Steam the modak only for 15 minutes.
Watch the video too...
Bless my food by Payal says
Modak is that one recipe I always wish to make but somehow, could never bring up the task. Yours looking awesome and inspiring me to go for it.
ArchanaPotdar says
Go for it Payal.
The Girl Next Door says
The modaks look just perfect! I love the coconut and jaggery filling inside these. We make these for Ganesh Chaturthi too - mom makes these wonderfully.
Thank you for including my Fruit & Nut Modak recipe in your post. 🙂
ArchanaPotdar says
You can try them too now, Priya.
Jayashree T.Rao says
Lovely post of Ukadiche Modak.You have made them perfectly. It is one of the essentials during Ganesha Chaturthi
ArchanaPotdar says
Thanks, Jayashree.
Shobha Keshwani says
I love these modaks. Specially during Ganpathi Festival I enjoy them. I haven't yet tried making these though.
ArchanaPotdar says
Thanks, Shobha. You should try making them you will definitely enjoy it.
Mayuri Patel says
Though it takes a lot of skill and patience to make ukdiche Modak, they simply are the best. Its definitely worth all the effort and the availability of moulds makes it a little easier to make them. Love how you've explained the recipe in detail and all the modak.
ArchanaPotdar says
Thanks, Mayuri.
Lata Lala says
Ukdiche modak are my super favorite and I always make them during Ganesh chaturthi. The jaggery and coconut filling makes it so delicious. Loved your detailed post and many thanks for including my dalia modak here in this lovely post.
ArchanaPotdar says
Most welcome Lata.
Pavani says
Beautifully made modak Archana. Thank you for the detailed recipe - I am going to try them soon.
ArchanaPotdar says
Thanks, Pavani.
Malini says
Modak looks perfect and yummy. Ganesh Chathurthi is coming in a few days, It's a perfect recipe for that. I always spend this festival at my mom's place, but this time, I can't go. I can try this Modak during that time. Thanks for sharing, Bookmarking it.
ArchanaPotdar says
Most welcome Malini. I am glad it is of some use.
Uma Srinivas says
Modak is always reminds me chauthi festival! Anyway, the festival is around the corner and thanks for reminding me this awesome and delcious recipe 🙂
ArchanaPotdar says
😀
Vandana says
Great recipe. Modak is one of my favorite desserts. I bought a modak mould from an Indian store last year but then completely forgot about it. Thanks to your recipe now I remember that I have it, will try your recipe soon.
ArchanaPotdar says
😀 Thanks, Vandana. Ta me when you are ready.
amrita says
Modaks reminded me we are approaching towards one of the most celebrated Ganapati Festival.. I love to try varities of modak ...Love your post where you have shared each and every details about Ukdiche Modak and tips to make them perfectly ..
ArchanaPotdar says
Thanks, Amrita.
Padma Veeranki says
The modaks turned out just perfect! Coconut and jaggery filling is my all time favourite filling. We too make them for Ganesh Chaturthi. Perfect share at the right time!!
ArchanaPotdar says
😀 Thanks, Padma.
sapana says
I always find it difficult to shape the modak. You have made them so perfectly. Love the delicious coconut jaggery filling.
ArchanaPotdar says
Thanks, Sapana.
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
I love reading your posts and it brings so many memories of Ganesh Pooja in India. Modak is such an art to make and this coconut and jaggery filled one happens to be my favorite. I have not tried making it using moulds yet. It is on my list to buy next time when I travel to India.
ArchanaPotdar says
Thanks, Sandhya.
Lathiya says
Modak is a healthy snack and I love it. I usually make with coconut stuffing. This filling sounds great.
ArchanaPotdar says
Thanks.
NARMADHA says
Perfectly shaped modaks and I can gobble them all. one of my favorite and this looks so delicious. Waiting for Ganesh Chaturthi to make them.
ArchanaPotdar says
Thanks, Narmadha. Happy Ganesh to you.
Seema Sriram says
Your post brought back the memories of making those 101 or more modak by hand with my mother in law. She was perfect everytime she made the dough and we learnt from her.
ArchanaPotdar says
😀
Sasmita says
Wow! I love this ukdiche modak. Sounds easy and quick to make. Nice share.
Sasmita says
Wow! I love this ukdiche modak. Sounds easy and quick to make. Nice share !
ArchanaPotdar says
Thanks.
Jayashree T.Rao says
I can follow your recipe for the upcoming festival. Lovely post Archana.
ArchanaPotdar says
Thanks, Jayashree. Glad it will be of help.
Seema Sriram says
Classic modak recipe never loses its glamour in festivals. This is a recipe that often fails for me, so I will be very happy to try out your recipe.
ArchanaPotdar says
Do try and let me know if you need more help.