Mullu Murukku

How to make Mullu Murukku (Easy Diwali Snack)

          Deepavali, is a lot like Christmas for Hindu's, although we are not big on the gifts - we exchange treats!! The thought of Deepavali never fails to excite me, till date. During my tween years, I remember the sleepless nights on the eve of Deepavali, eagerly waiting for somebody to wake up; so I can too. The pre-dawn Ganga Snanam (Oil bath); a huge volume of phone calls & guests who visit, to give their Deepavali greetings & pass on some dry fruits, sweets or even fireworks. I used to get all dolled up, to go to almost every house on the street & share the sweets & savories made in our home. Not to mention, the numerous oil lamps every where you see - in every room of the house, on every window sill & even on the roof, if it was accessible. My brothers on the other hand didn't care much for anything else, except munching on the treats & the fireworks; tons & tons of fireworks :o)

        I first learnt, how to make Kai Murukku's (made using your hands; without a Murukku press) from my great Grandma; she was the one, when it came to making gigantic batches of crunchy-munchy snacks for Deepavali. It's been a while since I thought of her; but now I miss her very much :o( I hope her blessings are with me, although she isn't. OK! I think, I've rambled enough, let's get to the recipe now.

Ingredients:

Rice flour - 2 & 1/4 of a cup

(Besan) Bengal Gram flour - 1 & 1/4 of a cup

Butter - 2 Tbsp

Asafoetida powder - 1/8 Tsp

Salt - according to taste

Chilli powder - 1/2 Tsp to 1 Tsp

Oil - for deep frying

Special Equipment Needed: 

Murukku Press

1. Sift & mix the Rice flour, Bengal gram flour, Salt, Chilli powder & Asafoetida in a dry bowl. (You can check the seasoning, at this stage if you like) 
   
2. Heat Butter in a pan until it's melted & hot.
3. Add the butter to the flour & mix well, trying to break the crumbs. 
   
4. Divide the flour into 3 or 4 parts. (If you make a big batch, using all the flour; your dough will get dry)
5. Heat the oil in a Kadai.
6. Using the single star disc from the Murukku press, assemble the Murukku maker. 
   
7. Sprinkle water to the first portion of the flour mixture, just before frying to form a thick, moist & pliable dough. 
   
8. Fill the Murukku Press with ample amount of the dough & squeeze the dough onto an inverted plate, to form a small Murukku. 
   
9. Lift the plate & transfer the Murukku dough to your hand & drop gently into hot oil for frying. (If you are not particular about the shape, you can also squeeze the dough directly into the hot oil)
10. Repeat the process until the oil is filled with Murukku's to fry. Flip the Murukku once or twice & remove from oil when crisp & golden in color. (Remember that the Murukku's will get harder when cooled down) 
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
11. Repeat steps 7 through 10, until you have used up all the dry flour & made Murukku's with them. The dry flour mixture can be tweaked, if the seasoning is not right in your first batch & if needed, you can also save the dry flour mixture in an air tight container for making fresh Murukku's another day :)
12. Cool it to room temperature, store it in air-tight container.