Nei Appam is one of the most important Neivedhiyams / Prasadams made during Janmashtami,  Ganesh Chaturthi,  Karthigai,  Avani Avittam and lot more poojas or rituals like Ganapathi Homam, Bhagavathi Sevai etc .

Instant version can be made using rice flour,but this is a classic version by soaking and grinding rice along with cardamom, ripe bananas and jaggery.  Adding grated coconut or slivered coconut bits gives a nice taste and texture to the appam. 

I add a teaspoon of udad dhall while soaking the rice, this gives a nice texture and softness to the Neiappams . By adding the udad dhall , we can avoid the use of cooking soda . Udad dhall automatically gives the appam the softness and fluffy texture. 

We can using melted jaggery syrup while grinding the appam batter or if we are using good quality powdered jaggery without dust, then we can add it to the rice while grinding. 

Grinding jaggery with rice is an easier way to seamlessly blend the rice and jaggery without lumps .

For Krishna Jayanthi, it is said that if we are unable to make  elaborate prasadams for Krishnar , we can offer 

Navaneetham (Butter + sugar candy)

Nei appam

Aval Payasam (Poha Kheer)

Thayir Aval / Gopalkaala (Dahi Poha)

Paal / Milk.

Ingredients 

Procedure

• Wash and soak the rice and udad dhall for 3 to 4 hrs
• Drain the water and add the soaked rice to the blender along with roughly chopped banana and cardamom seeds .
• Grind it to a fine paste adding water in batches. 
• If using organic jaggery powder ,add the jaggery powder to the blender and grind it to a smooth paste resembling Dosa batter .
• If you are doubtful about the jaggery,melt it using half cup water and strain it .
• Use this strained jaggery water for grinding the appam batter.
• Transfer the batter to a mixing bowl ,add a tsp of grated coconut or slivered coconut bits if you like .
• Beat it well with a whisk or spoon to incorporate air . The batter will feel light . Rest it for 30 to 40 mins
• Heat the appam pan , pour ghee into the cavities .
• Once the ghee has heated up,pour the appam batter into the cavities and cook on medium flame until the underside cooks well.
• Flip it over gently and let the other side cook until crisp and brown.
• Take it off from the appam pan and repeat the same steps for the entire batch of batter. 
• Tasty and delicious Nei appam is ready. 
• If you like you could also make Jackfruit Nei appam and Watermelon Nei appam  also .

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 Vella Seedai or sweet jaggery fritter balls are an essential prasad /offering made for Gokulashtami/ Krishna jayanthi to celebrate the birth of Lord Krishna .

We make two types of seedai; Uppu seedai (savory)  and Vella seedai (sweet) along with various other favorites of Lord Krishna to be offered on the special day when we all rejoice and celebrate lord Krishna's birth .

To know how we celebrate Krishna Jayanthy in a typical Tambrahm (Tamil Brahmin) house hold head over to my post, Krishna Jayanthy Celebrations where you can also find link to all the special recipes we make for the big festival .

Making seedai is an art and requires a little expertise and caution while making it . With practice we can easily master this and become a pro .

I am giving all tips and tricks to make a fail proof seedai so that even beginners and newbies can make it with an ease . These tips are applicable for flours which are either home made or store bought. 

Traditionally rice flour and udad dhall flour at prepared at home for purpose of maintaining hygiene and quality but now a days we get good quality ready made flours so we can use that even. 

In this recipe, I have used store brought rice flour and  udad dhall flour to make the recipe, thus making it easy for working women and those who are pressed for time.   

Points to keep in mind 

• Roast the rice flour in a dry pan until it feels warm. The flour should be roasted just until you can feel the warmth no need for the flour to change color . Sieve the flour well through a sieve once it cools down.
• Roast the udad dhall flour the same way and sieve it. If you are unable to find ready made udad dhall flour,  take 1 cup of udad dhall and dry roast in a pan until it turn crisp ,cool it and then blend into a fine powder using the blender . Sieve it to get a really fine powder without any grits . 
• Melt the jaggery in hot water and strain it to remove any impurities .
• Sieving the flours and jaggery syrup is very important as even a small particle or grit can cause the seedais to burst in the oil .

To know how to make Uppu Seedai and also on how to roast the flours check the video link below 

Ingredients 

Method

• Take a wide mixing bowl and add the sieved rice flour and udad dhall flour along with the sesame seeds and grated coconut. 
• Meanwhile, heat the melted jaggery in a pan and let it come to a rolling bowl.we donot need ant string consistency.  When the jaggery is boiling add in the cardamom powder to this.
• Pour this hot jaggery syrup over the flours and mix it gently with a spoon so that the syrup gets incorporated well with the flours.
• Now add the melted butter and gently with your hands knead a soft and pliable dough.most of the times the jaggery syrup is enough to knead the dough but incase if you feel the dough is dry , sprinkle some warm water and knead until its firm but soft.  Cover with a damp cloth and let it rest for 30 mins.
• Heat oil in a kadai and start rolling small balls from the dough . The balls must be crack free and the same time not rolled very tight. 
• If you roll it tight there is a chance of the seedais bursting in oil . Grease your palms with ghee while you begin to roll the balls .
• When the oil is heated, reduce flame to medium and first drop one ball into the oil . It must not disintegrate in the oil. Incase it disintegrates means the moisture content is more . To fix this ,sprinkle some rice flour and knead the dough again until the dough feels dry and firm . Donot panic. 
• Once the dough is of righr consistency, drop the balls into the oil carefully and fry on medium flame by occasionally splashing oil over the seedais,this will prevent the seedais from bursting. 
• Fry until the oil stops hissing and the seedais have turn nice and brown. You can see cracks on the seedais once they are fried. This indicates that the seedais are perfectly done both from the inside and outside.
• Carefully take it off from the hot oil and let them cool completely before you can store in a dry container. 

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