Thattai

          Thattai, for the last couple of years , I have been making this for Diwali. There are so many versions of this, we can make it using rice flour in combination with besan flour ( kadalai maavu ) or roasted gram dal flour. But I have been following this method, I soak and grind the rice, then add roasted gram flour ( pottukadalai maavu ) along with other spices and ingredients and make this thattai. It's a simple recipe, using simple ingredients, but it takes some time to flatten the thattais and frying them, especially if you're making a large quantity. The first time I made it, I remember, I had soaked 5 cups of rice and it took me a good 3 hours to finish making the thattais. But other than that, I can say, that this can been made even by beginners, just start with a small quantity..

Need To Have

• Idli Rice - 1 cup
• Roasted Gram Dal/Pottukadalai - 1/4 cup
• Chana Dal/Bengal Gram Dal - 2 teaspoons
• Cashews -  3 or 4, chopped into small pieces
• Coarsely Ground Cumin Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Coarsely Ground Pepper Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• White Sesame Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Oil - 1 tablespoon + more for deep frying
• Salt to taste

Method

          Soak the rice for about 2 hours. Soak the chana dal for about 30 minutes.

          Take the roasted gram dal and grind it into a smooth powder.

          Then grind the rice into a smooth thick paste, using as little water as possible.

          Take the roasted gram dal powder, add the oil, salt, cumin powder, pepper powder, chopped cashews, sesame seeds and mix it, then add the rice paste.

          Mix it together to form a smooth but firm dough, if needed sprinkle some water. Make small lemon size balls and keep.

          Heat the oil for deep frying. Then take a ball of dough, flatten it on a greased plastic sheet, prick it with a fork, so that it doesn't puff up when we deep fry it.

          Then remove it by taking the plastic sheet, inverting it in your hand and peeling the plastic sheet ( the thattai would come out easily). Then slide it into the hot oil and fry it on medium low heat till golden, remove and drain the excess oil on a kitchen tissue. Let it cool completely, then store it in an airtight container.

Note
We can use some coarsely pounded roasted peanuts instead of cashews and also some curry leaves.
We can add a tablespoon of butter to the dough instead of oil.
If your dough is sticky, because you have added more water while grinding, then add some rice flour and roasted gram dal flour to make the dough.
While deep frying, add it to the hot oil, but cook it on medium low heat, till all the bubbles die down, in fact leave it for a few seconds even after the bubbles die down, otherwise the thattais will be crispy at the edges and might be soft in the center.
The thattais were a light golden color, since I have added only pepper powder, it would get more color, if we added chilly powder instead of pepper powder.