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Sago Pops for the Indian Cooking Challenge


You don't need to remind me that Srivalli had chosen Murukus as the challenge recipe this month. That was my intention too when I soaked sago in buttermilk this morning. Srivalli said to soak it for 3 hours; I figured I would leave it in the fridge and deal with it when I come back in the evening. Bad decision! The sago never got too soft; a condition our host had warned us against. She said sago will splutter and it wont be a pretty sight.

Now I had kept this to the last minute and today being the deadline, I went ahead anyway. Ground the bhuna chana dal to a powder, mixed it with rice flour, besan, salt and chilli powder. Poured over some oil, then added the sago and buttermilk. The sago wasn't soft enough; I should have stopped then. But I plodded on.

I don't have a muruku maker so I tried pushing the dough through my pastry bag. It was too stiff to agree with my ideas, so I decided to hand roll the dough into sticks. See, I can be pretty crafty sometime. Then I dropped a handful of these sticks into hot oil. Nothing happened for a minute, then the sago started to burst and there was hot oil flying all over the kitchen. When the popping stopped, I stepped out of my hiding place and took the sago sticks out. They were sooooo delicious!

So popping or not, I was going ahead with this. By the third batch, I had it down to a fine art. Drop the sticks in enough oil to drown them so there's no need to turn anything, then run for dear life. Once the dreary popping sounds stop, go collect your heavenly sago pops.

The only flip side is; my kitchen looks like a battlefield and I think I will never get the oil off the stove. But that's something for my maid to deal with tomorrow!

Comments

Srivalli said…
Looks fabulous Simmy..hheheh
Champa said…
Thank God that you have a maid. I would be spending lot of time cleaning if I had this problem. My sago never got soft so I microwaved them to make it soft. Another trick is if they start bursting, cover it with a lid that has a handle (preferably glass so that you can see through) and remove when the spluttering stops. Lot of times when we make sheedai, it happens like that and it is better to be prepared with a plate to cover. I had a hearty laugh when I read your post.
Oh Lord! simran, I have had such episodes with the cheedai's and its not very encouraging when these things happen.As BB mentioned I would hate to do the clean up.
Unknown said…
Ah...Sago firework story, Gald you got some help cleaning up.
Lebouffe said…
This is fun!! I can imagine the mess and running around.. haahaa :)
Khaugiri said…
Ye to bina mausam ke Diwali ho gayi:)
Jayasri said…
I had no problems with my sago murukku!!, only when I did my Athirasams!!, the best part I loved in yours was piping them :), what a delightful idea!!, but definitely a struggle for you, you should have left it out, actually my recipe which my friend taught me was with using sour curds, and your sago would have been great left it out!!!.., yours is the best creative murukku I have ever seen!!, hats of to your thinking of using a piping bag!!, don't get offended please, I was just thinking what I would have done if I did not have a muruku maker!!,
Swathi said…
simran,

I Liked your pops, for me there is no poping problem, only pressing problem, too hard to press through the nozzle of muruku presser.
Anonymous said…
nice pops Simran!
Nisha said…
Wow your muruku looks so different
Simplyfood said…
A very innovative muruku. I applaud your resilience to carry on with the challenge come what may.:0 good effort.My 1st visit here following your blog.
Unknown said…
Hehehe I love how you made these!! Can totally imagine you running about :P

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