Little Millet Ela Ada

By: Twinkle Suri
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Ela Ada is a cherished traditional sweet innate to Kerala. Often prepared during festivals and special occasions, it is a symbol of celebration rooted in Kerala’s agrarian lifestyle. Traditionally made with rice flour, this recipe by Twinkle Suri offers a wholesome twist by incorporating little millet flour, which lends a unique, nutty texture to the dish. Little millet is especially prized for its high fibre content, which supports digestive health and helps regulate blood sugar levels. Its inclusion makes this version of Ela Ada not only delicious but nourishing too.

Little millet flour 1/4 cup
Rice flour 1/4 cup
Green cardamom 3 pods
Jaggery 1/8 cup | 20 grams
Water, for jaggery 1/4 cup
Clarified butter / ghee 2 tablespoons
Grated coconut 1/8 cup | 10 grams
Banana leaves, whole 1 - 2
Salt a pinch
Water, warm 1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons

What You Will Need

Measuring spoons and cups, bowls, a pan for deep-frying, a kadhai or wok, mixing spoons, spatula, mortar and pestle, plate, steamer, kitchen towel/tissue, scissor/knife, small pot.

Instructions

1

Heat the kadhai on a low flame. Roast the little millet flour and rice flour separately for 3 to 4 minutes each until they turn aromatic. Roasting the flours imparts a lovely nuttiness to the Ela Ada.

2

Let both the flours cool to room temperature.

3

Pound the green cardamom pods using a mortar and pestle to make a powder. 

4

Heat the kadhai. Add the jaggery, then switch the flame to low. Once the jaggery begins to melt, pour in 1/4 cup of water and increase the heat to medium. Stir occasionally until the jaggery is fully dissolved. Once done, transfer it to a bowl and set aside.

5

In another deep-frying pan, add a tablespoon of ghee. To this, add the grated coconut and roast for 2 minutes on a low-to-medium heat. This is only to toast the coconut slightly, not to give it colour. Add the green cardamom powder and mix.

6

Now add the prepared jaggery water and mix all the ingredients together on low heat, stirring continuously, until they form a thick homogeneous paste, almost like a halwa. 

7

Take the jaggery-coconut mix out on a plate and let it cool to room temperature.

8

While it cools, cut out squares of the banana leaves and wash them with water and pat them dry with kitchen towel or tissue. One can glaze them with ghee, if desired.

9

Set up your steaming utensil with water and place it on the stove to heat.

10

Add a pinch of salt to the flour mixture. Gradually pour in 1/3 cup of warm water and knead the dough for 4-5 minutes until smooth and pliable. If the dough feels too stiff, add some warm water, as needed.

11

Once the dough is ready, divide it into small balls and gently flatten each one into a small chapati using your palms, directly on the prepared banana leaves. Ensure the discs are spread out evenly and aren’t too thin.

12

Once the discs are spread, place a generous scoop of the coconut-jaggery filling onto each flattened disc. Using the banana leaf, gently fold the parcel in half. Lightly moisten the edges of the leaf with water, then carefully press them together to seal in the sweet filling, ensuring nothing escapes during steaming.

13

Put the Ela Ada parcels in the steamer for cooking. Cover the steamer and let the parcels steam for about 20-25 minutes on medium heat. 

14

Remove the parcels carefully and place them on a plate. Serve hot with ghee.

Tips

  1. Roasting of the flours is optional; however, roasting provides a lovely nuttiness to the sweet. 
  2. Keep stirring the coconut-jaggery filling continuously so that it does not burn. Keep the gas on low.
  3. Do not overfill the Ela Ada, or else the filling might leak out during steaming.
  4. Serve hot, or else the dessert surface will dry up pretty fast.
  5. The amount of water used to make the dough might vary depending on the shelf life of the flour used. Freshly made flour requires less water.

Variations

  1. Incorporating nuts such as almonds and cashews or dried fruits like raisins and dates into the filling can add texture to the dessert.
  2. Use aromatic spices such as cloves, cinnamon, or saffron for added flavour.
  3. Fillings can be modified for different flavour combinations, such as rose-pistachio or banana-jaggery-coconut.
  4. Kodo, barnyard, Foxtail, proso or browntop millet can also be used instead of little millet.
  5. You can also use desiccated coconut instead of freshly grated coconut. However, the latter always provides a better flavour and texture.

Food technologist Twinkle Suri is a volunteer with the Millet Revival Project’s Cooking Lab. She worked as a research scientist for an FMCG brand before switching to the role of a home chef. Her kitchen experiments can be found at myebrew.com.

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