Tamil Nadu Style Elumichai Puttu | Lemon Puttu | Traditional South Indian Tiffin Recipe | Gluten Free and Vegan

Hi Supermoms,

It is amazing to see the amount of variation we can bring into the traditional recipes. 'Puttu' is a popular South Indian snack/tiffin that is made using rice. These are cooked and served differently in different states of India. Basically, rice grains are soaked in water for  few minutes, dried indoors on a muslin cloth , coarsely ground and steamed to make this tiffin.  

The 'Kerala Puttu' are cylindrical in shape due to the container in which they are steamed. Layered between freshly grated coconut, this dish is a staple breakfast to many in Kerala and it is usually served along with a spicy chickpea curry called as the Kadala curry. This combination makes it so wholesome.  Usually puttu tastes on the sweeter side , cooked either with sugar or jaggery. I have earlier shared the recipe of  Instant Sweet Puttu ( using jaggery). 

In Tamil Nadu, Puttu is a traditional sweet that is made during special occasions. The grinding of the rice into rice flour and steaming them are similar to it's Kerala counterpart but they are not shaped using the puttu cylinders. Instead, the rice flour is steamed in a muslin cloth . In today's recipe of lemon puttu , the main ingredient is  beaten rice . 

Beaten Rice/ Aval/Poha is so easy and quick to cook . Truly handy on the days you do not want to eat heavy meals.  It hardly takes any time to make this puttu and the taste is so refreshing. This can easily be offered as Prashad/Neivedyam( an offering to God) on special occasions. In fact, you can steam the poha and use half of it to make sweet puttu and half into the savoury puttu . You can even try making Puliodarai Puttu using my Dalia/Godumai Rava Puliodarai recipe . Instead of dalia, just substitute the steamed puttu. You can even make coconut puttu using the coconut rice recipe. 

I have given so many different options and ideas for you to try puttu and I am so confident that you are going to try this recipe very soon. 

Recipe adapted from : Mrs. Meenakshi Ammal's 'Samaithu Paar'

Elumichai Puttu | Lemon Puttu: 

Preparation time : 5 minutes

Cooking time : 25 minutes

Serves : 4

1 cup = 250 ml cup 

Ingredients :

5 cups beaten rice/aval/poha

juice of 1 medium size lemon or 2 teaspoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

salt to taste

For tempering :

1 tablespoon coconut oil 

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

1 teaspoon bengal gram/channa dal 

1 teaspoon husked and split black gram/urad dal

10-12 raw groundnuts 

3 green chillies ( finely chopped)

1 sprig curry leaves ( torn roughly ) 

Method :

1. Dry roast the beaten rice till they are very warm to touch . 

Chef tip : Do not over roast else the poha will brown.

2. Transfer this to the jar of mixer and grind them coarsely.

3. Transfer this mixture to a clean muslin cloth, sprinkle 2 tablespoons of water and mix well . 

Chef tip : The beaten rice flour should be soft to touch, not wet. 

4. Place the cloth inside a steamer .

Chef tip : You can use an idli steamer also.

5. Steam it for 15 minutes. 

6. Transfer the puttu into a wide bowl and set it aside.

7. In a small cup, add the lemon juice, salt and turmeric powder.

8. Add this to the steamed puttu and mix well.

9. Heat a small pan with oil and temper with ingredients given for the same.

10. Pour it over the steamed puttu and mix .

11. You can place the prepared lemon puttu along with the bowl on the steamer and serve hot.

Chef tip : This tiffin is best when served hot. If the puttu becomes a little hard, sprinkle few drops of water and steam for 7-8 minutes and serve. You can prepare this puttu ahead of time , steam and serve later too. 

Your simple and delicious Traditional lemon puttu is now ready to be served. You can serve it with your choice of side dish or chutney . Vedi Mor kuzhambu will be a great accompaniment for this dish.  I served it with a Tomato Saar ( check out my next post). 

Happy Cooking !

With love,

Masterchefmom