Photo: Sharvarism · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Kerala · Dessert

Ada

Traditional 40. Ada recipe

🧺 Ingredients

• 150g (1 cup) rice flour (idiyappam-grade fine rice flour)
• 240ml (1 cup) boiling water
• 1 tsp ghee
• ½ tsp salt
• 100g (1 cup) freshly grated coconut
• 100g (¾ cup) dark jaggery, grated or powdered
• 2 tbsp water
• ½ tsp cardamom powder
• 1 tsp ghee
• Banana leaves, cut into 20cm × 25cm rectangles, wilted over flame

👩‍🍳 How to make Ada

1. Make filling (8 mins, low heat): Combine jaggery and 2 tbsp water in a pan. Stir on low heat until jaggery fully melts, about 3 minutes. Add grated coconut and ghee. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture dries out and holds together when pressed between fingers — about 5 minutes. Stir in cardamom powder. Remove from heat; cool completely.
2. Make dough (7 mins): Bring water to a rolling boil with ghee and salt. Reduce heat to very low. Pour boiling water gradually over rice flour in a bowl while stirring vigorously with a wooden spoon to prevent lumps. Once cool enough to handle, knead with lightly oiled palms into a smooth, pliable dough with no cracks — about 3 minutes. Cover with a damp cloth.
3. Prepare banana leaves (3 mins): Pass banana leaf rectangles briefly over an open flame or hot tawa until they turn bright green and become pliable without tearing. Wipe clean, then grease lightly with ghee.
4. Shape and fill (5 mins): Pinch off a lemon-sized ball of dough (about 40g). Place on the greased banana leaf. Using fingers or the back of a wet spoon, spread it into a thin round disc roughly 12–14cm in diameter. Spoon 1½ tbsp filling onto one half of the disc. Fold the banana leaf in half so the dough covers the filling. Press edges to seal.
5. Steam (12–15 mins): Arrange parcels in a steamer basket in a single layer. Steam over briskly boiling water for 12–15 minutes. The dough should look translucent and feel firm yet yielding when gently pressed. Cool 2 minutes before peeling the leaf.

Track the macros of Ada and 100s of Indian dishes with Nutri Macro India.