‘Pitha’ the name itself brings so many fond memories of my home, my childhood and my hidden cooking genes 😉 .
Well, first of all I am sure many of you are wondering what I am talking about, and may not be use to this sweet delicacy from east, which is an intrinsic part of our culture and tradition.
So, let me first introduce ‘Pitha’ to all my readers. Pitha is typically a form of rice cake generally stuffed with sweetened coconut or khoya. The preparation of Pitha is popular in the eastern regions of Indian subcontinent, extended across Bangladesh and the eastern and north eastern parts of India including Odisha, Assam, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Bihar. Although, Pithas are typically made from rice flour, but there are many forms of Pithas which can be made with semolina and refined flour. Pitha or Pithe is no single dish but an umbrella name given to a category of variety of sweets dedicated exclusively to turning the season’s harvest into delicacies.
Though there are many occasions where the grandness and the significance of the event is celebrated with Pitha. However, the preparation of Pitha is mostly common and almost mandatory during the rice-harvest festival called poush sankranti (the name derived from the last day of the particular month, Posh) or Makar Sankranti which is celebrated on 14th or 15th January across India.
My fondest memory of celebrating Makar Sankranti would be making Pithas (making or spoiling, that’s debatable! 😜) the night before, with my Thamma (Grandmom), my parents and occasionally with my cousins, followed by gulping Pithas almost from the pans. If that was not enough, the next day morning (the Makar Sankranti morning) me and my Father after taking bath, would visit the neighbourhood houses, and would offer our expert taste buds to the delicious creatures crafted to perfection lying on the plates. I must say ‘long live the digestive medicines’.
By now, as we all know there are varieties of Pithas that are made during Makar Sankranti in Bengali households. My house is no different. One of the Pitha that is common in my household is Aloo Pitha or Pithe (Potato Dumplings stuffed with sweetened coconut), where the dumpling is made by mixing mashed potato with refined flour and is stuffed with sweetened coconut. The dumplings are deep fried and then soaked in sugar syrup.
So people, get ready, take some time out and indulge yourself in this traditional art of Pitha making, which is unfortunately fighting for its survival from the verge of extinction.
Disclaimer: This is no way a quick recipe and the process of making Pitha is as much fun as relishing them. My strongest recommendation would be to involve other members in the family and have a Group Cooking Day 😊
Recipe: Aloo Pitha/ Potato Dumplings Stuffed With Sweetened Coconut
Preparation Time: Around 1 and half hour (excludes grating coconut) Frying Time: Around 15 minutes Yield: 10 Pithas Equipments used: One pressure cooker, one bowl to mash potatoes and knead dough, a pan to fry pithas, a pan to prepare sweetened coconut, a turner, a vessel for preparing sugar syrup
Ingredients:
For Sugar Syrup
- 1 and 1/4 cup sugar
- 3 cups water
- 6-8 pieces cloves
- 6-8 pieces slit green cardamom (elaichi)
For Sweetened Coconut Filling
- 1 grated fresh coconut
- 1 cup sugar
For Dumplings
- 3 potatoes
- 1 and ½ cup refined flour (maida)
For Frying
- 2 cups refined / vegetable oil
Method:
For Sugar Syrup:
- Boil water and sugar, till the sugar completely dissolves in water
- Add cloves and cardamom pieces and keep the syrup aside
For Sweetened Coconut Filling
- Cook the grated coconut in a heated pan along with 1 cup sugar
- Stir the coconut till the sugar particles dissolve and the coconut mixture thickens
- Remove the pan from heat and keep it aside to cool down
For Outer Layer And Final Aloo Pitha/Dumplings
- Wash the potatoes and pressure cook them with 2 cups water till 3-4 whistles
- After the pressure releases from pressure cooker, unlock the pressure cooker and rinse the potatoes with cold water
- Peel the potatoes and mash them with a masher or hand till any lumps are left
- Add little by little refined flour to the mashed potato and knead them to dough
- Make small balls of dough and flatten each dough balls with your hand by pressing the edges of the dough balls
- Fill the flattened dough with the sweetened coconut mix
- Fold the dough carefully to form a semicircle and seal the edges
- Repeat the process for each dough balls
- Now add two cups oil in a heated pan
- Add the dumplings in hot oil
- Deep fry the dumplings till they turn golden brown
- Immediately put the fried pitha/dumpling pieces in sugar syrup
Boil water and sugar together.
Add cardamom and clove pieces, once the sugar dissolves.
Cook grated coconut along with sugar.
Remove from heat once the coconut mixture thickens.
Wash the potatoes and boil them.
Peel the boiled potatoes and mash them.
Add flour little by little.
Knead dough and make small balls out of it.
Flatten the dough with your hand.
Fill the dough with the sweetened coconut in the centre.
Seal the edges of the dough to give a semi circular form.
Deep fry the dumplings till they turn golden brown.
Soak them in sugar syrup.
Tips:
- Don’t worry about the remaining coconut sugar mix. You can make small laddoos out of it and enjoy
- It is important that the mashed potato is not left with any lumps. While frying dumplings in hot oil, lumps can cause oil to splatter which can be risky
- Add flour to the mashed potato till the mashed potato becomes manageable and does not stick to your fingers. Overdose of flour will make the pitha/dumplings really hard
- While flattening the pitha/dumpling dough with your hand, press the edges while rotating the dough. Don’t press from centre as the dumpling won’t be able to hold the filling, if the centre of the dough is thin
- While flattening dough keep dusting your hand with flour. This will help the dough from getting stuck to your hand
- The left over oil can be reused for frying pakoras, samosas etc. Once the oil cools down, store them in a separate air tight jar or bottle for reuse
- Instead of sugar, the sweetened coconut filling can be made with jaggery
- Don’t fry all the dumplings together. Adjust the number of dumplings to be fried together as per the size of the pan. Don’t overcrowd the pan
