Where it comes from
The staple of the Karnataka plateau. Ragi has thirty times the calcium of rice and releases energy slowly — which is why farm workers eat mudde in the morning and do not feel hunger until dusk.
Method
- 1
Boil and slurry
06:00Bring water to a rolling boil with salt. Whisk a spoon of ragi flour into a little cold water and stir it in to prevent lumps.
- 2
Add the flour
05:00Pour in the rest of the flour in a mound, do not stir, cover and steam for five minutes.
- 3
Beat the dough
08:00Using a wooden mudde kolu, beat vigorously until glossy and lump-free, then shape into smooth balls with wet hands.
- 4
Make the saaru
15:00Simmer cooked dal with tamarind, tomato and rasam powder, finish with a mustard-curry leaf tadka.
Cook's notes
- Mudde is swallowed in small pieces dipped in saaru — chewing is considered a beginner's mistake.
- Wet your palms before shaping or the dough will stick.
