Ellu Urundai

Name: Ellu Urundai
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 10 servings
Cuisine: Tamil
Ingredients: 200 g white or black sesame seeds; 150 g Jaggery; 40 ml Water; 15 ml Ghee; 2 g cardamom powder; 1 g dry ginger powder; 20 g roasted gram (pottukadalai); 1 pinch Salt

Round sesame seed and jaggery balls made during Thai Pongal and Aadi festivals, valued in Tamil households for their warming, winter-friendly nutrition.

🇮🇳India· Tamil Nadu

Prep: 15 min
Cook: 15 min
Total: 30 min
Servings: 10
Difficulty: Easy
Calories: 130 kcal

Ingredients

0 of 8 gathered

Servings

200 g white or black sesame seeds — roasted
150 g Jaggery — grated
40 ml Water
15 ml Ghee — for greasing hands
2 g cardamom powder
1 g dry ginger powder — optional
20 g roasted gram (pottukadalai) — optional, coarsely powdered
1 pinch Salt — to balance sweetness

Equipment

•Heavy pan

Nutrition

Per serving, approximate

Calories: 130 kcal
fat: 7 g
carbs: 16 g
fibre: 2 g
protein: 3 g
calories: 130 kcal

Instructions

1
Toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan on low heat until they smell nutty and pop. Let them cool slightly.
2
Crush or pulse the sesame seeds briefly in a blender. Keep them coarse and do not make a paste.
3
Melt the jaggery (unrefined cane sugar) with water in a heavy pan. Strain the liquid to remove any grit.
4
Boil the jaggery syrup until a drop rolled in cold water forms a soft, pliable ball.
5
Stir the cardamom powder and dry ginger powder into the hot syrup.
6
Turn off the heat. Quickly stir in the crushed sesame seeds until evenly mixed.
7
Rub your hands with ghee (clarified butter) while the mixture is warm. Shape into small, firm balls.
8
Let the balls cool completely before storing them.