Jeev Kadgi Podi | Breadfruit Rava Fry or Fritters are deep-fried bites, crispy on the outside, soft and creamy on the inside, makes a perfect side or snack for any special gathering or festivals. The recipe is vegan and gluten-free.
Wish you all a very happy Ugadi (Gudi Padwa) 2021. Stay Safe guys!!
This is my fifth and last recipe for Ugadi (Gudi Padwa ) series for this year. If you have missed my first 4 recipes and details on the Ugadi festival check this out.
- MANGO RICE OR CHITRANNA
- UGADI PACHADI
- GASAGASE PAYASA (POPPY SEEDS PUDDING)
- TENDER CASHEWNUT STIR FRY (BIBBE UPKARI)
What is Breadfruit or Jeev kadgi?
Breadfruit is a species of flowering tree in the jackfruit and mulberry family. Its name comes from the texture of the ripe or mature fruit, which when cooked tastes similar to freshly baked bread with a flavor similar to one of these - potatoes, artichoke, or chestnut.
It is called jeevgujje in Kannada, kadachakka or seemachakka in Malayalam, a local delicacy of Karnataka and Kerala, available during the summer season.
It is mainly used for cooking in the unripe stage and you can do several recipes from stir fry (upkari), pakoda or pakora (bajo), curry (ghashi) to ghee roast, and manchurian. Let me know if you need any of the recipes and I would be happy to share.
Breadfruit Nutrition
There are some known health benefits of breadfruit. It is high in carbohydrates, a good source of antioxidants, calcium, omega 3, omega 6, and vitamins A and C.
Breadfruit vs Jackfruit
Breadfruit and Jackfruit are not the same. The main difference comes in the flavor and texture when cooked. The interior of breadfruit is creamy white to light yellow in color and tastes similar to bread, while jackfruit has many yellow bulbs that can be consumed directly and they are also used as an alternative to meat in a vegan diet. Breadfruit is smaller in size than jackfruit.
What can I substitute for Breadfruit in the recipe?
You can use this same recipe to make rava fry of any of the following veggies - raw jackfruit (kadgi), raw banana or ripe banana, cauliflower, baby corn, paneer, bitter melon (karate), pumpkin (dudde), pointed gourd (gointa), sweet potato (kananga), potatoes, etc.
If you are from Coastal Karnataka (Mangalore or Udupi region) you will find in every restaurant menu variety of fish rava fry that includes bangade (raju), anjal (visonu), pomfret (manji), silverfish or bolangir (motiale), pedvo, kane (nogli) and more.
Coming to Jeev Kadgi Podi | Breadfruit Rava Fry
For the best result use unripe fresh breadfruit. With the same ingredients and recipe, you can shallow fry in a pan, deep fry in oil, or even air fry. I love all three methods but deep fried one is my favorite.
Konkanis mainly prepare this podi or rava fry along with TENDER CASHEWNUT STIR FRY (BIBBE UPKARI) for Ugadi (Gudi Padwa) festival and for special occasions like parties, get together or weddings when jeev kadgi is in season.
Konkanis (amchis) from Maharashtra (Mumbai), Goa, and Coastal Karnataka have a special connection with food. I can proudly say, Konkani cuisine is one of the most delicious cuisines in India. Whether you are a seafood lover or vegetarian, Konkani delicacies like the one below will make you come back for more. In Konkani cuisine, you will find a large collection of easy breakfast, lunch, and dinner recipes you can make in under 30 minutes.
I can go on talking about this cuisine, culture, and tradition here, but let's pause for now and make some podi or fried breadfruit for Ugadi 🙂
Ingredients for Jeev Kadgi Podi | Breadfruit Rava Fry
½ of medium-sized Breadfruit
½ cup Rice flour
1 to 1 ½ teaspoon Red chile powder
¼ teaspoon Asafoetida or Hing powder
Salt to taste
½ cup Water (approximately)
½ cup Bombay Rava (Fine sooji or Semolina)
Oil for frying (I personally prefer Coconut oil)
Steps to prepare Jeev Kadgi Podi | Breadfruit Rava Fry
- Peel of the green skin of raw unripe breadfruit. Cut the whole fruit in half. Cut the half into quarters and remove the excess innermost (central) hard white core.
- Now cut the breadfruit into even slices or triangles of desired thickness. I go by eye measurement (approx. 3 to 5 mm thick). If you want thinner crispy fritters, slice them thin. But if you want fritters that are soft and creamy on the inside, with a crispy exterior, then slice the breadfruit a little thick, around ¼ inch. I do both versions, but today the ones shown in the picture are from thin crispy slices.
- In a bowl, add rice flour, red chile powder, hing, salt to taste, and now add water starting with ¼ cup and increase little by little only if needed to make a medium-thick smooth paste.
- Toss the cut breadfruit slices in the paste prepared above so that each slice is coated with the paste. Keep this aside.
- Heat oil in a pan for frying on medium flame.
- In a plate take fine sooji or semolina. Coat each piece of breadfruit with semolina.
- Once the oil is hot and ready for frying, drop the breadfruit slices about 5 to 6 depending on the size of the pan and cook on medium flame flipping occasionally till it becomes crispy and golden brown on both sides. At this point, fritters come up and start floating.
- Transfer it to a paper towel to absorb any excess oil. Repeat this for the remaining breadfruit slices.
- Jeev Kadgi Podi or Bread Fruit Rava Fry is ready. Serve hot and enjoy.
Some important tips to get crispy and perfect rava fry
- If the paste prepared is too dry, adjust it with splashing water and if it becomes too thin, then add more rice flour.
- Do not overcrowd the pan with the slices. They will stick to each other and will not cook uniformly.
- If you don't find semolina or sooji you can still make the recipe. Just before dropping in oil, take rice flour in a plate, toss each slice in rice flour again and fry. Even this will become crispy and tasty.
- For a successful outcome, always heat oil on medium flame and fry on medium flame. The only time you can switch the flame to high is when you drop the slices into the oil and remove the slices once cooked from oil.
- If you like fritters with a soft and creamy texture, then remove them as soon as the outer surface turns crispy.
- If the oil is too hot, it will become dark soon and remains uncooked inside, and if it's too cold it will absorb excess oil.
- To check if the oil is hot, add a piece of breadfruit slice and check if it sizzles and comes up.
- The amount of time to fry depends on the thickness of the breadfruit slices.
Detailed recipe for Jeev Kadgi Podi | Breadfruit Rava Fry
Recipe card
Jeev Kadgi Podi | Breadfruit Rava Fry Or Fritters | Fried Breadfruit
Ingredients
- ½ medium Breadfruit
- ½ cup Rice flour
- 1 to 1.5 teaspoon Red chile powder
- ¼ teaspoon Asafoetida or Hing powder
- Salt , to taste
- ½ cup Water (approx)
- ½ cup Semolina or Bombay rava or Fine sooji (check tips for substitute)
- Oil , for frying (I personally prefer Coconut oil)
Instructions
Step I
- Peel of the green skin of raw unripe breadfruit. Cut the whole fruit in half. Cut the half into quarters and remove the excess innermost (cental) hard white core.½ medium Breadfruit
- Now cut the breadfruit into even slices or triangles of desired thickness. I go by eye measurement (approx. 3 to 5 mm thick for thin crispy fritters). If you want thinner crispy fritters, slice them thin. But if you want fritters that are soft and creamy on the inside, with a crispy exterior, then slice the breadfruit a little thick, around ¼ inch. I do both versions, but today the ones shown in the picture are for thin crispy slices.
- In a bowl, add rice flour, red chile powder, hing, salt to taste, and now add water starting with ¼ cup and increase little by little only if needed to make a medium-thick smooth paste.½ cup Rice flour, 1 to 1.5 teaspoon Red chile powder, ¼ teaspoon Asafoetida, Salt, ½ cup Water
- Toss the cut breadfruit slices in the paste prepared above so that each slice is coated with the paste. Keep this aside.
Step II
- Heat oil in a pan for frying on medium flame.Oil
- In a plate take fine sooji or semolina. Coat each piece of breadfruit with semolina.½ cup Semolina
- Once the oil is hot and ready for frying, drop the breadfruit slices about 5 to 6 depending on the size of the pan and cook on medium flame flipping occasionally till it becomes crispy and golden brown on both sides. At this point, fritters come up and start floating.
- Transfer it to a paper towel to absorb any excess oil. repeat this for the remaining breadfruit slices.
- Jeev Kadgi Podi | Breadfruit Rava Fry is ready. Serve hot and enjoy.
Notes
- If the paste prepared is too dry, adjust it with splashing water and if it becomes too thin, then add more rice flour.
- Do not overcrowd the pan with the slices. They will stick to each other and will not cook uniformly.
- If you don’t find semolina or sooji you can still make the recipe. Just before dropping in oil, take rice flour or panko or regular bread crumbs in a plate, toss each slice in any of the above, and fry. Even this will become crispy and tasty.
- For a successful outcome, always heat oil on medium flame and fry on medium flame. The only time you can switch the flame to high is when you drop the slices into the oil and remove the slices once cooked from oil.
- If you like fritters with a soft and creamy texture, then remove them as soon as the outer surface turns crispy.
- If the oil is too hot, it will become dark soon and remains uncooked inside, and if it is too cold it will absorb excess oil.
- To check if the oil is hot, add a piece of breadfruit slice and check if it sizzles and comes up.
- The amount of time to fry depends on the thickness of the breadfruit slices.
Nutrition
If you like this Konkani recipe,
Don't miss to check out some of my favorite and delicious recipes from Konkani cuisine, popular in Coastal Karnataka (Mangalore, Udupi region).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
For more recent updates, follow me on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter.
***Click below to save it on Pinterest***
P Venkatesh Nayak
Delicious.......