Punugulu Recipe How To Make Punugulu With Idli Dosa Batter Punukulu

Punugulu are often made in most Andhra homes even with left over idli dosa batter that is sour or over fermented batter while some prefer to make them with fresh batter. There are a few different variations of making punugulu. Some make with maida and they are called maida punugulu. I have shared the recipe of this one too in the recipe card below. Pesara punukulu, perugu punugulu are some of the other variations to the basic recipe. I also make punugulu with Vada batter for naivedyam during varalakshmi vratam, Navratri, Lakshmi puja and sankranti. I have shared the recipe here Urad dal bonda for more similar recipes check,aratikaya bajjimixed dal vadamirapakaya bajjigarelualasanda vadaonion pakoda

Preparation for punugulu recipe

To make these you will need either 2 cups left over thick idli dosa batter or have to make fresh batter. If you are using left over batter, start from step 4. If you want to make fresh batter, wash soak urad and rice for min 4 hrs.
Grind urad dal to a smooth batter with enough water and salt. Do not make it runny. Pour this in a utensil.
Grind rice coarsely. Mix it with the batter thoroughly
Check the consistency now, the batter should be thicker than the pouring consistency. Refer the pic below. This is the right consistency. OPTIONAL STEP : If you feel the batter is runny, powder 2 tbsps of powdered poha / attukulu and mix well without lumps. Set side for 10 mins. As i mentioned earlier you can also use semolina or rice flour to thicken the batter. But the ones made with poha are really light and crunchy. Now adjust the consistency of batter, if required add very little water. Check by making 1 or 2 punugulu, if they are hard need to add little water.

How to make crispy punugulu recipe

Add cumin, onions. If you haven’t used green chilli while blending add it now.
Heat oil till hot, adjust the flame to medium high, not low and not high.
Shape the batter to round balls with your fingers and drop them in the hot oil.
Fry punugulu till golden color and transfer them on to a kitchen tissue.

How to make punugulu batter

There are no specific measurements followed to make the batter. But it must be thick and not runny. Punugulu can be made with fresh ground batter or with left over fermented idli dosa batter. Usually many people love them making with sour batter as the fritters taste slightly tangy. Most times I make them with the fresh batter. They can be made plain just with some cumin and green chilies added. I prefer to add chopped onions, chilies, cumin and coriander leaves. The right consistency of the batter is the key to making punukulu that are crispy and not oily. Not too thick and not too thin. Thick batter makes your fritters rock hard, while the thin runny batter, makes them oily and soggy too. If the batter turns runny, many people add few spoons of rice flour or semolina. But my personal experience – they turn hard when additional rice flour is added. With semolina the fritters turn flat and do not absorb the moisture in the batter. So I usually use poha or atukulu. Just powder and add a bit to the batter to bring it to consistency. They turn out super crunchy and light. Related Recipes