Sarkkara Upperi

Sarkkara Upperi is made with Plantain Banana fried and sauteed in Jaggery Syrup. Sarkkara upperi is one of the important side dish of Kerala Sadya and kids and adults love to munch it anytime. My son loves this a lot and whenever I go to India I used to get few packets of this 'Upperi'. For this Onam I didnn't have any Sarkkara Upperi left and so I made it at home. A few phone calls to Kerala helped me make this dish. So friends Enjoy making Sarkkara Upperi :)

Ingredients:-

1. Plantain Banana/Pachakkaya - 3 Big
2. Powdered Jaggery - 1/2 cup
3. Sugar - 1/2 cup
4. Oil for deep frying
5. Cardamom powder - 1 tsp
6. Cumin(Jeera) Powder - 1/2 tsp
7. Dry Ginger Powder - 1 tsp
8. salt a pinch
9. Rice flour - 4tbsp(I used Nirapara putti podi)
10. Water - 1/2 cup

Preparation Method:-

• Cut the edges of the Plantain banana. Cut into into halves horizontally and vertically.
• Put it in Luke warm water for sometime maybe five mins(this helps you remove the skin easily). Remove the skin completely.

                                           

• Cut the plantain into small slices and soak in the water for 10 mins to remove the stain as much as possible. Wash thoroughly and drain off the water. Set aside.

                                            

• Heat up oil in a frying pan or Kadai in medium-high flame and deep fry the plantain till they are slightly crisp( you don't have to frying it till deep brown, just need to cook till they loose the raw flavor).
• Take out in an absorbent paper towel, pat dry and remove oil. Set aside.

                                              

• Now in another pan melt the jaggery by adding half cup water and strain off the impurities if any to another non-stick pan.(Strain this into the pan  in which you are going to make 'sarkkara upperi', this will help the process easy)
• Heat this Jaggery again and add Sugar and stir continuously in medium heat to melt the sugar and form a nice jaggery syrup.
• Add the cardamom powder, dry ginger powder, jeera powder,salt to the syrup and stir to mix.
• Add the chopped plantain and keep stirring till jaggery syrup starts to thicken. 
• Add rice flour little by little and keep stirring everytime you add rice flour.

                                             

• Keep stirring till all the jaggery syrup and rice mixture is well coated on the plantain pieces and it turns crisp with not more liquid in the pan.
• Switch off the flame, stir well so that no plantain pieces stick together and move to platter to let it cool.
• Once cool you can put it in air tight container and store for a very long period. Enjoy!!!!!!



 Sending this to Ramyasrecipe's ABC Series : B for Banana 

        

Also sending this to The Kerala Kitchen Event hosted by Khusi's A Girl's Diary