Duddali ~ Little bites of heaven. A super delicious, melt-in-the-mouth kind of a dessert. A few years ago, when I was visiting Mangalore, one of my dear school friends invited me to her home. As usual she had a divine tea time spread prepared for me and we enjoyed chatting and catching up on stories. As I left she handed me a small box with some goodies inside. She asked me to refrigerate it and I did. The wait was worth it as the dessert tasted so good the next day as it had chilled adequately. Duddali is prepared from ‘kuve peet’ as the Konkani’s refer. There is still some ambiguity regarding what it is called in English but even after extensively searching and asking many sources I am not able to conclude that it is arrowroot.
However, what I do know is that this dessert is very cooling for the body and is recommended to be eaten during the summers. The other day when I was sifting through ‘Randhpi’, an old cookbook written in Konkani by Isidore Coelho, I found a similar recipe called as ‘arootachi mani’ which is nothing but a pudding made out of arrowroot powder and allowed to cool until set in a steel plate. The recipe was almost the same but since I first discovered this lovely sweet in the form of ‘duddali’ I will stick to the same name and thank my friend Sapna Shenoy for generously sharing her recipe with me!
An absolute melt-in-your-mouth kind of a dessert that tastes best when chilled. A perfect treat to cool your body during the summer months! A must try recipe!
- 1/2 cup arrowroot powder
- 1/2 cup granulated white sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1-1/2 cups milk * see notes for vegan options
- 10-12 cashewnuts
- a sprinkling of saffron strands
- Other things you will need
- a 7 or 8" round plate with tall edges or a baking dish
- ghee for greasing
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Place the arrowroot powder in a bowl and add the 1/2 cup of water. Keep aside for at least 15-20 minutes. Then add the milk and sugar and stir till the sugar is almost dissolved.
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Grease a 7 or 8 inch round pan with ghee. Vegans can use oil instead.
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Transfer the mixture into a non-stick saucepan or kadai and cook it over a medium-low heat. Do not be tempted to increase the heat to hasten the process. If the milk gets burned you will end up with brown bits of the arrowroot mixture so have patience. You need to maintain the same level of heat throughout.
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Stir every few seconds. This dish requires utmost patience. Use a non-stick balloon whisk or a wooden ladle to stir constantly until you achieve a lump-free mixture
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Cook until the mixture thickens into a porridge-like consistency. The mixture will begin to look slightly translucent and will begin to bubble heavily in the centre of the pan. The pudding is ready when you notice the bubbles, the mixture is pretty thick yet runny and leaves a trail when you pour with the ladle. Also the ladle will be thickly coated with the mixture.
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Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. You can sprinkle saffron strands on the plate or the milk mixture just before taking it off the heat. Also, you can either place the nuts on the greased plate before pouring the mixture on it or garnish it after it has been poured.
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Once the mixture has been poured quickly tap the plate a few times to help spread the mixture evenly. You can also use the back of a tablespoon dipped in hot water or greased with ghee to smooth out the lumpy surface. Cool completely and then cover the plate with cling film and refrigerate for at least 6-8 hours or until the pudding firms up.
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To serve, cut the pudding into diagonal or square shapes. Duddali tastes best when served chilled.
To make a vegan version of this dish you can use coconut milk (not too thick & creamy) in the place of regular milk.
Hi Shireen,
I followed your recipe. But when I took off the manni from the non stick pot, it was a little sticky dumpling. Is that what it seems like to indicate that it is ready? Or did i cook it a few more seconds?
Anyway I have spread it in a plate covered with the cling film and have put it inside the fridge.
Hopefully there is no difference in taste and texture tomorrow.
Regards,
Divya
Hi Divya,
Yes, I think you may have overcooked it a little. The mixture should still be a little runny but when you drop it from a height it should form a trail. The taste won’t get affected. I hope you enjoyed it!
Is Kuve peet the same as Inda peet?
No it isn’t the same
Thank you for this recipe. I have been trying to make Hawaiian haupia which is like using coconut milk in your recipe, but it has not turned out quite right. After refrigerating overnight, it is like a pudding and not solid enough, though still lovely. I think maybe I did not cook it long enough. Following your recipe very carefully, I stopped cooking at about 30 minutes when it became porridge-like. But now I see the cook time is listed at 40 minutes, and also it never bubbled. Do you think this could be what I did wrong?
Thank you again for the recipe; even though it is not exactly haupia, your duddali is the best recipe I have found so far for what I am looking for. It seems that, even though arrowroot is the traditional ingredient in the Hawaiian dish, everyone uses cornstarch instead. I appreciate any advice you may offer.
Hi Laura,
I am not sure I quite understood your query. Did you try to make the Hawaiin haupia or the Duddali? Did you make any changes to my recipe? Please let me know. Thanks!
Hi Shireen,
Thank you for replying! I was trying to make the Duddali. Now that you mention it, there were some changes I inadvertently made; perhaps that is why it didn’t work.
1. I used the coconut milk substitution for milk, but it was a 13.5 oz can, while your recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups milk (12 oz).
2. I used 1/4 cup sugar, while your recipe calls for 1/2 cup. (Mine wasn’t sweet enough. And I feel a bit foolish, because leaving out the sugar can significantly change how a recipe turns out!)
3. I cooked it for about 30 minutes, but after looking at the recipe again, I see that you say to cook for 40 minutes. Also, mine didn’t bubble, although it did get to the porridge state.
I didn’t add any garnishes, but in every other way I followed the recipe precisely.
I think I’d better try again, and follow the recipe exactly. Sometimes it really helps to get another perspective — thank you! I didn’t realize at first how much I had altered the recipe. I think I got a little confused since I had been looking at several different recipes. Even so, it was a delicious pudding.
Thanks again for the recipe and help!
Hi Laura,
Well, yes, the consistency of the mixture plays a huge role in how the pudding turns out. By bubble I mean, thick porridge stage. However, since you used more of coconut milk and lesser sugar it may not have really set as it should have. Please do give it a try again and I hope it works this time!