Neyypathal can be loosely described as a deep fried rice bread. This is a festive dish that is made at least once during Ramadan in Muslim homes on the Malabar coast (Wiki Malabar) in Kerala, especially when there are guests at the Iftar table. It can be eaten with a nice curry, usually chicken or lamb or with a humble egg curry. Here, in Toronto, where I have departed from many of the culinary norms I grew up with, a neyypathal can be enjoyed with a steaming, hot mug of coffee. This is especially tasty during a cold Canadian winter.
Parboiled rice - 2 cups, uncooked (known as puzhungal ari in Kerala) Uncle Ben's Parboiled Rice
Coconut - 1 cup, grated
Aniseed - 2 level tsp
Cummin seeds - 1 level tsp
Onion - 1 small, peeled
Salt - 1 level tsp (increase or decrease according to your taste)
Oil for frying
Aniseed
Cummin Seeds
Soak the parboiled rice overnight in lots of water. An hour before grinding, wash and drain the rice. Pour boiling hot water on the rice and soak again. After one hour, wash and drain.
To make the neyypathal dough, put all the ingredients into the food processor and blend. This dough does not need to be a smooth paste. It should be coarsely ground. If your food processor will not effectively grind these ingredients, add a little water to help it along. After it is done, you might need to add some rice flour, so that the dough is the desired consistency.
The dough will be firm and not wet to touch. It might be a little sticky, as it is a rice based dough.
Moisten finger tips and palm with oil, to make little balls of dough. Flatten into small circles of approximately 4" diameter and 1/10" thickness. Make sure they are evenly thick and not thin towards the ends or the centre. Traditionally, in Kerala, the flattening is done on small sections, cut from a banana leaf.
Banana Leaf
I can come by these in Toronto for a dollar a piece. It seems wasteful to get them, just to make neyypathals on, and toss them into the bin after. Thick plastic works just as well. Cut out a few squares of plastic from a thick shopping bag and prepare a few neyypathals. Fill a wok with oil to deep fry these. Heat the wok to about medium heat.
The oil should not be so hot, as to start smoking. Neyypathals need to cook for a while in the hot oil and if the oil is too hot, these will burn on the outside. Slowly peel off a neyypathal into the hot oil. Use a slotted spoon to gently splash oil onto the top of the neyypathal. When it has puffed up fully, let it cook for a while and then turn it over and cook the other side for half a minute. Each one takes about 1 minute to fry till till is cooked.
Use kitchen tissue to soak up the extra oil on the neyypathals.
A well made neyypathal should look like this.
Successful neyypathals made their way to the Iftar table today. I'm feeling particularly happy as it's been some twenty odd years since I made these. The last time was in Dubai.
We feasted on the requisite dates, coriander chicken, neyypathals, and homemade basboosa, given to me by a dear friend.
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