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Panangai paniyaram
பனங்காய் பணியாரம் (panangai paniyaram): dark, fragrant Jaffna fritters of ripe palmyra fruit pulp and rice flour
When the palmyra palms of the Jaffna peninsula drop their ripe black fruits in the late monsoon months, kitchens from Point Pedro to Kayts fill with the smoky, almost mango-like smell of panangai paniyaram. The fibrous orange pulp is squeezed out of the fruit, cooked briefly with sugar, then mixed with rice flour and fried in spoonfuls until the fritters are nearly black outside and soft and sticky inside. They are an afternoon treat with tea and are carried as gifts to relatives in Colombo and abroad. Outside Sri Lanka, look for frozen or tinned palmyra fruit pulp in Tamil grocers; there is no real substitute for its taste. The common failure is frying in oil that is too hot: the sugar in the pulp burns before the middle cooks, so keep the oil moderate. Chef's tip: cooking the pulp with the sugar first takes the edge off the fruit's natural bitterness and makes the batter easier to handle.
- Total time
- 45 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the batter
- 9 oz ripe palmyra fruit pulpfresh, frozen or tinned
- 2 ⅞ oz sugar
- 7 oz white rice flourplus a little extra if needed
- 1 pinch salt
For frying
- 3 ¼ cups vegetable oilfor deep-frying
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: If using fresh fruit, peel off the black skin, rub the fibrous pulp off the seeds with a splash of water and push it through a coarse sieve.
Step 2: Put 9 oz ripe palmyra fruit pulp and 2 ⅞ oz sugar in a small pan over a medium-low heat and cook, stirring, for 4–5 minutes until the sugar dissolves and the pulp darkens and thickens a little. Cool.
5 minStep 3: Mix in 7 oz white rice flour and 1 pinch salt to make a thick batter that drops slowly from a spoon; add a spoon more flour if it runs. Rest for 30 minutes.
30 minStep 4: Heat 3 ¼ cups vegetable oil in a deep pan to 350°F, or until a drop of batter rises slowly with steady bubbles.
5 minStep 5: Drop in heaped teaspoons of batter, 6–8 at a time, and fry for 4–5 minutes, turning, until deep brown all over and a fritter broken open is cooked through.
16 minStep 6: Drain on kitchen paper and serve warm or at room temperature with plain tea.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 260 kcal
- Protein
- 3 g
- Carbs
- 46 g
- Fat
- 8 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does panangai paniyaram take?
- About 45 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 25 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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