Thengai Suduthal | தலை ஆடி பண்டிகை | Coconut Aadi Festival

Today I am here with one of the traditional Tamilar festival Thengai Suduthal recipe (Thengaai Sudum Pandigai). Many of you may not aware of it, because it is particularly celebrated on banks of rivers.

Today is Aadi 1, the first day of tamil month Aadi. People worship water in the form of wells, tanks, Dam and rivers today as well as on Aadi 18 (Aadi Perukku).  Especially the newly wedded couples celebrate it by taking bath in rivers, wearing new clothes, Apply turmeric to Maangalyam/Thaali and wear new Yellow Thread on that day. The same day people make this recipe, not only newly wedded; most of the people have the culture of making this coconut (coconut filled with sweet stuffing) during this festival.

I always come with Grandma/Mom recipes, today for the very first time I am here with the recipe/culture my father practiced me :-). In evening after cooking the coconuts, we offer it to god (Vinayagar/Amman) and then share it with family and neighbors around. It was regular during my school days and after settled in Chennai i couldn’t follow it. Luckily I got a chance to make in the recent stay at my native place.

I have uploaded a short video how to fill and cook the coconut with stuffing, It’s outdoor cook, as the coconut shell breaks/cracks, the shells burn while cooking and also give some crack sound (don’t get panic), anyways you hold it with a very long stick for safety purpose :-). I strongly suggest you to cook in outdoor however I found this you tube video making it in indoor gas. Also I shared few of my native pictures here.
There is a short article about this festival to know more click here.

Ingredients for Thengai Suduthal

Coconut – 2 Numbers
Raw Rice – 1/2 Cup
Jaggery/Vellam – 1/2 Cup and more
Pottukadalai/Roasted gram/Dhalia – 1/4 Cup
Sesame seeds – 2 Tbsp
Cardamom Powder mixed with Sugar – 2 Tbsp

Thanks Abi and Logu for helping me to record this recipe  🙂

How to do Thengai Suduthal

• Remove the outer fiber from coconut, wash and keep ready (Step wise Pic 1).
• Soak rice for 1 hour at least.
• Make one hole in the three eyed coconut and remove all the water, reserve it for later use (Step wise Pic 2).
• Put Jaggery, Rice, Pottukadalai, Sesame seeds, cardamom powder one by one and a tsp of coconut water at a time (Step wise Pic 3).
• Do repeat alternating ingredients but add more jaggery also make sure you add only half of the coconut water.
• While inserting use tooth pick/small stick to fill inside the coconut.
• Once done filling the coconut, wash by closing the hole with your thumb.

• You can roast it immediately or do allow to the ingredients to soak in coconut water for a while say 30 minutes to 1 hour so it cooks perfectly.
• We usually fill the coconut previous night and on festival day the early morning roast it in fire.
• But most people roast the coconut in the evening on Thalai Aadi day.
• Before that apply turmeric all over coconut and kumkum(optional).

• Insert a healthy and strong green wooden stick (which holds high temperature) with sharp edges to fit in to the coconut.
• Preferably Alinji Maram Kuchi (In Tamil).
• Now bring it to fire and roast till the whole coconut turns black, otherwise the inner won’t cook completely.
• Turn all over for even cooking, check the video at the end of the post to gain more ideas.
• Cool it for another 1 hour, it also cooks with the inner temperature right now.
• You may still wear crackling sound and in some coconut water comes out even after removing from flame, its normal.
• Wash the outer black parts under the running water gently by covering the coconut hole/eye.
• Break and offer to god before tasting 🙂 (Step wise Pic 4).

Notes

1. Check whether the coconut is in good condition by smelling the water you remove before start filling.
2. Some may add moong dhal as one of the ingredient, you can add if you like that taste.

Print Version

Print

Thengai Suduthal

Prep Time

45 mins

Cook Time

3 hrs 25 mins

Resting Time

28 mins

 

Course: Snack, sweets

Cuisine: Indian, tamilian

Author: Sangeetha Priya

Ingredients

• Fresh Coconut – 2 Numbers
• Raw Rice – 1/2 Cup
• Jaggery/Vellam – 1/2 Cup and more
• Pottukadalai/Roasted gram/Dhalia – 1/4 Cup
• Sesame seeds – 2 Tbsp
• Cardamom Powder mixed with Sugar – 2 Tbsp

Instructions

1. Remove the outer fiber from coconut, wash and keep ready (Step wise Pic 1).

2. Soak rice for 1 hour at least.

3. Make one hole in the three eyed coconut and remove all the water, reserve it for later use (Step wise Pic 2).

4. Put Jaggery, Rice, Pottukadalai, Sesame seeds, cardamom powder one by one and a tsp of coconut water at a time (Step wise Pic 3).

5. Do repeat alternating ingredients but add more jaggery also make sure you add only half of the coconut water.

6. While inserting the ingredients use tooth pick/small stick to fill inside the coconut.

7. Once done filling the coconut, wash by closing the hole with your thumb.

8. You can roast it immediately or do allow to the ingredients to soak in coconut water for a while say 30 minutes to 1 hour so it cooks perfectly.

9. We usually fill the coconut previous night and on festival day the early morning roast it in fire.

10. But most people roast the coconut in the evening on Thalai Aadi day.

11. Before that apply turmeric all over coconut and kumkum(optional).

12. Insert a healthy and strong green wooden stick (which holds high temperature) with sharp edges to fit in to the coconut.

13. Now bring it to fire and roast till the whole coconut turns black, otherwise the inner won't cook completely.

14. Turn all over for even cooking, check the video at the end of the post to gain more ideas.

15. Cool it for another 1 hour, it also cooks with the inner temperature right now.
16. You may still wear crackling sound and in some coconut water comes out even after removing from flame, its normal.
17. Wash the outer black parts under the running water gently by covering the coconut hole/eye.
18. Break and offer to god before tasting 🙂 (Step wise Pic 4).

Recipe Notes

1. Check whether the coconut is in good condition by smelling the water you remove before start filling.
2. Some may add moong dhal as one of the ingredient, you can add if you like that taste.