Suyam | Susiyan | Suzhiyam Recipe - Tamil Nadu Style

I wasn't aware of this version of Susiyan until MIL told me about it. The suzhiyam, or suhiyan as we call it, made in Kerala is very different with whole moong dal and jaggery for filling and using maida as an outer cover.

I had also heard of making poornam (filling) with cooked channa dal, coconut and jaggery but using the same filling as vella kozhukkattai (which we make for Ganesh Chaturthi or Vinayaka Chaturthi) was new to me.

So when she offered to make it one day, I jumped at the opportunity to learn this new way, probably the method followed in Tamil Nadu, of making susiyam.

There are a few variations too, you can check notes. Also, I am not claiming this to be authentic or THE method of making susiyan, so no yelling at me over this, ok? Ok!

Suyam | Susiyan | Suzhiyam Recipe - Tamil Nadu Style

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Makes 12 suyam, depending on size
Recipe source: My mom-in-law

Ingredients:
3/4 cup of whole urad dal, soaked for half hour (measure before soaking)
1/2 cup of grated coconut
1/2 cup of melted, strained jaggery (adjust to taste, we like it on the sweeter side)
3 of green cardamom seeds, crushed fine
1 tbsp of ghee
Oil of to deep fry
Salt of a pinch or two

How It's Made:

1. Grind the soaked urad dal into a thick batter without adding any water. If it's too thick, sprinkle some water with fingertips but only what's absolutely necessary. Add salt, mix well and set aside.

2. Prepare the coconut-jaggery poornam and when it's warm, make into lime-sized balls. Check out how to make poornam on the vella kozhukkattai post.

3. Heat required oil in a kadai and when it's hot (check by dropping a small amount of urad dal batter into the oil. If it sizzles and immediately rises to the top, the oil is ready. Otherwise, wait a bit longer) take one poornam ball and roll it gently in the urad dal batter. When fully covered, drop into the hot oil.

4. Add 3-4 at a time depending on the size of your kadai. Take care not to overcrowd the pan otherwise the oil temperature will drop and your suyam will end up taking in more oil than necessary.

5. When the coating turns golden brown (takes around a minute or even less), drain and set aside.

Serve warm. When it's fresh, the outer coating is crisp and the inside is sweet and gooey. When it turns cold, the covering turns soft, which is very tasty too.

A great festival snack recipe that's easy to make and is a bit different from the regulars we always prepare.

Notes:

- I used jaggery from Kerala which explains the very deep brown colour
- You can add some cooked and mashed channa dal to the poornam if you'd like. You can also coat the suyam with idli / dosa batter or a maida mixture before frying. Urad dal made it really soft though so try with urad dal for the best results. The cover almost takes like medhu vada / mysore bonda

So what are your plans for Ganesh Chaturthi (Vinayakar Chaturthi) this year? :)