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    Karupatti Mittai Recipe

    Last Updated On: Apr 6, 2025 by Aarthi

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    Karupatti Mittai is also known as cheeni mittai, yeni mittai or mandaba mittai is a traditional car festival sweet made with rice, urad dal and karupatti. This is a popular South Indian festival sweet recipe that is a childhood nostalgic recipe just like thaen mittai. This authentic sweet has a crispy outer layer which is soaked in a healthy palm jaggery syrup that burst in your mouth. In this blog post, Learn how to make karupatti mittai with step by step pictures and video. 

    Karupatti Mittai Recipe

    Karupatti Mittai

    When I was young, every time during oor thiruvizha( local car festival) we used to enjoy many of this hot karupatti mittai. We call this as choodu mittai, since we buy them piping hot from the vendor. My Amma calls this as yeni mitt since it is displayed as a ladder like structure in the shop. Our childhood car festival is not complete without this sweet. 

    Jump to:
    • What is Karupatti Mittai?
    • Watch Karupatti Mittai Video
    • About Karupatti Mittai
    • Karupatti Mittai Ingredients
    • Tips for Crispy Karupatti Mittai 
    • How to Make Karupatti Mittai (Stepwise Pictures)
    • Expert Tips
    • 📖 Recipe Card

    This recipe has been requested from a viewer of mine a long time. Finally I got a chance to make them few weeks back. I saved this to post as Diwali post. I made this when I made my thaen mittai, both of these sweets have same batter. 

    Karupatti mittai is my childhood nostalgic sweet recipe which is so yummy. It has a crispy outer layer which is soaked in palm jaggery syrup which soaks into the sweet. When you bite into it, it just drips off in your mouth. You can make syrup using sugar instead of jaggery syrup and dip these. But personally I like the taste of karupatti or palm jaggery.

    What is Karupatti Mittai?

    Karuppati Mittai is also known as Thenkuzhal Sweet in my native Nagercoil. It is an authentic sweet made entirely with rice, urad dal, palm jaggery (karupatti), spices like cardamom, dry ginger. A thick batter is made with soaked rice and urad dal mixture which is then piped over hot oil like swirl ladder like pattern and fried. The fried thenkuzhal is soaked in a thick spiced palm jaggery (karupatti) syrup to get iconic black look. It is best had piping hot right after it is soaked. 

    More Recipes using Karupatti

    Karupatti Kozhukattai

    Karupatti Kaapi

    Palm Jaggery Cake

    Karupatti Halwa

    Watch Karupatti Mittai Video

    YouTube video

    close look of Karupatti Mittai Recipe

    About Karupatti Mittai

    Karupatti mittai is also called as cheeni mittai or yeni mittai. It is a popular South Indian temple festival sweet recipe. The sweet is made with rice and urad dal batter, similar to jangri batter. The batter is taken in a piping bag or funnel and piped over hot oil like a swirl ladder like pattern. I use piping bag which is easy for me, but traditionally jangri cloth  or a pot like vessel (chombu) is used. 

    Making karupatti mittai is easy. You have to start by soaking rice and urad dal together for few hours. Grind the rice and dal to a smooth batter. It is best to use a wet grinder to grind. But I used my blender. Once the batter is ground, take it in a bowl and use a wooden spoon to beat it well to incorporate air into the batter which makes the batter lighter. You can skip this step if you made the batter in a wet grinder.

    Pipe the batter straight into the oil and fry till crispy. Fried mittai is soaked in syrup until the syrup is absorbed into the sweet. This sweet has a slight cardamom and dry ginger flavour which makes it super delicious. In this blog post, I have shared all the tips and tricks for making karupatti mittai with step by step pictures and video. 

    Similar Recipes

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    Kara Sev

    Mysore Pak

    Karupatti Mittai Ingredients

    ingredients for Karupatti Mittai

    Rice - you can use any rice of choice. Personally I use idli rice, but you can use regular rice which we use daily for cooking (Ponni). 

    Whole Urad dal - urad dal helps to make the batter light and fluffy. Use good quality urad dal which is important to get fluffy batter. 

    Karupatti | Palm Jaggery - Pagu vellam or mandai vellam can be used instead of palm jaggery. But palm jaggery has an iconic distinct flavour which cannot be replaced. It is important to boil the syrup and strain it before using, since karupatti has dust and dirt in them. 

    Spices - I used ground cardamom and ground dry ginger as flavourings for my karupatti syrup. 

    Oil - use neutral flavourless oil for deep frying. 

    Optional - baking soda is mixed into the batter to create light airy texture which can be skipped if you make the batter in a wet grinder. 

    Tips for Crispy Karupatti Mittai 

    Karupatti Mittai frying

    Getting Karupatti Mittai Batter Right

    The most important step in karupatti mittai is getting the batter fluffy and thick. If you grind the batter in a wet grinder then this is easy. You can get the batter fluffy and thick. But if you use a blender, it can be tricky. So follow the steps given below. 

    Don’t add more water - when grinding in a blender, try not to add more water when grinding the batter. Sprinkle little water at a time and blend till thick and fluffy. You can even add couple of ice cubes when blending to make the batter light. 

    A pinch of baking soda - once the batter is ready, add a pinch of baking soda and mix. This helps the mittai to get super crispy and light when fried.

    Incorporate air - Use a wooden spoon to beat (whip) the batter for 4 to 5 minutes to incorporate some air into the batter. You can use an electric beater to do this step.

    Do the float test - like medu vada batter, do the float test. Take a small portion from the batter and drop in cold water. If the batter floats then the batter is ready for frying. 

    Karupatti Mittai fried

    Read this Before Frying Karupatti mittai

    Any shapes  - Traditionally this mittai is shaped like a ladder. But you can fry them into any shapes you prefer. You can make them in circles or make like mini jangri. Get your creatives juices flow and make this mittai into any shapes. 

    Using right cookware - For frying mittai, use flat bottom pan or kadai. This will help to make the ladder like pattern much more easy. I like to use saute pan or frying pan for frying the sweet. 

    Frying Temperature - Fry the mittai on low to medium heat till it is super crispy. It may take around 3 to 5 minutes to get the crispy texture. So take your time when frying. So it stays crispy even when dunked in the syrup. 

    Karupatti Mittai soaking in palm jaggery syrup

    About Karupatti Syrup

    The flavour of karupatti mittai depends on the palm jaggery you use. So source the best quality organic palm jaggery. If your palm jaggery is in one big lump, break it into small pieces before adding into the water. Boil the jaggery, allow the jaggery to melt. Now strain this and cook until thick and syrupy. 

    The syrup can be left unflavoured so the palm jaggery flavour shines. But I like to flavour it with some cardamom and dry ginger powder. You have to keep this syrup warm till you dip the mittai. So the mittai absorbs the syrup better. 

    Soak fried mittai directly in the hot syrup. You can leave them to soak longer, if you want syrupy mittai. I usually leave them for one to two minute. 

    Karupatti Mittai

    Karupatti mittai in 4 easy steps

    Making Batter - Take rice and dal in a bowl. wash it well, soak them in water for 3 hours. Drain them and add it to a blender, add very little water at a time and make it into a thick smooth paste. It doesn't have to be very smooth, the rice will remain little grainy, that is not an issue. Use a wooden spoon to beat (whip) the batter for 4 to 5 minutes to incorporate some air into the batter. You can add a pinch of baking soda and salt and mix the batter. 

    Palm Jaggery Syrup - Now make the palm jaggery syrup, take palm jaggery and water in a sauce pan. Heat it and Mix it well till the palm jaggery is melted. Strain it and add it back to the pan and boil it for 6 to 8 mins till it gets little thick and syrupy. Now add in cardamom and dry ginger powder and mix well. You have to keep this syrup warm till you dip the mittai.

    Frying Mittai - Heat some oil for deep frying. Take a piping bag with plain round tip, fill it with the dough and make round design over hot oil. Fry till crispy on both sides. Strain this on to some paper towel. 

    Soaking in Syrup - Dip this fried mittai in karupatti syrup for 1 to 2 min on each side. Remove and serve hot. 

    a piece of Karupatti Mittai

    How to Make Karupatti Mittai (Stepwise Pictures)

    Soaking Rice & Urad Dal

    1)Take rice in a bowl. you can use any rice of choice. Personally I use idli rice, but you can use regular rice which we use daily for cooking (Ponni). 

    rice in a bowl

    2)Add in whole urad dal. Wash this really well in multiple changes of water.

    add urad dal

    3)Cover with fresh water and allow them to soak for 3 to 4 hours.

    soak in water

    Making Palm Jaggery Syrup

    4)Take crushed palm jaggery and water in a sauce pan.

    palm jaggery and water

    5)heat this on medium low heat till palm jaggery melts completely.

    boil till palm jaggery melts

    6)Strain this mixture through a sieve onto a high side saute pan.

    strain palm jaggery

    7)Add in crushed cardamom and dry ginger powder.

    add cardamom and ginger

    8)Boil it for 6 to 8 mins till it gets little thick and syrupy. You have to keep this syrup warm till you dip the mittai.

    palm jaggery syrup

    Grinding Batter

    9)Now you can see the rice and dal is soaked. It will be swollen and the rice would easily break when pressed.

    soaked rice and dal for making Karupatti Mittai

    10)Strain the rice and urad dal. Take the strained rice and dal in a blender. Sprinkle very little water and make it into a smooth paste.

    rice and dal in blender

    11)The batter has to be thick. It doesn't have to be super smooth, the rice will remain little grainy, that is not an issue. 

    make it into puree

    12)Take the thick fluffy batter in a bowl.

    batter in bowl

    13)Add in little salt and baking soda to the batter.

    add salt and baking soda

    14)Use a wooden spoon to beat (whip) the batter for 4 to 5 minutes to incorporate some air into the batter. Like medu vada batter, do the float test. Take a small portion from the batter and drop in cold water. If the batter floats then the batter is ready for frying. 

    whip batter

    15)Now the batter looks light and fluffy. It is ready to fry.

    light airy batter

    Frying Karupatti Mittai

    16)Fill a piping bag with round tip with the batter.

    piping bag with batter

    17)Heat oil for deep frying in a flat bottom frying pan. Take a piping bag with plain round tip, fill it with the dough and make swirl ladder like design over hot oil.

    pipe for making Karupatti Mittai

    18)Fry the mittai on medium low heat for 3 to 4 minutes until it gets crispy.

    Karupatti Mittai

    19)Flip over and fry until golden.

    fry Karupatti Mittai

    20)Strain the fried mittai and immerse them in the prepared palm jaggery syrup.

    soak Karupatti Mittai in syrup

    21)Dip this fried mittai in karupatti syrup for 1 to 2 min on each side.

    soak Karupatti Mittai

    22)Remove and serve hot. 

    close look of Karupatti Mittai

    Expert Tips

    • The batter should be thick, so add very little water while grinding.
    • When frying you have to fry till the outer crust gets crispy. So it stays crispy even when soaked in syrup.
    • Leave it only 2 mins in syrup. It will absorb it quickly.
    • This taste best when hot or warm.

    Storage & Serving

    Karupatti mittai doesn’t stay fresh longer. It is best to consume them immediately as soon as it is made. But if you have any leftover, store them in an air tight container at room temperature for a day. You can heat them in microwave for few seconds before enjoying. 

    Also leftover karupatti syrup can be stored in an air tight bottle in fridge and can be used in making karupatti kaapi or to sweeten tea or coffee.

    More Sweet Recipes to Try

    • Karadaiyan Nombu Sweet Adai Recipe
    • Wheat Rava Kesari Recipe
    • Aval Kesari Recipe | Poha Kesari Recipe
    • Fruit Kesari Recipe
    • Rice Sago Sweet Kolukattai Recipe
    • Mango Phirni Recipe

    📖 Recipe Card

    Karupatti Mittai Recipe | Cheeni Mittai Recipe

    Karupatti Mittai is also known as cheeni mittai, yeni mittai or mandaba mittai is a traditional car festival sweet made with rice, urad dal and karupatti. This is a popular South Indian festival sweet recipe that is a childhood nostalgic recipe just like thaen mittai. This authentic sweet has a crispy outer layer which is soaked in a healthy palm jaggery syrup that burst in your mouth. In this blog post, Learn how to make karupatti mittai with step by step pictures and video. 
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Pin Rate
    Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 25 minutes minutes
    Soaking time: 4 hours hours
    Total Time: 4 hours hours 40 minutes minutes
    Servings: 6 servings
    Calories: 422kcal

    Equipment

    • Blender
    • Piping Bag
    • Frying Pan

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup Rice I used idli rice
    • ¼ cup Whole Urad dal
    • ¼ tsp Baking Soda optional
    • ¼ tsp Salt
    • Oil for Deep frying

    For Syrup

    • 2 cups Karupatti | Palm Jaggery
    • 1 cup Water
    • 1 tsp Ground Cardamom
    • 1 tsp Dry Ginger Powder

    Instructions

    • Take rice and dal in a bowl. wash it well, soak them in water for 3 hours. Drain them and add it to a blender, add very little water at a time and make it into a thick smooth paste. It doesn't have to be very smooth, the rice will remain little grainy, that is not an issue. Use a wooden spoon to beat (whip) the batter for 4 to 5 minutes to incorporate some air into the batter. You can add a pinch of baking soda and salt and mix the batter. 
    • Now make the palm jaggery syrup, take palm jaggery and water in a sauce pan. Heat it and Mix it well till the palm jaggery is melted. Strain it and add it back to the pan and boil it for 6 to 8 mins till it gets little thick and syrupy. Now add in cardamom and dry ginger powder and mix well. You have to keep this syrup warm till you dip the mittai.
    • Now heat some oil for deep frying. Take a piping bag with plain round tip, fill it with the dough and make round design over hot oil. Fry till crispy on both sides. Strain this on to some paper towel. 
    • Dip this fried mittai in karupatti syrup for 1 to 2 min on each side. Remove and serve hot. 

    Video

    YouTube video

    Notes

    • The batter should be thick, so add very little water while grinding.
    • When frying you have to fry till the outer crust gets crispy. So it stays crispy even when soaked in syrup.
    • Leave it only 2 mins in syrup. It will absorb it quickly.
    • This taste best when hot or warm.

    Storage & Serving

    Karupatti mittai doesn’t stay fresh longer. It is best to consume them immediately as soon as it is made. But if you have any leftover, store them in an air tight container at room temperature for a day. You can heat them in microwave for few seconds before enjoying.
    Also leftover karupatti syrup can be stored in an air tight bottle in fridge and can be used in making karupatti kaapi or to sweeten tea or coffee.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1servings | Calories: 422kcal | Carbohydrates: 97g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 0.3g | Saturated Fat: 0.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 147mg | Potassium: 44mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 68g | Vitamin A: 1IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 39mg | Iron: 2mg
    Tried this recipe?Mention @yummytummyaarthi or tag #yummytummyaarthi!
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    More Diwali Recipes to Try

    • Dry Fruit Laddu Recipe (Ladoo)
    • Ragi Ladoo Recipe
    • Medu Pakoda Recipe
    • Kachori Recipe
    • Arisi Thengai Payasam Recipe
    • Mango Halwa Recipe

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    Aarthi

    About Aarthi

    Over the past few years I’ve been on a mission to find and create recipes that I can make from scratch. I hope you enjoy the recipes on this blog as they are tried and true from my kitchen to yours!

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Anonymous

      at

      well done aarthi

      Reply
    2. Anonymous

      at

      well done,...

      Reply
    3. vikramadevi

      at

      Very nice

      Reply
    4. Anonymous

      at

      aarti...the palm sugar in powdered form available in fab india ok. i mean its ok to buy palm sugar in powdered form
      thanks shalini

      Reply
    5. Aarthi

      at

      @AnonymousYes u can use

      Reply
    6. Suvin Prathab

      at

      Now you can buy Karupatti/Palm Jaggery and Palm Sugar from http://www.pachaa.in or http://www.onlinegrocerychennai.com

      Reply
    7. Anonymous

      at

      Thanks for sharing traditional sweets which is prepared mostly during the pongal

      Reply
    8. swathi

      at

      hi. need we not add salt in the batter? even a pinch?

      Reply
      • Aarthi

        at

        This recipe dont need salt.

        Reply
    9. Sathya Natarajan

      at

      How long does it stay good and how to store it

      Reply
      • Aarthi

        at

        two days max

        Reply
    5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

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