Modak

Modakam (Sanskrit: मोदकम्; Japanese: 歓喜団; Thai: โมทกะ or ขนมต้ม; Vietnamese: Bánh ít dừa; Khmer: នំគម; Malaysian: Kuih modak; Indonesian: Kue modak; Burmese: မုန့်လုံးရေပေါ်), also referred to as Koḻukattai (கொழுக்கட்டை) in Tamil, is an Indian sweet dumpling dish popular in many Indian states and cultures. According to Hindu and Buddhist beliefs, it is considered one of the favourite dishes of Lord Ganesha and the Buddha and is therefore used in prayers. The sweet filling on the inside of a modak consists of freshly grated coconut and jaggery, while the outer soft shell is made from rice flour or wheat flour mixed with khava or maida flour. There are two types of Modakam, fried and steamed. The steamed version (called ukdiche Modakam ) is often served hot with ghee. According to culinary historian Darra Goldstein, modaka is an ancient sweet that dates back to around 200 BCE. Early mention of modakas are found in Ayurveda, Ramayana, Mahabharata where it is described as dumpling confectionery with sweet stuffing. Sangam literature similarly mentions modakas as rice dumpling filled with sweet stuffing and were also sold by street vendors in ancient city of Madurai. The medieval Manasollasa culinary text mentions Modaka as prepared with rice flour, sweet stuffings with some aromatic spices such as cardamom and camphor were called Varsopalagolakas because they looked like hailstones. Fried modakas are made with wheat flour, while steamed modakas are made from rice flour. In religious context, the word modaka is derived from the word "Moda" and "Pramoda" meaning joy, happiness, delight, that ganesha bestows on his devotees. The shape and constituent of modaka is also significant and it represents a bag of money. Thus it is may also symbolize wealth, and all the sweet pleasures that wealth gives to humans. It is also shaped like an upward pointing triangle, which in Tantrik art represents spiritual reality, in contrast to the downward pointing triangle which represents material reality.