Ariselu / Arisa

History

Ariselu (Telugu) or Arisa (Oriya) in South Indian sweet dish from the North-eastrn part of Old Madras presidency and Present day Andhra pradesh and Orissa.  Arisa or Arisalu is a Dravidian Telugu word means rice.  It is also called Kajaya in Kannada.  A similar sweet in TamilNadu called Adhirasam is prepared for Pujas.

Ariselu / Arisa

Ingredients

• 1 kg Rice
• 3/4 kg Jaggery (grated)
• 2 tsp of Sesame Seeds
• Oil, to fry

Method

• Wash rice thoroughly
• Soak them overnight and remove water completely
• Spread them on a cloth for a few minutes to make sure that the rice is dry
• Make a fine powder of it in a blender
• sieve if necessary and set aside
• The flour should be slightly damp
• Add one cup of water to the grated jaggery and heat it in a pan till it melts
• Sieve to remove any unwanted stuff
• Heat it on low flame till it becomes thick syrup
• Add the rice flour to it slowly and stir well
• Remove flame and make sure that no lumps are formed
• When slightly cool make big lime size balls of it
• Heat oil in a thick bottom pan
• Pat each ball into a thin, round and flat disc on a banana leaf or a plastic sheet and dab it with a few sesame seeds.
• Fry each one in oil on low flame till deep brown and remove
• To remove the oil completely, place it between two flat ladles and press.
• Repeat the procedure till the dough is over
• When cool store them in a container
• These Ariselu last for more than two weeks