Ganesh Chaturthi Naivedyam Recipes for NRI Kitchens: Modak, Undrallu, Panchakajjaya and More

Quick answer: Ganesha's favourite naivedyam is the modak, a steamed rice-flour dumpling filled with coconut and jaggery. Regional favourites include undrallu and kudumulu (Andhra and Telangana), kozhukattai and sundal (Tamil Nadu), panchakajjaya (Karnataka) and laddus (North India). All can be made abroad with ordinary rice flour, frozen grated coconut and jaggery or panela. The recipes below use ingredients you can find in an Indian or international grocery store.

This guide has been restored at its original hindutone.com address. Ganesh Chaturthi 2026 was on Monday 14 September; the next is Saturday 4 September 2027. Save these recipes for next year or for Sankashti and other Ganesha pujas through the year.

Naivedyam basics

• Cook with a clean kitchen and clean hands, ideally after bathing.
• Do not taste the food before it is offered. Season by experience, or set aside a small portion before cooking for tasting.
• Most families avoid onion and garlic in naivedyam.
• Offer the food on a banana leaf or clean plate, sprinkle a little water around it and offer it with the words 'naivedyam samarpayami', or as given in your vrata book.
• After the puja, share the prasad with family, friends and neighbours.

Shopping list for kitchens abroad

1. Ukadiche modak (steamed modak)

Makes about 12 to 15. Time: 1 hour.

Filling: 1 cup grated coconut, three-quarters of a cup grated jaggery, a quarter teaspoon cardamom powder, 1 teaspoon ghee, a pinch of nutmeg (optional).

Dough: 1 cup fine rice flour, 1 cup water, a pinch of salt, 1 teaspoon ghee.

• Heat the ghee in a pan, add coconut and jaggery and stir on medium heat. The jaggery melts and then thickens. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes until the mixture holds together. Add cardamom and nutmeg, and let it cool.
• Bring the water, salt and ghee to a boil. Lower the heat, add the rice flour all at once and stir quickly until no dry flour remains. Cover and leave off the heat for 5 minutes.
• While still warm, knead the dough until smooth, wetting your hands with water or a drop of ghee. Keep it covered.
• Take a lime-sized ball, flatten it into a thin cup, and make small pleats around the edge. Place a spoonful of filling inside, gather the pleats to a point and seal. Or use a greased modak mould.
• Steam on a greased plate or a banana leaf, covered, for 10 to 12 minutes, until the modaks look glossy.
• Offer warm, with a drop of ghee on top.

No traditional steamer? Use a steamer basket over a pot of boiling water, or an electric pressure cooker on its steam setting with the valve open.

2. Undrallu (Telugu Vinayaka Chavithi favourite)

Makes about 20 small balls. Time: 40 minutes.

Ingredients: 1 cup rice rava, 2 cups water, 2 tablespoons chana dal (soaked for 30 minutes), 1 teaspoon ghee, a quarter teaspoon cumin seeds (optional), salt to taste.

• Heat ghee in a pan, add cumin and the drained chana dal and sauté for a minute.
• Add water and salt and bring to a boil.
• Slowly add the rice rava while stirring to avoid lumps. Cook on low heat, covered, until the water is absorbed and the mixture is thick.
• Cool until you can handle it. Grease your palms and roll into small balls.
• Steam for 10 minutes.

Many Telugu families also make kudumulu: the same dough shaped into small flat rounds or filled with a coconut-jaggery or chana dal-jaggery filling, then steamed. Pala undrallu are small rice balls simmered in sweetened milk.

3. Kozhukattai and sundal (Tamil Nadu)

Poorna kozhukattai is made exactly like the steamed modak above, often shaped as a half-moon rather than pleated. A savoury version, ulundu kozhukattai, uses a spiced urad dal filling.

Chickpea sundal (serves 4): Soak 1 cup dried chickpeas overnight and pressure-cook until soft but whole, or use two cans of drained chickpeas. Heat 1 tablespoon oil, add 1 teaspoon mustard seeds, a pinch of asafoetida (check that it is gluten-free if needed), 1 dried red chilli and a few curry leaves. Add the chickpeas and salt, toss well, and finish with 2 tablespoons grated coconut.

4. Panchakajjaya (Karnataka)

Panchakajjaya, meaning 'five ingredients', is a quick, no-cook naivedyam. Recipes vary by family; this is a common version.

Ingredients: Half a cup roasted chana dal or pottukadalai (coarsely powdered), half a cup grated coconut, a third of a cup powdered jaggery, 1 tablespoon roasted sesame seeds, a quarter teaspoon cardamom powder, 1 teaspoon ghee.

• Dry-roast the sesame seeds until they pop, then cool.
• Mix all ingredients in a bowl, rubbing the jaggery and ghee in with your fingers so the mixture is evenly sweet.
• Offer in a small bowl. It keeps for a day at room temperature, longer in the fridge.

5. Besan laddu

Makes about 12. Time: 35 minutes.

Ingredients: 1 cup besan, a third of a cup ghee, half to three-quarters of a cup powdered sugar, a quarter teaspoon cardamom powder, chopped nuts (optional).

• Melt the ghee in a heavy pan. Add besan and roast on low heat, stirring constantly, for 15 to 20 minutes until golden and fragrant. Do not rush this step; under-roasted besan tastes raw.
• Take it off the heat and let it cool until just warm.
• Mix in the sugar, cardamom and nuts.
• Press into round laddus with your palms. If the mixture crumbles, add a spoonful of warm ghee.

Planning a festival menu

Tips for busy NRI families

• Make laddus and panchakajjaya the evening before; save modak and undrallu for the morning.
• Prepare the modak filling a day ahead and refrigerate it; it is easier to shape when cool.
• Shaping modaks is a perfect family activity. Imperfect shapes are still loving offerings.
• If the festival falls on a workday, many families do a short morning puja with fruit and laddu, and a fuller naivedyam in the evening.
• Ganesh Chaturthi 2027 falls on a Saturday, which makes it easier to cook the full spread.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use glutinous rice flour (mochiko) for modak?

It is not the traditional choice. Glutinous or sweet rice flour gives a stickier, chewier result. Use ordinary fine rice flour, sold in Indian stores and in many Asian supermarkets; flour labelled for modak or idiyappam works best.

What can I use instead of jaggery?

Panela or piloncillo, unrefined cane sugar sold in Latin American grocery sections, is the closest substitute. Coconut sugar or dark brown sugar can also be used, though the flavour will differ slightly.

How many modaks should I offer?

Twenty-one is the traditional number in many families, matching the 21 names and 21 durva blades. If you are cooking for a small household, offer 21 small modaks or a smaller number with devotion; the spirit of the offering matters most.

Can naivedyam be prepared a day earlier?

Dry sweets such as besan laddu and panchakajjaya keep well and can be made a day ahead. Steamed items such as modak and undrallu are best made fresh on the festival morning.

Should naivedyam contain onion and garlic?

Most families prepare naivedyam without onion and garlic. The recipes on this page contain neither.

Editor's note

Editor's note (5 October 2026): This guide has been restored at its original address after the earlier version was lost. Recipes are standard home versions; regional and family variations are many, and quantities can be adjusted to taste. Dates are from Drik Panchang: Ganesh Chaturthi was Monday 14 September 2026 and will be Saturday 4 September 2027.

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• Vinayaka vrata vidhanam
• Ganesh Chaturthi 21 patri guide
• Sankashti Chaturthi moon rules
• Vinayak Chavithi 2027 dates