Seeni Pittu, a traditional sweet from Sri Lankan History

Name: Seeni Pittu, a traditional sweet from Sri Lankan History
Total time: 10 min
Cuisine: Sri Lankan
Ingredients: 350g of Rice Flour; Some Cumin Seeds; 200ml of Kithul Treacle (can use Coconut Treacle instead); 100g of Sugar; Salt

posted on October 04, 2022

Click below to watch the recipe video on my YouTube channel in Sinhala 👇

Seeni Pittu, a traditional sweet from Sri Lankan History

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Seeni Pittu is a traditional Sri Lankan sweet that was popular in the olden days but most people today have not heard of it. Although it has the name Pittu, it is not Pittu as Seeni Pittu is a Sri Lankan Rasa Kawili (a sweet). This only takes a few basic ingredients to make and is perfect for afternoon tea.

Seeni Pittu was considered one of the most famous Rasa Kawili on the sweets table in Sri Lankan villages. Sadly, it is slowly disappearing as most people do not know about it.

Seeni Pittu is like Sri Lankan Aluwa and depending on the region in Sri Lanka, some people like to add Coconut but it is not part of the original way of making it.

In the old days, there was a special mold made out of a Coconut Shell to make these Seeni Pittu. Although rare, these molds are sometimes sold in flea markets. The mold had a beautiful star like pattern. Since we could not find these molds, we used a Coconut Ladle but you can even use Coconut Shells or cake mold to make these.

If you like more traditional sweets from Sri Lankan history, check out my Pusnambu for Breakfast or my Halapa made 2 ways recipes.

Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

350g of Rice Flour

Pro Tip: We used White Kekulu Rice that was soaked for 3 hours and then drained it. We then used a blender to grind it into a Flour. We passed this Flour through a sieve to get a finely ground Flour.
Some Cumin Seeds
200ml of Kithul Treacle (can use Coconut Treacle instead)

Pro Tip: If you don't have Kithul or Coconut Treacle, you can make the syrup by melting Sugar over medium heat in a saucepan (you can even melt until you get a dark brown color). You can also use Jaggery by grating it first and then melting it over medium heat in a saucepan.
100g of Sugar
Salt

Instructions

Heat a saucepan over medium heat.
Add 350g of Rice Flour into the saucepan and toast it until it is dry while stirring frequently.
Add some Cumin Seeds.
Keep stirring frequently for 1 more minute and then take it off the stove.
Heat a saucepan over medium heat.
Add 200ml of Kithul Treacle and stir frequently.
When it starts to boil, add 100g of Sugar.
Keep stirring frequently.

Pro Tip: To tell if this syrup is ready, you can fill a bowl with some Water and then spoon some of the syrup into the bowl. If the syrup sinks to the bottom, then it is ready.

Another way to tell if the syrup is ready is that you can let it cool down and then rub some between your fingers. If it creates a sticky layer between your fingers when you spread them apart, it is the correct consistency.
After the syrup is the correct consistency, turn off the stove and let it cool down.
After it is cooled down, add some Salt and stir.
While adding the Syrup into the Flour mixture a little at a time, mix and form the dough.

Important: It is important that the syrup is cooled down first otherwise it will form clumps when you add it into the flour.

Pro Tip: The dough is the correct consistency when you can shape it by scooping some of it into your hand.
Now rub some Rice Flour on the inside of the Seeni Pittu mold you will be using.
Add some of the dough into the mold and pack it in.
After packing it in tightly, flip it into a plate and unmold.

Photos

Seeni Pittu, a traditional sweet from Sri Lankan History

Ingredients

Instructions

Photos

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