Love South Indian Food? Six South Indian Snacks For Kids

South Indian Snacks For Kids: South Indian delicacy gives some of the best Indian food that all of us relish. Be it idli, dosa, sambhar or vadas, south Indian food has a unique space in our food chart. But which south Indian foods are good for kids? Which south Indian snacks can parents serve their kids? We have a list of some healthy and delicious South Indian snacks for kids

South Indian Snacks for kids:

1. Idli

A famous South Indian breakfast/snacks is idli. It is light, healthy and tasty. Prepare the idli batter by blending rice and urad dal into the smooth and fluffy batter and ferment it for 8 hours. Then, take scoops of batter and place in idli plate. Steam it till the batter become solid. Serve it with chutney or sambhar. Here are some more creative ways to serve idli to your kids. 

2. Upma

Upma is a famous traditional breakfast in South India. It is light and hence can be served as snacks too. Upma has suji or semolina as the main ingredient which is healthy for kids. Suji is a rich source of iron and potassium that improves the haemoglobin level in the body. It is also rich in fibres that help in preventing constipation and easing digestion.

To cook upma, first roast suji in a pan until it becomes fragrant and looks dry. Do not stir too long that suji turns brown.

Then, heat a pan with ghee/oil and sauté chopped onions, cashew nuts, urad dal (optional). Add water to the mixture and salt as required. Stir for a while and then slowly add roasted suji. Remember to continuously stir the mixture while you add the suji to the pan. Cover and allow upma to steam for a while. Then it will be ready to serve.

3. Ragi Murukku

Ragi is an essential food for kids. Also known as finger millets or nachani, ragi is rich in many nutrients like calcium, iron, amino acids and promotes digestion. And Murukku is a famous snack from South India that is crunchy, crispy and spicy. Ragi Murukku hence is a combination of healthy, tasty and light snacks for kids.

To make Ragi Murukku you will need Ragi flour, rice flour and pottukadalai (Chutney Dhal). First, blend pottukadalai flour into powder. Then keep it in a vessel and add rice flour, ragi flour, red chilli powder, asafoetida powder, white til seeds and butter or ghee and mix everything well. Add some water and make a very soft dough. Then heat oil in a pan and add the dough in the shape of murukku. This can be done using Murukku Press. Let murukku fry till it becomes crunchy. Serve it plain or with chutney.

4. Green Gram Adai

Green Gram Adai can act as a tasty South Indian snack and a rich source of moong dal. Moong Dal contains proteins and carbohydrates which are important intakes for the growing baby. To make green gram adai, you will have to soak moong dal for four to five hours. Then grind moon dal into a fine powder. Now add wheat flour, red chilli powder, asafoetida powder, turmeric powder, cumin and salt to the moong dal powder. Heat a tawa and add oil. Spread a slice of the dough on the tawa like paratha and cook on both sides. Green Gram Adai is ready to serve with chutney/dips.

5. Vadai

Vadai is a famous and favourite dish in south India. It is made by urad dal which is also rich in many nutrients. To make Vadai, soak urad dal for one to two hours. Then grind it into a fine paste with some salt and ginger. Add pepper and jeera to the paste. Then heat oil in a pan, take a round slice of the dough, make a hole in the middle and let it fry. Once both sides are cooked, vadai is ready to serve with chutney or sambhar.

6. Paniyaram

Paniyaram is a fermented ball of urad dal and rice batter that is popular in South India. It is light, less spicy and healthy to eat in breakfast or snacks. It contains ingredients like urad dal and rice which are essential for kids. To make Paniyaram, you will need a special pan known as the Aebeleskiver pan. This dish is usually made out of the left out fermented batter of dosa or idli. Season the fermented batter with fried onions, carrots, green chilli, salt and coriander leaves. Then add scoops of the seasoned batter to the small holes made in the pan and let it steam. Once it is cooked, serve the paniyarams with coconut chutney.