Shev with Coconut Milk

The recipe is vintage. The contraption, a shevara,  I use to make the shev is three generations old, passed down from Aji, my grandmother,  to Mum and is now is with me. It is large, two feet tall, a brass tripod, that presses rice flour into delicate strands.  

Shev is usually made on  special occasions as it is a lengthy process. Rice flour is cooked in boiling water, much like making pate choux. The hot dough is cooked over low fire, after which it is kneaded into a smooth ball. The hotter the dough, the smoother it becomes as you knead and the redder your hands get!  Luckily I call mine asbestos hands! The dough is then made into small balls and steamed. The steamed balls are inserted into the shevara and pressed into neat nests.  As a child I loved holding the brass legs while Mum managed the press. Now my daughter helps me. 

Today's attempt starts disastrously. I don't have the coconut milk to make the accompaniment to the shev. So I run out to buy some. Once I start making the shev, I discover that I have no rice flour! Not an easy item to find. Serendipity is having your daughter live close by. She has plenty and comes to my rescue! Onward ho!

SHEV WITH COCONUT MILK

Makes 10-12

1 cup Rice Flour

1 cup Water

A pinch of Kosher Salt

Ghee

1 can Coconut Milk

2 teaspoons Rice Flour

1/2 cup Sugar

Nutmeg Powder

Cardamom Powder

Bring water to boil in a saucepan. 

Once it boils, drop rice flour and salt into water and stir vigorously. The dough will look shaggy. 

Make a few holes in the dough, cover and cook over a low flame for 5 minutes. 

Uncover and scrape the dough onto the counter or in a bowl. 

Wait as long as you can as the dough is piping hot, then knead the dough for 3-4 minutes until it is smooth. 

Break off lime sized balls of dough. Roll them into small cylinders. 

Heat water in a saucepan and set a steaming rack over it.

Place the dough balls on the rack, cover and steam for 15 minutes. 

While the dough steams, make the coconut milk.

Heat coconut milk and rice flour in a saucepan, stirring often. Once the milk comes to a boil it will thicken. Take it off the flame.

Add sugar  and a pinch of salt to coconut milk, Stir so sugar dissolves. 

Sprinkle a little nutmeg and cardamom powder over coconut milk. Keep aside.

Get your shevara ready. Brush the inside press with a little melted ghee. 

If you don't have this traditional shevara, use a chakli maker.

Place a plate under the holes and smear a little ghee in the center of the plate.

Keep another glass plate smeared with a little ghee close, 

Keep the steamed dough covered while you make the shev.

Take one ball of dough, Place it on the ghee smeared plate under the hole press and roll it a bit. Then insert it in the press container. 

Start turning the handle till it stops. The dough will have extruded into small strands onto the plate. Use a knife to trim the strands. Lift the nest and place it on the glass plate.

When you twist the press upwards, a little dough will come out. Reuse the dough the make more shev if needed.

Repeat with the remaining dough. 

Keep shev covered until you are ready to eat. 

Heat the coconut milk. If it is too thick, thin it out with a little water. Adjust the salt accordingly.

Microwave the shev. 

Serve shev in a vati or plate. 

Ladle coconut milk over the shev and enjoy.

Our shev making tradition is as old as the hills. I hope my heritage is carried on in the future...Shauna loves shev so I dare to dream on.  

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