What is the first thing that comes to your mind after hearing "South Indian Dishes"?

Without doubt idlis, dosas, upma, medu wada are the items that first come to our mind. But there is lot more than savory dishes to South Indian cuisine. Today we are going to explore the sweets part.

5 Best South Indian Sweet Recipes for Diabetes

1. Cherupayar Payasam Recipe (Kerala Parippu Payasam)

Is a popular dessert prepared in Kerala prominently. The key ingredient is moong dal also known as cherupayar.

Recipe features

FFD style cherupayar payasam includes dates and stevia drops instead of jaggery which makes it more healthy and diabetes friendly. This sweet dish gets more marks due to the presence of moong dal in it.

Ingredients

• ½ Cup Split Yellow lentil/ split dehusked Moong/ Moong dal
• 2 Cups Water
• ¼th Cup Dates Paste
• 4 to 6 Drops Stevia Liquid, as required
• 1/3 Cup Thin Coconut Milk
• ½ Cup Thick Coconut Milk
• 1/8 Tsp Dry Ginger Powder
• A Pinch Cardamom Powder
• 5 Cashews (Broken)
• 1.5 Tbsp Thin Coconut Slices
• 1 Tbsp Raisins
• 1 Tbsp Coconut oil

Method

• In a wok/ Kadai, heat coconut oil, add cashews, fry till golden brown, and set aside.
• Then add coconut pieces and fry till golden brown, and set aside.
• Reserve a few fried Coconut pieces and Cashews for Garnishing. 
• Add moong dal to the remaining oil and roast for a few minutes until fragrant, but do not let it brown.  Add water and cook on low flame, adding water if needed, until cooked soft. Mash well with a ladle.
• Add Dates paste and stevia to taste and mix well.
• First, add thin coconut milk to the cooked dal and bring to a boil and simmer for 5 to 8 minutes on a low flame until payasam is thick.
• Add thick coconut milk and mix well and switch off the gas immediately.
• Add dry ginger powder, cardamom powder, half the raisins, roasted cashews, and coconut pieces, and mix well.
• The payasam gets thicker as it cools. If it is too thick while serving, add little hot water to thin it. Check for sweetness and add more stevia if required.
• Serve Hot, garnished with remaining fried coconut pieces. cashews, and Raisins.

2. Puri Kheer Recipe | Appi Paayasaa Recipe

It's a beautiful sweet dish from Karnataka that is very easy to make and tasty too.  Appe is the small pooris that are later broken into small bite-sizes which are cooked in with milk.  Nuts are added to give it the required crunchiness.

Recipe features 

This FFD style payasam is made with emmer wheat semolina which is good for diabetics.  Plus we avoid the use of milk and sugar to make it more diabetes-friendly.

Ingredients

• ½ Cup Emmer wheat/ Samba godhumai/ Javegodhi/ Sadaka Semolina
• 2 Tsp Coconut (Grated)
• 2 Tsp Dates Paste 
• Few drops Stevia
• 1 Tbsp Coconut Oil 
• 10 Cashew & Almond pieces for dressing
• ¼ Tsp Cardamom Powder

Method

• Take Emmer wheat semolina and make a tight dough using very little water.
• Roll out small thin purees and keep them aside for air drying.
• Put grated coconut, stevia and dates paste into the mixer and grind it without water to make a coarse paste.
• Heat coconut oil in a pan, roast the cashew and almond pieces and keep aside.
• Now crush the air-dried purees and roast in the pan with balance oil.
• Roast till light brown and add the gravy and sauté for 10 mins.
• Now add ½ cup water and boil for 5 mins and almond pieces. Mix well.
• Tasty Appi Payasa is ready.
• This item is the first course in a festival meal or can be served with chapatti or taken as a dessert item.

Variation:

Replace Puree with Sevai (Vermicelli)

3. Moong Dal Barfi Recipe | Chandrakanta Recipe

This is a popular sweet dish from Andhra Pradesh.  This burfi made with moong dal is a soft fudge that requires very few ingredients yet it is very tasty.

Recipe features 

FFD style moong dal burfi is made by the shallow frying method.  We recommend avoiding the step of deep frying as in the original recipe.  This is also a gluten-free recipe good for health.

Ingredients

• 1 Cup Roasted Yellow Lentil/ Split dehusked Moong/ Moong Dal 
• ½ Cup Coconut Grated
• 1 Tbsp Dates Paste 
• Few drops Stevia
• 1 Tbsp Coconut Oil 
• Pumpkin Seeds, Cashew & Almond pieces for dressing
• ¼ Tsp Cardamom Powder

Method

• Put the roasted dal in the mixer along with grated coconut and dates paste and stevia.
• Using very little water thoroughly grind to form a smooth coarse paste.
• Keep aside.
• Heat coconut oil in a pan, roast the pumpkin seeds, cashew, and almond pieces, and keep them aside.
• Now put the ground paste in the pan and cook on a medium flame for 10 mins.
• Keep stirring to avoid lumps.
• Keep stirring to reach thick consistency and a golden-brown colour.
• Apply little coconut oil to a plate and pour the paste flat.
• Put all the roasted seeds and nuts and pat it flat.
• Using a knife or pizza cutter, make cakes of the desired shape.
• Now shallow fry these cakes on a Tawa. 
• Delicious Chandrakanta is ready.
• This can be served as a dessert dish.

4. Godhi Huggi Recipe (Broken Wheat Kheer) 

Is a popular dish from North Karnataka where Ghodi means wheat and Huggi means payasam.  No festival is complete without this sweet dish.

Recipe features 

We, at FFD, recommend the use of emmer wheat which is good for health conscious. The use of dates paste, and stevia drops greatly helps in reducing the direct sugar content in the recipe. This is definitely one of the best South Indian Sweet Recipes that is diabetes-friendly.

Ingredients

• ½ Cup broken wheat of Emmer / Samba godhumai/ Javegodhi/ Sadaka 
• ¼ Cup Coconut (Grated)
• 1 Tbsp Dates Paste 
• Few drops Stevia
• 1 Tbsp Coconut Oil 
• 4 pcs each Dry Coconut, Cashew & Almond pieces for dressing
• 1 Tsp Poppy Seeds (Khuskhus) 
• ¼ Tsp Cardamom Powder

Method

• Heat 1 Tsp of coconut oil in a pan and roast the broken Emmer wheat till light brown.
• Put grated coconut, stevia, and dates paste into the mixer and grind it without water to make a coarse paste.
• Heat coconut oil in a pan, roast the dry coconut, cashew, and almond pieces, and keep them aside.
• Now put the gravy and sauté for 10 mins.
• Now add roasted broken wheat and ½ cup water and boil for 10 mins.
• Put off the flame and add, poppy seeds, raisins, cardamom powder, and the roasted cashew and almond pieces.
• Mix well.
• Tasty Godhi Huggi is ready.
• This item is the first course in a festival meal.

5. Kadubu Recipe (Sweet Momos)

Is a deep-fried sweet dish from the Karnataka region.  It can also be called sweet momos.  Traditionally, sooji or maida is used for the outer covering and the stuffing is made up of rich coconut filling.

Recipe features 

 
FFD recommends the usage of emmer wheat flour for the outer covering instead of sooji or maida.  Dates paste and stevia drops help in cutting down the sugar content of the recipe.  This recipe also can be added to the list of one the best South Indian Sweets Recipes that are diabetes-friendly.

Ingredients

• 1 Cup Emmer wheat flour/ Samba godhumai/ Javegodhi/ Sadaka /Khapli Wheat 
• 1 Coconut (Grated)
• 1 Tbsp Dates Paste 
• Few Drops Stevia to Taste.
• 1 Tbsp Coconut Oil 
• 1 Tsp Poppy Seeds (Khuskhus) 
• ¼ Tsp Cardamom Powder 
• Salt to taste

Method

• Make a soft dough of Emmer wheat flour using 1 Tsp coconut oil, water, and a pinch of salt.
• Cover it with a wet cloth and keep it aside for 30 mins.
• Put grated coconut, stevia and dates paste into the mixer and grind it without water to make a coarse paste.
• Heat coconut oil in a pan, roast the coconut gravy for 10 mins, and keep aside to cool.
• Add poppy seeds, and cardamom powder and mix well.
• Make small balls of the wheat flour dough, and make puri.
• Stuff with the coconut gravy, fold the puri at the center to get a half-round shape and close the balls.
• The edges can be artistically sealed with a pinch loop formation.
• Apply little poppy seeds on the outer skin.
• Air fry or deep fry or shallow fry the kadubus.
• Tasty Kadubu is ready.
• Very famous at festivals.

Variations:

Replace coconut with boiled chana for the stuffing.

A good recipe is one that is not only tasty but healthy too. With the rise in the percentage of diabetes in people, it is becoming more and more important that we choose our food wisely. The above 5 recipes are a few from a whole lot of South Indian sweet recipes. Do try them and let us know your feedback.

FFD recipe section has a collection of recipes that are health friendly.  Do visit our recipe page to know about more such recipes.

FFD diabetes reversal program - HTP is one of its kind that helps people reverse diabetes successfully.  Not only that, it also helps people reverse their co-morbidities like hypertension, thyroid issues, cholesterol, obesity, etc.  Enroll in HTP and take your first step to Life 2.0.

To know more about the Best South Indian Diabetes friendly Breakfast Recipes, visit our blog.

FAQs

Which south Indian sweet are best for diabetes?

Here are some sweet which are good for diabetes, Cherupayar Payasam Recipe, Puri Kheer Recipe, Moong Dal Barfi, Godhi Huggi Recipe, Kadubu Recipe (Sweet Momos) etc. FFD has Innovate these recipes for the diabetic peoples.

Are traditional South Indian sweets suitable for diabetics?

Generlly south Indian Sweet are, high in sugar, but we can use naturaly sweetner, or sugar subsititute make them suitable for diabetic peoples.

Can I use artificial sweeteners in South Indian sweet recipes?

Yes, you can use artificial sweeteners to help control your blood sugar levels.

Looking for west Indian healthy Diabetes-friendly breakfast, dinner & sweet dish Recipes? Visit here:

1. South Indian breakfast recipes

2. South Indian lunch recipes

3. South Indian dinner recipes