Masala Thattuvadai is a deep-fried crisp cracker made with rice flour, lentil flours, spices and herbs. a basic recipe of thattai has a dough made with mixing rice flour, roasted and ground urad dal flour, soaked chana dal, grated or sliced fresh coconut (optional), curry leaves, asafoetida (hing), either ground green chillies or red chilli powder, salt and butter or ghee.

While in Tamil Nadu, these crispy crackers are called as Thattai. in Karnataka these are known as Nippattu and in Andhra Pradesh known as Chekkalu. there are some variations in the method of preparation in these regions, but the basic ingredients remain the same. Thattai is also known as Thattai murukku and Thattu vadai.