Bhavnagari Gathiya (2nd recipe)

Bhavnagari Gathiya – A delicious snack, popular in Gujarat. Best with tea / coffee…

Ingredients

1 cup (120 g) besan (gram flour / kadala maav / chone pitti), sieve twice

½ teaspoon ajawain (ayamodakam), finely crushed

½ teaspoon pepper powder

¼ teaspoon asafoetida (hing)

3 tablespoon oil

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon cooking soda

¼ cup water (to knead)

250 ml oil (to deep fry)

Method

In a bowl, mix besan with ajwain, pepper powder and asafoetida.

In a small tadka pan, heat oil on a medium heat. Switch off the heat and add salt and cooking soda (This recipe step is very important. Please do not miss this).

Pour hot oil onto besan mix and rub in well (first mix it with a thick tablespoon. Later mix with fingertips until well combined).

Now add water (3 – 4 tablespoon) and make a soft dough. If the dough is medium hard and difficult to press,  remove from chakali press (mould) and sprinkle little more water (1 – 2 tablespoon). Make a soft and sticky dough.

Heat oil in a kadai and reduce heat to medium. Press through sev mould / chakali press / gathia maker ( disc with big hole ) directly into hot oil in 2 – 3 batches.  Fry till crisp and golden color. Drain out oil and place on kitchen towel to absorb extra oil. Store it in an airtight container. Best with tea / coffee.

Dhokla Pakoda

Dhokla Pakoda – A delicious snack, made of dhokla. Dhokla is a popular dish in Gujarati  cuisine. Best with with green chutney and tomato ketchup !!

Here’s the recipe link of Dhokla

Here’ s the recipe link of Rawa Dhokla / Sooji Dhokla

Here’s the recipe link of Sandwich Dhokla

Makes – 20 dhokla pakodas

Main ingredient

10 dhoklas,  1 ½ - inch square pieces

For the  batter :

Ingredients

1 cup / 200 g / 8 oz  gram flour ( besan  / kadalamaav / chone pitti)

2 teaspoon rice flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon red chilli powder

1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/4 teaspoon hing ( asafoetida )

Water for mixing ( approximately 1/2 cup  + 3 tablespoon or maximum ¾ th cup )

Method

Mix gram flour, rice flour,  salt , red chilli powder, turmeric powder and hing. Add water and make a batter of pouring consistency (like bajji batter / bonda batter).  Cover and keep aside for fifteen  minutes.

 Heat oil in a karahi / frying pan on high heat. Reduce the heat to medium. Dip each dhokla  into besan batter (carefully hold  dhokla ) and deep fry till golden color on both the sides. 5 dhoklas  at a time. Drain out from oil and place on paper towel to absorb extra  oil. Serve hot with tomato ketchup or green chutney.

Sooji Dhokla / Rava Dhokla

Sooji Dhokla  / Rawa Dhokla - A delicious & quick Gujarati snack. Best with green chutney !!

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Makes: 10 - 12 medium size dhoklas

Ingredients

Please use same measuring cup to measure gram flour and water.

1 cup / 200 ml / 8 oz (Indian standard measuring cup)  sooji (Bombay rawa)

1 cup / 200 ml / 8 oz curd / yogurt

1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

½ teaspoon ginger paste

1/4 cup + 3 tablespoon water

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon Eno fruit salt (available @ medical stores and supermarkets. It's an antacid and good for digestion)

1/2 teaspoon  oil to grease the pan

Method

Grease a steel thali / bowl with ½ teaspoon oil and keep aside.

In a bowl,  mix sooji,  curd, salt,  ginger paste and turmeric powder.

Add 1/4 cup water and make a batter of pouring consistency. Add extra 2 – 3 tablespoon water if required. Finally mix with Eno fruit salt. Stir well until all the ingredients well combined.

Immediately pour the mixture in a greased pan / thali / bowl . Pour a glass of water in the pressure cooker or National rice cooker.  Keep the pan in the pressure cooker over a stand. Close the lid and do not put weight. Steam for 15 minutes or till done ( reduce the steam to low and steam for 15 minutes ).

Keep aside for cool for half an hour and cut into desired shapes.

For the Seasoning:

2 teaspoon cooking oil

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds ( jeera )

2 green chillies , slit lengthwise

1 spring curry leaves or 6 nos

1 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoon water

3 teaspoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon hing ( asafoetida )

2 teaspoon coriander leaves, chopped

1 tablespoon desiccated coconut ( optional )

Method

Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds. When they start sputter add jeera, curry leaves and  green chillies. Fry on a low heat until crisp and fragrant. Add lemon juice, 2 tablespoon water, sugar and hing . Boil for 2 minutes.  Pour this seasoning over dhokla.

Sprinkle with desiccated coconut and chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot / cool  with green chutney.

For Green Chutney:

Makes: 1/2 cup

Ingredients   

                                                          

4 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves (or a mix of mint and coriander)

½ - inch piece ginger, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 green chilli, chopped

1 onion, chopped

2 tablespoon split roasted gram dal (pottukadalai)  or 2 tablespoon grated coconut  - adding grated coconut or pottukadai will make the chutney thick in consistency

½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)

3 tablespoon water

1 teaspoon lime juice

Method

In a small mixer bowl, transfer all the ingredients (except lime juice) and make a smooth paste. Finally add lime juice and mix well. Chutney should be thick in consistency. Serve with dhokla / khandvi or anyother  North Indian snacks.

Microwave Carrot Dhokla

Microwave Carrot Dhokla - A delicious Gujarati snack !!!

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 5 minutes

Makes: 10 - 12 medium size pieces

Ingredients

Please use same measuring cup to measure gram flour and water.

1 cup ( 200 ml / 8 oz Indian standard measuring cup ) gram flour / besan

1 cup sour ( 200 ml ) curd

1 teaspoon Eno fruit salt (available @ medical stores and supermarkets. It's an antacid and good for digestion)

1/4 teaspoon salt ( or salt to taste )

1/4 cup water for mixing

1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

½ teaspoon ginger paste

1 carrot, grated

1/2 teaspoon extra oil to grease  microwave safe bowl

Method

Mix gram flour, curd, Eno fruit salt , salt , ginger paste and turmeric powder.

Add 1/4 cup water to make the batter  of pouring consistency (like dosa batter).

Add grated carrot and mix well.

Immediately pour the mixture into greased  microwave safe bowl and microwave @ 750 W (high power) for 4 minutes. Switch the power off and remove microwave safe bowl after 4 minutes.

Doneness Tests for dhokla:

A toothpick inserted in the centre of the dhokla will come out either clean or with only a few crumbs clinging to it. If there is uncooked batter or many damp crumbs on the toothpick, return the dhokla to the microwave oven and cook for 1 more minute (or maximum 2 minutes). Remember to set the timer again! (750 W).

 Normal method – Pour dhokla batter into greased steel bowl / dhokla steamer. Pour a glass of water in the pressure cooker. Keep the pan in the pressure cooker over a stand. Close the lid and do not put weight. Steam for 15 minutes or till done ( reduce the steam to low and steam for 15 minutes ).

Keep aside to cool and cut into desired shapes.

For Seasoning:

Ingredients

2 teaspoon cooking oil

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds ( jeera )

2 green chillies , slit lengthwise

1 spring curry leaves

3 teaspoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon hing ( asafoetida )

2 teaspoon coriander leaves, chopped

1 tablespoon desiccated coconut ( optional )

Method

Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds. When they start sputter add jeera, curry leaves, green chillies, lemon juice and hing . Stir, keep on low heat till fragrant. Pour this seasoning over dhokla.

Sprinkle with desiccated coconut and chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot / cool with green chutney.

Khandvi (Recipe from Rak's Kitchen.net)

Khandvi (Recipe from Rak’s Kitchen.net) – A delicious snack in Gujarati cuisine. Best with green chutney !!

Serves: 2 - 3

Ingredients

Please use same measuring cup to measure besan, curd and water.

Besan/ Chickpea flour/ gram flour/ Kadala mavu  - 1/2 cup / 100 ml / 4 oz (Indian standard measuring cup)

Curd - 1/2 cup / 100 ml / 4 oz

Water   3/4 cup

Asafoetida (hing)  - 2 generous pinches

Salt - As needed (or ¼ teaspoon)

Turmeric (optional) - 1 pinch

Method

Take besan, curd, water, salt and asafoetida (turmeric also if adding) in a heavy bottomed pan. Using a whisk, beat it smoothly (without any lumps). Heat this in medium flame with constant stirring. Make sure you stir well until bottom as the bottom of the batter gets thickened faster. Stir until the mixture thickens and gets cooked. It must not be too thick, just like a paste that will be easy to spread. Do not let it over cooked, otherwise you may not  be able to spread.

 Keep ready – clean counter top or a cutting board smooth and  plain or an inverted greased steel thali. You also need a spatula to spread the mixture. If you are not comfortable using counter top as such, you can use aluminium foil over the counter top.

Act quickly, transfer the batter to the counter top / plain cutting board or inverted greased steel thali. If you have more batter, do it in two or three places. Spread the batter thinly using the spatula. Let it cool down completely.

Draw lines with a knife into strips. Trim the edges and cut into strips of 3" wide and 9-10" long and roll them neatly.

For Tempering (tadka / seasoning) :

1 tablespoon oil

1 teaspoon mustard seeds ( rai / sarson)

1 teaspoon sesame seeds (til) or ½ teaspoon jeera (cumin seeds)

2 small green chillies , thinly sliced

3 - 4 curry leaves (optional)

1 tablespoon grated coconut for garnishing

1 tablespoon finely chopped coriander (dhania) for garnishing

Method

Heat the oil in small pan and add the mustard seeds.

When seeds crackle, add the sesame seeds or jeera, green chillies, curry leaves (optional) and saute for 30 seconds until fragrant and crisp.

Spread them over the khandvi and garnish with coconut and coriander.

Serve with green chutney.

Green Chutney ( for Dhokla, Samosa, Pakoda, Chutney Sandwich, Chaat  and  Khandvi .... )

Serves: 2 - 3

Ingredients

1 cup ( 200 g ) chopped coriander leaves ( or 150 g coriander leaves and 50 g mint leaves )

1 onion, chopped

2 teaspoon lemon juice

2 green chillies

1/2 teaspoon salt ( or to taste )

1/2 teaspoon sugar ( or to taste )

1/2 - inch piece ginger

Extra 2 - 3 tablespoons water

Method

Make a thick paste of above ingredients in a mixer with very little water. Serve with khandvi.

Notes

If the mixture gets over cooked and too thick, then you will not be able to spread properly.

If the mixture gets cooled down, the spread will become thick and so do the khandvis too. So act quickly.

Instead of spreading as rectangles, you can do like a dosa/ crepes and cut that too. Use a ladle to spoon the batter also a spatula to level the thick parts.

If your batter is not cooked properly, then you cannot roll the strips and it will be sticky.

Do not apply pressure while rolling, do it gently. otherwise it will break and wont look nice.

Here's the recipe link of Microwave Khandvi

Sandwich Dhokla

Sandwich Dhokla - A delicious Gujarati snack!!

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 15 - 20 minutes

Ingredients

Please use same measuring cup to measure gram flour and water.

1 cup ( 200 ml / 8 oz - Indian standard measuring cu) gram flour / besan

1 cup sour ( 200 ml ) curd

1 teaspoon Eno fruit salt (available @ medical stores and supermarkets. It's an antacid and good for digestion)

1/4 teaspoon salt ( or salt to taste )

1/4 cup water for mixing

1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

½ teaspoon ginger paste

1 1/2 teaspoon extra oil to grease 3 steel thalis

Method

In a bowl, mix gram flour, curd, Eno fruit salt, salt (normal salt), ginger paste and turmeric powder.

Add 1/4 cup water to make the batter to pouring consistency,

Immediately pour the mixture in  3 greased  steel thalis / plates (This type of dhokla steamer is available in Chennai @ Santhosh Super Stores, Anna Nagar and other steel utensil stores). Pour a glass of water in the pressure cooker. Keep the dhokla thalis in the pressure cooker on a stand. Close the lid but do not put cooker-weight. Steam for 15 - 20 minutes or till done ( once the cooker starts steaming, reduce the steam to low and continue steaming for 15 minutes ). Or steam cook in National rice cooker / idli steamer.

Keep aside for cool for 20 minutes.

Chutney for Dhokla (any chutney of your choice, like green chutney / tomato chutney / dates chutney ...)

Makes: 1 cup

Ingredients

1 cup / 200 ml / 8 oz grated coconut, loosely packed in cup

4 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves (or a mix of mint and coriander)

½ - inch piece ginger, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 green chilli, chopped

2 shallots (chuvannulli / small onion), chopped or 1 tablespoon onion

1 tablespoon split roasted gram dal (pottukadalai) – adding pottukadai will make the chutney thick in consistency

½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)

3 tablespoon water

1 teaspoon lime juice (optional)

Method

In a small mixer bowl, transfer all the ingredients (except lime juice) and make a smooth paste. Finally add lime juice and mix well. Chutney should be thick in consistency.

Final preparation:

Gently remove dhoklas from the steel thali. Trim the edges and cut into exact square shapes. Thickly / evenly  Spread chutney to the bottom part of dhoklas  and make sandwich. Cut into desired  size and shape (normally 4 sandwich from 2 dhoklas). (Alternately, if it is not possible to steam thin dhoklas, make thick dhoklas, horizontally cut the dholkas into two, apply thick layer of chutney to both the splits, attach them back and cut into desired shapes).

For the  seasoning :

2 teaspoon cooking oil

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds ( jeera )

2 green chillies , slit lengthwise

1 spring curry leaves

3 teaspoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon hing ( asafoetida )

2 teaspoon coriander leaves, chopped

1 tablespoon desiccated coconut ( optional )

Method

Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds. When they start sputter add jeera, curry leaves, green chillies, lemon juice and hing. Stir, keep on low heat till fragrant. Pour this seasoning over dhokla.

Sprinkle with desiccated coconut (optional) and chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot / cool.

Photo of Gathiya from Shantilal S. Mithaiwala, Cochin, Kerala

Gathiya from Shantilal S. Mithaiwala (also available Burfi, Peda, Mysore Pak, Badsha, Samosa, Kachori, Sev ... and other Gujarati sweets & snacks)

Opp. Gujarati High School, Mattanchery

Cochin, Kerala

Tel - 0484 - 2229860

Rasawala Dhokla

Rasawala  Dhokla - A delicious Gujarati snack or a quick meal !!

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Makes: 10 - 12 medium size pieces

Ingredients

For Dhokla:

Please use same measuring cup to measure gram flour and water.

1 cup ( 200 ml ) gram flour / besan

1 cup sour ( 200 ml ) curd

1 teaspoon Eno fruit salt

1/4 teaspoon salt ( or salt to taste )

1/4 cup water for mixing

1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

½ teaspoon ginger paste

1/2 teaspoon extra oil to grease the pan

For Seasoning:

2 teaspoon cooking oil

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds ( jeera )

2 green chillies , slit lengthwise

1 spring curry leaves

3 teaspoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon hing ( asafoetida )

2 teaspoon coriander leaves, chopped

1 tablespoon desiccated coconut ( optional )

Method

Mix gram flour, curd, Eno fruit salt , salt , ginger paste and turmeric powder.

Add 1/4 cup water to make the batter thicker than that used for making pakodas.

Immediately pour the mixture in a greased pan / thali / bowl . Pour a glass of water in the pressure cooker. Keep the pan in the pressure cooker over a stand. Close the lid and do not put weight. Steam for 15 minutes or till done ( reduce the steam to low and steam for 15 minutes ).

Keep aside for cool and cut into desired shapes.

For seasoning :

Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds. When they start sputter add jeera, curry leaves, green chillies, lemon juice and hing . Stir, keep on low heat till fragrant. Pour this seasoning over dhokla.

Sprinkle with desiccated coconut and chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot / cool.

For the Rasa (sweet & sour sauce) - This recipe adapted from ''The Gujarat Cook Book by Kanchan G Kabra".

For 8 dhoklas:

Ingredients

1 tablespoon oil

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

½ teaspoon jeera seeds (cumin seeds)

2 dried red chilies, halved

4 curry leaves

½ teaspoon red chilli powder

¼ teaspoon turmeric powder

½ teaspoon hing (asafoetida)

2 teaspoon thick melted and sieved jaggery or 2 teaspoon jaggery grated (clear jaggery and without impurities)

½ teaspoon thick tamarind paste (or to taste ½ to ¾ teaspoon)

½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)

2 cups / 400 ml water (Indian standard measuring cup of 200 ml / 8 oz capacity)

4 teaspoon chopped coriander leaves

Method

Heat oil in a deep frying pan or karahi on medium heat. Add mustard seeds. When they crackle, add jeera, halved red chillies, curry leaves and fry for 1- 2 minute until fragrant and crisp. Turn the heat to low add red chilli powder, turmeric powder,  hing, jaggery, tamarind paste, water and salt to taste. Mix all the ingredients well. Cover with a lid and  boil on a medium to low heat for 10 minutes / until the rasa / sauce slightly thickens. Switch off the heat.

Final presentation:

Place dhoklas in a serving dish. Just before serving, pour rasa over the dhoklas (or consume it after half an hour. Then dhoklas will absorb all the flavors (sweet & sour). Sprinkle chopped coriander leaves.