By Bhavana Motiwala
INDIA New England Columnist
SHARON, MA—All those who hail from Gujarat and neighboring states are familiar with Dhokla. Made from fermented batter, there are several types of Dhoklas. Originally from Gujarat, it is served as a breakfast, side dish, main course, or as a snack.
Nutritional Value: Dhoklas are rich in fiber and protein.
Here are simple recipes for Khaman, White and Tricolor Dhoklas.
Recipe for Khaman Dhokla
Serving: 4 people
Preparation Time: 20-25 minutes.
Cleanup Time: 5-10 minutes.
Ingredients: 1 cup gram flour (besan)
5-6 tsp Sugar
2 tbsp oil
1 tsp Citric Acid/lemon juice or yoghurt
¼ tsp, Eno or Baking Soda
1 cup warm water
Seasoning: 4 tsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp sesame seeds
10 curry leaves
2-3 green chilly peppers cut into strips or diced.
Method:
Mix all ingredients thoroughly and then add the warm water to it. Batter should be even and fluffy.
Now take a thali (steel dish- 1-1.5” deep) or go for a special dhokla thalis available in Indian stores; and coat it on the inside with oil and put the batter in it. Ensure that this settles evenly in the thali.
Now boil water in another pan or vessel. Put a ring in it.
Now place the thali on top of this ring. And cover the vessel with a lid and steam it for 10-15 mins. The dhoklas start solidifying at about 10 mins. So at this time put a knife in vertically at the edge of the thali and slowly take it out. If the dhoklas are ready, they will not stick to the knife.
Once they are ready, take the thali out and let it cool for 5-10 minutes. While it cooling, pour about ½ cup of water over this dhokla thali and this will soften it further.
While this is cooling, you can go ahead and prepare the seasoning as follows: heat the oil in a small pan, and put mustard, sesame and green chilly peppers in it till the mustard start to burst. At this point take it away from the flame.
Now cut the dhoklas into diamond shape and remove them with spatula. Put them in a serving dish. Then apply some oil and other seasoning over it.
Best when served steaming hot, Green chutney is optional, but goes a long way in enhancing its taste.
This same dish can be made with sooji/rava (this can be made instantly), Split moong dal moong dal instead of besan. (must soaked for 5-6 hours and ground after).
Recipe for White Dhoklas
Serving: 4 people
Preparation Time: 20-25 minutes.
Cleanup Time: 5-10 minutes.
Ingredients:
2 cups of rice.
1 cup urad dal.
Soak rice and urad dal overnight.
1 tsp methi
1 tsp baking soda
Diced ginger and chili paste
Two table spoon of sour yogurt.
4 tbs oil
Salt as per taste
Or idli batter can be used.
Method:
Take the batter and add sour yogurt, methi. Mix it properly and let it rest
overnight.
Add salt, oil, baking soda, ginger, and chili paste. Mix it.
Grease the Thali and the pour the mixture evenly.
Sprinkle black pepper powder or red chili powder.
Put it on high flame for 10 minutes.
Serve hot with green chutney.
Recipe for Tricolor Dhokla
For this first put white dhokla batter for five minutes then remove from gas.
Then evenly apply green chutney on top.
Then put khaman(yellow) dhokla batter on chutney
Then put it back on the gas for ten minutes.
Last season it like the khaman dhokla.
About Bhavana Motiwala: Motiwala is a house wife with a passion for cooking. She lives in Sharon, MA, with her two kids and husband, Paresh Motiwala. She also owns a business called “Circles of Growth” or www.circlesofgrowth.com where they run a successful Day Care and Children Development Programs like Public Speaking, Debating, Group Discussions, Event Planning.
