Here is another quick and easy snack recipe – Khaman Dhokla. Dhokla is a popular dish from Gujarat made from ground chana dal or gram flour. It is so famous all over Bangalore that any chaat stall is sure to have fresh Khaman Dhokla. And that’s how I got acquainted with this delicacy 🙂
Dhokla is a very healthy snack that can be easily made at home. As this is steamed and not fried, Dhokla is very filling yet not adding too much calories to your intake. I love love love a good Dhokla and that would be my first choice if we are in any North Indian chaat center. Although it is very easy to make at home, I have been putting it off as I didn’t want to make more than a few pieces. These are the times I miss our family a lot. With everyone around, food vanishes super fast!
One fine day, the opportunity presented itself. I was out of dinner ideas and decided to turn this quick snack into our very quick dinner 🙂 This version that I am sharing today is the most basic one. As it can be made instantly (with no fermentation), I have used fruit salt to get the texture of the dhokla light. It indeed was very light and airy. With the addition of fried green chillies and an aromatic tempering along with fresh coconut, this turned out to be amazing – even if I say so myself. The recipe is from a local chaatwaala (a guy selling this stuff near our house) and I just followed it without much changes. Khaman Dhokla is usually served with mint-coriander chutney and sweet-spicy red chutney!
To make Instant Khaman Dhokla
What I used –
For Dhokla -
- Gram Flour, 1 cup
- Sooji/Semolina, 2 tbsp
- Thick Curd, ½ cup
- Plain Fruit Salt, 1 teaspoon (or small plain ENO packet)
- Green Chillies, 1 -2
- Salt, as needed
- Water, as needed
- Oil, ½ tp (to grease the pan)
For the Tempering –
- Oil, 2 tsp
- Mustard Seeds, ½ tsp
- Jeera/Cumin Seeds, ½ tsp
- Green Chillies, 2
- Asafoetida, a generous pinch
- Sugar, 2 tsp
- Water, ¼ cup
- Salt, as needed
- Curry Leaves, a few
- Grated Coconut, 2 tbsp
Prep Work –
1. Crush one or two green chillies in a mortar and pestle. Set aside.
2. Grease the pan to steam the dhokla with ½ teaspoon of oil. Keep all the ingredients ready.
How I made –
1. In a bowl add gram flour, salt as needed, crushed green chillies, semolina/sooji and curd. Mix well. The mixture would be thick. Add some water and make sure there are no lumps. The batter has to be neither too thick nor thin.
2. Keep a steamer ready by boiling water. When the steamer is ready, add the fruit salt (eno salt plain flavored) into the batter and quickly mix well. The batter would rise immediately and become very frothy. Pour it immediately into a greased pan and steam it for 15 mins or until a skewer comes out clean. Remove from heat.
3. Once the steamed dhokla cools down for 5 mins, run a knife along the edges and unmould it. Cut it into equal parts. Meanwhile, in a small pan, heat 2 teaspoon of oil. Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds and let them splutter. Add asafoetida and slit green chillies along with fresh curry leaves. Fry for a minute and then pour ¼ cup of water. Add 2 teaspoon of sugar and salt as needed. Let the water come to a boil. Remove from heat.
4. Using a spoon, pour this tempered water all over the cut dhokla pieces making sure the water is absorbed well. Finally sprinkle grated coconut all over the top.
5. Serve hot with green chutney made with mint-coriander-green chillies.
Note –
- Adjust the quantity of green chillies as per spiciness required. Additionally crushed ginger can also be added to the batter.
- It is essential to place the dhokla for steaming right after adding the fruit salt. If not, it can deflate and result in a tougher dhokla.
- Instead of fruit salt or eno salt, ¾th teaspoon of baking powder can be used.
- To get grated coconut, grind coconut pieces for few secs in a blender.
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Taking this to Fiesta Friday #136, co-host for this week is Judi 🙂
Cook with Smile..
Yummy recipe... pics are superb..
chcooks
Thanks so much dear 🙂
cookingwithauntjuju.com
More fun looking up ingredients - this time fruit salt. I see you can get it flavored - would that be good too? Great recipe as I do like the chilies and it sounds like something I could make. Thanks for sharing with Fiesta Friday.
chcooks
Haha glad you liked it 🙂 Erm.. no, with flavored fruit salts the Dhoklas wouldnt taste that great.
Freda @ Aromatic essence
Yummy dhoklas!!
chcooks
Thanks dear 🙂
perspectivesandprejudices
Been meaning to make dhokla at home for the longest time! Question - does the pan that you steam it in have to have holes in the bottom? Or any regular plate is okay?
I used an instant mix and made it once using my idli cooker.
chcooks
No, I used a normal pan - it was my baking tray 🙂 No need to have whole. You can use any regular bowl or shallow plate as well. Make sure you oil it well, that's all 🙂
The Girl Next Door
I make this all the time at home, minus the semolina though. We all absolutely adore it! 🙂 Your khaman looks just lovely!
BTW, khaman and dhokla are two different things. What you have posted about here is khaman, though most chaat shops in Bangalore call it dhokla. Dhokla is white in colour, made with a batter that is similar to idli batter. Just saying!
There's one more variation of khaman, called Vati dal na khaman, made in a different way. They taste gorgeous too, very different from instant khaman. Have you ever tried that out? And you must try khamni and amiri khaman. 🙂
chcooks
Oh I see.. I never knew this. I always thought this is the yellow colored thing is the Dhokla. I did trying looking out for Khaman but every article had called it Dhokla too and guess that's why I got confused 🙂 Thanks much for explaining.
Yes I have heard about dhokla made from fresh ground batter from my colleague. I am yet to taste it here 🙂 Khamni and Amiri Khaman sound wonderful - will give it a try 🙂
The Girl Next Door
The Gujarati style of khaman has a lot of sweet and sour in it. That is how I always remember khaman. That is the way I make it at home too. check this out: https://thegalnxtdoor.wordpress.com/2012/09/01/khaman/
I tried out your no sugar-not too sour khaman recipe yesterday and loved it too. It was a revelation, because I always thought I would only like sweet and sour khaman!
chcooks
Sure, thanks will check out your post! 🙂 Glad you liked my version of khaman too!