dhokla

Dhoklas are a favourite snack in our family and often get made as brunch. I usually make dhoklas by fermenting the chick pea flour  batter overnight.  My friend Nayna Kanabar from Simply food, did a live Facebook live demonstration on how to make instant semolina dhoklas  and I had been meaning to make some since that day. I usually use semolina to make a sweet dish called seera  or add a tiny amount to dhebras so this was a new recipe for me.   I have a lot of corn flour which I had bought for trying out new recipes  so I added a bit to the dhokla batter.

Instant semolina and cornflour dhokla with spinach and mixed vegetables

semolina

corn flour

yogurt

lemon juice

salt

tsp chili powder

tbls of ginger. garlic and green chilies blended mixture

spinach

vegetables

1½ tsps ENO fruit salt.

tbls oil

green chilies

coriander

tbls sesame seeds

 Chop the spinach and defrost the frozen vegetables.

Set the steamer ready with a well greased plate.

Add the semolina flour and corn flour in a mixing bowl.  Add the frozen vegetables and the chopped spinach. Mix the yogurt with half a cup of warm water and stir it into the mixture.  Now add the salt, turmeric, lemon juice and the ginger garlic paste.  Stir this really well.  If the mixture feels too thick, add some warm water to  thin it.   It should not be as runny as pancake batter so if it looks runny, then add a bit more semolina. Now add the ENO fruit salt and mix well.  The mixture should start to have bubbles.

Pour this onto the greased tray and sprinkle the sesame seeds on the top.  Also sprinkle some chili powder on the top.  Place the tray in a steamer and allow it steam for 20 minutes.

Once it’s steamed- Open the lid but keep the dhokla tray still in the steamer.   Now it’s time to temper it (often called Tadka or vaghar).   In a small saucepan or frying pan, heat the oil.  Once it’s hot, add the mustard seeds.  Once they stop popping, pour the oil over the dhoklas.  also garnish the dhoklas with chopped chilies and coriander.  You can also use desiccated coconut for garnishing.

Remove the tray from the steamer and cut the dhoklas in squares or diamonds and serve them with any chutney or sauce.

Khaman dhokla is a soft, spongy &amp; delicious savory steamed cake made with gram flour, spices and a leavening agent. Serve it as a breakfast or snack with chutney.

Khaman Dhokla Recipe (Soft & Fluffy)

(125 grams) besan ((gram flour))

(10 grams) fine semolina ((fine suji/ rava))

turmeric

water ((to start off))

sugar

ginger paste

green chili paste

natural citric acid ((or 1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice))

water ((+ 1 to 2 tbsp more or as needed) (read notes))

Eno ((unflavored fruit salt))

mustard seeds

⅛ teaspoon hing ((asafoetida))

curry leaves

chilies

sugar ((adjust to taste))

salt ((adjust

water ((adjust as needed, read notes))

Pour water to a bowl. Add salt, sugar, oil, ginger paste, green chili paste and lemon juice or citric acid. Mix all the ingredients and stir well until the sugar dissolves. Keep this aside.

Place a sieve over a large mixing bowl. Add besan and turmeric to it. Sieve them well. To the same bowl, add semolina &amp; give a good mix.

Pour the spiced water we made at step 1. Mix well with a whisk to a lump-free batter.

Batter will be thick at this stage. Pour more water as needed to make a free flowing yet slightly thick batter. The quantity of water to use depends on the texture of flour as well.

Beat the batter very well in one direction (clock-wise or anti-clock wise) with your whisk for exactly 50 to 60 seconds.

Batter has to be neither too thick nor too runny. To check the consistency of the dhokla batter, dip a spoon. It has to be thick enough to coat the back of the spoon yet should not be of a ribbon consistency. (Check the step-by-step pictures). Keep this aside and prepare the steamer.

Make Batter

Pour 2½ to 3½ cups water to a pot or a steamer. Place a steel rack or a ring or a long legged trivet. Cover and bring the water to a rolling boil. (I pour about 4 cups as I use a large pot)

Meanwhile grease a 5 inch pan or container with ½ to 1 teaspoon oil. Grease the sides as well.

When you see the water in the steamer is about to come to a boil, then add eno (fruit salt) and pour 1 tablespoon water to the dhokla batter. You will see the eno activates and froths up.

Quickly mix everything well to incorporate it. As you mix, the khaman dhokla batter begins to thicken and turns light. Run the whisk around the bowl including the sides to mix it evenly.

Immediately pour this to the greased pan. Even out the top with the whisk. Quickly place it in the steamer and cover it.

Steam it for 18 to 20 mins on a moderately high flame. It has to be steamed constantly through out the time. Once done, a knife inserted in the center should come out clean. Turn off the stove and leave it covered in the pot for another 5 mins.

Steaming Dhokla

Pour oil to a tadka pan and heat it. Add mustard seeds. When they begin to crackle, add curry leaves and sliced green chilies. Saute for a while until the curry leaves turn crisp.

Add hing, sugar and salt. Pour water. Bring it to a rolling boil and turn off. Stir a few times to dissolve the sugar. Cover this and leave it to cool down a bit. 

Remove the dhokla pan from the steamer and cool it completely. After it cools down, using a knife to loosen the sides if needed.

Keep a plate over the pan and invert the dhokla to the plate. Ensure the dhokla has cooled completely before removing it. Cut to squares.  

Spread the spices all over the khaman dhokla. First pour half cup of the tempering water and wait for a while. Then pour the rest. All of the water will be absorbed by the dhokla.

Cool completely. Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds along with fresh coconut &amp; fine chopped coriander leaves. Serve dhokla with Coriander chutney or Red Garlic Chutney.

Tempering Khaman Dhokla

Thanks Swasthi for the recipe. Mine turned out fabulous but there was a confusion regarding water in the printed version. No worries because I followed the photo guide but you may want to fix it for others. You should be more clear on the water required to make the batter. Anyways 5 star recipe

Let me know the quantity of citric acid that is to be used while making dhokla. Can we add lemon and citric acid both. Do reply

Very easy to make, it’s very light and tasty also. Thank u for this recipe

Dhokla is a spongy, steamed bread made from rice and lentils. It is vegetarian, even vegan-friendly, rich in protein, and gluten-free because it is made from rice and lentils. Dhokla is essential comfort food for any Gujarati.

Khatta Dhokla, White Dhokla

rice (cal rose or Basmati rice work well)

Tbsp moong dal

Tbsp chana dal

Tbsp urad dal

Handvo flour (choka no lot)

water

ginger

tsp sea salt (or

green chili (like Serrano or Thai chili)

hing/asafeotida (optional)

tsp baking powder salt

tsp black pepper

Oil oil

Tbsp oil oil

Rinse the rice 3 times. Add 3 cups of water and let soak for 4 hours or up to overnight

In a separate bowl, combine all the lentils and rinse 3 times. Add 3 cups of water and soak separately from the rice for 4 hours or up to overnight

Drain the rice and transfer to a blender with the yogurt and a splash of water. Blend for 20 to 40 seconds (or a bit longer if using a lower powered blender), until the rice is broken down into small grains (corn meal texture). Transfer the rice to a large bowl.

Now add the drained lentils to the blender (no need to rinse it first). Add the ginger, green chili, salt, asafoetida, and remaining water. Blend for 1 to 2 minutes until the lentils form a smooth paste. Transfer the lentil mixture to the bowl with the rice and mix well.

Make the batter with Lentils and Rice

Use 1.5  cups handvo flour in place of the rice and lentils.

Blend the ginger, green chili, yogurt, salt and hing in a small blender

Combine the handvo flour with 1.5 cups water and the yogurt mixture. Let fermet for 4 hours or up to overnight. If short on time, you can skip the fermentation step. Simply allow the handvo flour mixture sit for 30 to 60 minutes so that the flour can absorb the liquid and then add 2 tsp of lemon juice to mimic the acidic flavor of the fermentation.

Batter with Dhokla with Dal Choka no Lot (Handvo Flour)

Cover the mixture and set in a warm spot. Let the mixture ferment for 6 hours to overnight. If you’re running low on time, you can skip this step and add 2 tsp of lemon juice instead to replace the sourness achieved by fermentation.

Ferment the Batter

Add 2 cups of water to the Instant Pot and turn on Saute Mode and allow the water to come to a boil.

While the water comes to a boil, grease the dhokla trays and cover the Instant Pot slow cooker lid with a large kitchen towel. Tuck the edges into the handle.

Add the baking powder or eno to the dhokla batter and mix well. The batter will begin to bubble up. Be sure to mix the bubbles well so they are distributed evenly.

Equally distribute the batter into the greased trays and sprinkle with black pepper.

Set the trays into the steamer, ensuring that the trays are not submersed in the water.

Place lid and let steam for 15 minutes.

Remove from the steamer and let cool for 10 minutes.

Score along the edges using a sharp pairing knife. Then cut the dhokla into squares. Lift the squares out of the trays using an off-set spatula.

Serve warm with some chutney or add the optional vaghar

Steam the Dhokla

Heat the oil in a small pan

When hot, add the curry leaves, let them sizzle

Add the green chilies and cook for a few seconds until they begin to soften.

Add an optional pinch of salt to soften the chilies more and add a burst of flavor

If using cilantro instead of curry leaves, add the chilies to the hot oil first. Add cilantro and immediately take off the heat.

Pour the vaghar over the dholka squares.

For the Vaghar (optional)

Love this steamed bread, thank you for all the details. :)

I am so happy I found your website. 
My husband grew up on Kannur and he loves when I cook things from your site! 
I love showing how much I care by recreating dishes that remind him of his Mum and his Nani :) 
Great recipe!

Fantastic! Thank you for providing all the instructions for the different options. It makes me feel confident in trying this out!

https://www.youtube.com/embed/1XZo7P0C28Y

Dhokla is a spongy, steamed bread made from rice and lentils. It is vegetarian, even vegan-friendly, rich in protein, and gluten-free because it is made from rice and lentils. Dhokla is essential comfort food for any Gujarati.

Recipe: https://indiaphile.info/dhokla/

Traditional Khatta Dhokla | Rice and Lentil Steam Bread

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