Want an Instant Taste of Apno Gujarati Snack? Try the INSTANT DHOKLAS

Instant Dhoklas prepared using Eno Fruit Salt

Dhokla, the fluffy, steamed savoury cake made of Besan (Gram flour) holds a place of pride in Gujarat! A snack originated in this delightful state of many flavours and rich cuisine, Dhokla has gradually become a popular delicacy throughout the country and a go-to breakfast or evening snack for a lot of people. Known for its low-calorie, healthy and good in protein properties, the instant version of the Dhokla is easy to prepare and a great evening time snack. I wanted to try out the instant version of this snack and thankfully, it turned out fairly well and my lovelies at home enjoyed every bit of it.. If you are a fan of instant snacks and wondering what to cook up tomorrow for an evening snack, why don't you give this a try.... 

INSTANT DHOKLA

Prep Time: 75 mins | Cook Time: 25 mins | Servings: 4

Ingredients:

1. Besan (Gram Flour) - 1 cup
2. Rava (Sooji/ Semolina) - 1 cup 
3. Curd - ½ - 1 cup
4. Water - 1 cup (approx)
5. Salt - 2 teaspoons
6. Turmeric - a pinch (optional)
7. Eno Fruit Salt - 2 teaspoons (regular/ unflavoured) 
8. Oil - 2-3 tablespoons
9. For Tempering:
• Oil - 1 teaspoon
• Mustard - 1 teaspoon
• Sesame Seeds (Til) - 2 teaspoons
• Green Chili - 1 (slit)
• Curry Leaves - 1 sprig
• Lemon Juice -  ½ - 1 lemon 
• Sugar - 1 teaspoon
• Water - ¼ cup

Preparation:

• Mix rava and besan in a mixing bowl, add curd and mix well to remove any lumps

 

• Slowly keep adding water and mix the batter well. The consistency of the batter should be between that of a cake batter and dosa batter (the batter should slide off the spoon easily). Rest this mixture for an hour. You could add a pinch of turmeric to the batter for enhanced colour.

 

• After an hour, keep a steaming vessel ready with a preheated greased (with oil) tray/ vessel for the dhokla. Just before steaming the dhokla, add Eno in 2-3 tablespoons of oil and mix well. Add this mixture to the besan-rava batter and whisk it well. Add ¼ cup of hot water to the bowl in which you have mixed oil and eno and add that to the batter as well. The batter will slowly begin to rise (from half the bowl to full) and get fluffy - it is a sign for you to pour it to the greased dish to steam.

  

• Pour the batter into the preheated dish to steam and cover it with a lid. Steam this for around 20-25 minutes. Stick a knife to the centre of the tray to check if the batter is sticking to it. The dhokla is steamed appropriately if the knife comes out clean. Let this cool down completely

• Once completely cooled, you can prepare the tempering mixture. In a small kadhai, heat a teaspoon of oil and add mustard. Once it begins to splatter, add a slit green chili, curry leaves, sesame seeds and switch off the heat. Add a spoon of sugar. Mix juice of half to one lemon in ¼ cup of water and add the tempered mixture to this. Once the sugar melts, pour this mix over the steamed dhoklas. 

• Once tempered, you can cut out diamond shaped pieces of dhokla and it is ready to be relished with mint chutney, tamarind chutney or plain tomato ketchup.

 

Quick Tips & Notes:

1. If Eno is readily unavailable, you can always replace it with ½ a teaspoon of cooking soda 
2. ALWAYS let the dhokla cool down (let all the steam escape) before you temper and cut it. The dhokla begins to get light and fluffy as the steam escapes it
3. If you want to cut the dhoklas before tempering, you can dip the knife in oil and then use it to cut