Receta Dhokla Recipe / Tomato Dhokla | For Blog Hop Wednesdays
I was first introduced to this simple yet delicious Gujarati recipe when I was in High school at my friend’s home who was a TamBram. Her mother having spent her early years after her marriage in Gujarat learned this recipe and used to serve us all friends in the evenings whenever we all go to her home for group studies. When I saw this recipe in Nupur’s space who is my partner for this month’s Blog Hop, I was skeptical of using Peas and knew that I had to come up with my own variation to entice my kids.
Nupur’s space is full of lots of valuable info concerning Food in general and you will find her tips section very useful. I had a great time raiding her virtual kitchen and loved her palak paneer very much. But I chose this recipe to find out if my kids are comfortable with Dhoklas, because when I made them over a year ago they did not seem so enthusiastic, so I had to stop from making them again. But I wanted to introduce them once again as it is non-oily and will make a very healthy breakfast or snack option for them. So I used tomatoes in making the Dhoklas to make them more colorful and attractive for them. I knew they would love the tangy taste of tomatoes and I was not disappointed over my judgement. They both loved it very much. You will note while going through the recipe that I have not added any artificial food color in them.
You’ll need:
- Besan / Gram flour / Kadalai Maavu – 1 cup
- Yogurt / Curd – 1/2 cup
- Tomato – 1
- Water – 1/2 cup
- Vinegar – 1/4 tsp
- Red chilli Powder – 1 tsp
- Ginger paste – 1/2 tsp
- Sugar – 1 tsp
- Fruit Salt – 1 tsp
- Salt – to taste
- Oil – for greasing For Tempering:
- Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
- Asafetida – 2 pinch
- White Sesame seeds – 1 tsp
- Water – 1 tbsp
- Oil – 2 tsp
Coriander leaves – for garnish
Method:
Heat 1/2 cup of water in a vessel. Place the tomato in water and close with a lid. Let it rest for 5 min. Remove the skin and puree it in a mixer along with the water. Add the ginger paste and pulse the mixer once more. Pass it thru a sieve and keep aside the tomato puree. Grease a plate with oil and keep aside. In another vessel mix together besan, red chilli powder, sugar and salt. Now add curds, tomato and ginger puree and vinegar and mix well. Finally sprinkle the fruit salt on top of the batter. Mix well with your hands and transfer the batter immediately to the greased pan. Steam for 10 – 15 min or till a skewer comes out clean. I placed a metal ring inside the idli cooker and placed the plate on it. You can also steam in a pressure cooker without using the weight on the vent. Remove the plate and let it cool for 10 min. Invert the plate over another plate and gently tap and the springy, spongy dhoklas will come off the plate easily. Meanwhile, heat a pan with oil. Temper with mustard seeds. Once it pops add the sesame seeds and asafetida and take off stove. Once it cools down add 1 tbsp of water and pour the tempering all over the steamed dhoklas. Cut into desired shapes and serve garnished with coriander leaves. I served them with Tomato Chutney. You can also relish them with Green chutney. To get Spongy Dhoklas: Add the fruit salt only in the end, just before transferring the batter to the steaming plate and use your hands while mixing. The body heat plays a crucial role. Do not over mix after adding the fruit salt as this will make the dhoklas hard. Notes:
You can replace vinegar with 1 tsp of lime juice.
You can also use grated coconut while garnishing.
Make sure that the curd is not too sour.
Check and taste the batter and adjust salt before steaming the batter.
Make sure that the fruit salt is fresh. Using old ones past their expiry will prevent the dhoklas from turning out springy and also you will end up with dense and cakey ones. This is also off to Jyothi's Healthy & Hearty and to Vardhini’s New U.