My world of baking and more.....: Punjabi Bhature

(Adapted from: Edible Garden: How to Make Chana Bhatura)

This time I decided to write about a non-bake dish...and that would be punjabi bhature.

Growing up in Delhi, Sunday mornings would often find me and my Dad venturing off to Kalkaji to buy steaming, sumptuous chole bhature for breakfast. Now my Dad is a true-blue Bengali at heart who does not hear of any food other than Bengali food. However, this Sunday treat of chole-bhature was his pet indulgence.

We would return home in delightful anticipation of biting into the crispy bhature coupled with the spicy chole. In fact, even my orthodox grand-mom was a fan of this typical Punjabi dish.

Living in Kolkata now, we hardly get to eat chole bhature as frequently. I have tried ordering this dish a couple of times in the food court of a mall. However, still miss the unique flavour and aroma of the road-side stall in Delhi.

Nags (of Edible Garden) is a super-talented lady who posts wonderful recipes with colorful pictures. I also followed her recipe of Bhatura.

While eating out, I generally, avoid ordering for deep-fried items because the very system of re-heating the same oil that is used for frying just turns me off. I was able to make these fave dishes at home in a neat and clean environment and serve it to my six-year-old without any apprehensions.

Ingredients: Maida, Baking Powder, Curd, Baking Soda, and Salt

Here is how I made it:

Bhatura:

Ingredients:Maida (All-purpose flour): 4 cups
Thick curd: 1.5 cups
Baking powder: 1 heaped teaspoon
Baking soda: 1.4 teaspoon
Salt: 1/2 teaspoon
Oil for deep frying

Procedure:

Mixing the dough

1. First sift the maida with salt. Add baking powder and baking soda. Mix well.
2. Now add curd and start incorporating it in the dough. Mix the curd into the dough untill you get a firm and sticky dough.
3. Remember not to add any water to this dough. If required, you can add more maida if the dough is too sticky. My dough was too dry so I added about 1 teaspoon of curd.
4. Knead the dough till it is smooth and pliable. Now grease a deep bottom bowl with oil and dunk the dough in it.

The dough ready for rising

5. Cover the bowl with cling film and keep it in the fridge for 7-8 hours or overnight. Also, you can keep the dough in a warm place such as inside your micro-wave with the light on for 3-4 hours (which is what I did)!
6. The dough will rise and look puffed up. Take the dough out of the bowl and knead it softly on your working surface.
7. Make small balls out of the dough. You will get 13 small balls out of this dough

8. Heat about 3-4 cups of oil in a wok/kadhai. The oil should be smoking hot.
9. If the oil is not heated enough, your bhaturas will not turn out fluffy and crisp.

10. Roll out the bhaturas to about 1/2 inch thickness. Fry in hot oil.
11. Drain on kitchen towel paper and serve hot.

Serve with steaming hot chole. I bet your kids will polish off the food in minutes. Super yummy!