Methi na thepla combines fresh fenugreek leaves, whole wheat flour, and aromatic spices to make this delicious spiced Indian flatbread recipe. Ideal for a nutritious breakfast or snack, convenient for travel, or as a tasty inclusion in lunch boxes, the Gujarati methi thepla hits the spot every time – thanks to its unique flavor and...

The post Gujarati Methi Thepla (Fenugreek Flatbread) appeared first on Simple Indian Meals.

           Traditionally Dibba rotte is made with freshly ground Idli batter, and Idli Rava or Rice Rava is used here. The Telugu-speaking regions use Idli Rava for their Idli batter instead of parboiled rice/uppudu biyyam. The coarse texture of the Rava gives it’s signature crisp exterior and granular soft interior. I bet once you try this, you’ll end up making Dibba rotte every time you make Idli batter. And the good part is you needn’t ferment the batter, just add the tempering to it and make Dibba rotte right away. But we have tried making it with fermented batter and the beautiful sour notes adds more magic. Now to get the perfect color and crunch, the key is to use a heavy cast-iron Kadai/pan. Let the Dibba rotte cook on low flame for longer to get the irresistible crunchy exterior.

        I have learnt making this dish from my best friend who hails from Machilipatnam and they make it quite regularly. I remember tasting this dish at her home and I fell in love with the dish instantly and I’m telling you if you are a person who loves slightly crispy bits in the bottom of the pan(like me) in dishes like upma, then this is just for you.

What is Dibba rotte and how to make it?

      The word Dibba means plump or fat and rotte means bread/flatbread. And traditionally rice Rava or Idli Rava is used instead of rice. As throughout Telugu-speaking regions, Idli is made with Rice Rava or Idli Rava, the granular idli texture is just irresistible.

        First, we need to soak the Urad dal and later grind it to a fine consistency, and then we add soaked rice Rava/Idli Rava to this batter. You can let this batter ferment to make idlis or use it to make Dibba rotte instantly. You can take a portion of this batter and add a simple tempering to the batter, using mustard seeds, cumin seeds, green chili paste. If you are making for younger kids, you can skip green chilies or omit them.

       Traditionally we use a heavy and shallow cast-iron Kadai or brass Kadai(itthadi ginne) to make this Dibba rotte. But any thick bottomed pan will work, just make sure to keep an eye on Dibba rotte and it’s not burning. Our goal is to achieve a golden-brown crispy exterior and cook through completely. While making spread light cooking oil on the Kadai and then pour the batter. Cover the pan and cook on a slow flame until it turns crispy on the bottom. Flip it through and cook until done. Then Serve hot Dibba rotte with pickle or chutney of your choice. Ginger chutney makes a great combination with this.

More names of Dibba rotte

   This Dibba rotte is also known as Dibba rotti or minapa rotti in some parts of Telugu-speaking regions.

Serving suggestions 

       Dibba rotte is traditionally cut in wedges and served as you get to taste the outside crusty exterior and the soft fluffy texture inside. The taste is not like that of idli as there is no sourness in the batter (since the batter is not fermented), but you can make it with fermented batter too. The crisp texture is what makes the dish more interesting.

    This Dibba rotte is a savory cake and has a similar color, shape, and texture. One of the reasons why people call it Andhra cake and most loved by kids. Serve with your favorite pickle or chutney or Podi of your choice. But I’d recommend you try with Ginger chutney.

So what all Ingredients do we need?

   All you need to make this dish is idli batter. So, you can use your favorite idli recipe. To make the Andhra way, use urad dal and idli Rava. You only need a handful of ingredients for this recipe:

• urad dal – either whole or split. 
• Rice Rava or idli Rava – Look for idli Rava in your nearby Indian grocery stores. The key for its signature granular crispy exterior is Idli Rava. 
• Fenugreek seeds – Helps indigestion
• Salt
• Tempering – Mustard seeds, cumin seeds, green chilies, ginger, curry leaves.

Please check out more delicious festive treats and tea-time snacks from my blog.

Chegodilu

Odappalu

Makka garelu

Palm jaggery whole wheat biscuits

Perugu wada

Vegan millet cutlet

Vegan potstickers

Let’s get into the recipe now

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DIBBA ROTTE

Dibba Rotte is a classic Andhra dish made of Idli batter. It has an irresistible crispy exterior and fluffy interior.

Course Breakfast, Lunch box recipes

Cuisine Andhra

Keyword healthy breakfast, plant based, vegan

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Soaking time 4 hours hours

Total Time 4 hours hours 40 minutes minutes

Servings 6 Servings

Author Shravani Abhishek

Equipment

• Cast iron skillet or wok

Ingredients

• ½ cup Urad dal
• 1 cup Idli rava
• ½ tsp Fenugreek seeds
• Salt to taste

Tempering

• 1 tbsp Cooking oil
• ½ tsp Mustard seeds
• 1 tsp Cumin seeds
• 1 sprig Curry leaves
• 1 tsp Green chili paste
• ½ tsp Minced ginger

Instructions

Let's prep for the batter

• Wash and soak the Urad dal + fenugreek seeds and Idli rava separately for 3-4 hours.
• Drain the water from the urad dal and reserve about 2 cups of soaking water. Grind the urad dal+fenugreek seeds into soft and smooth paste by adding little water.
• Transfer the ground urad dal paste to a mixing bowl, and to this add drained idli rava. Add salt to taste and mix it well with your hand.

It's tempering time

• Heat a small tadka pan, add oil and once its hot add in mustard seeds, cumin seeds, minced ginger, green chili paste and torn curry leaves. Let it splutter for a minute.
• Turn off the heat and add this tempering to the Idli batter and give it a good mix.

Let's make some dibba rotte now!!

• Heat a thick Cast iron kadai or Appam pan, and add oil and let it heat for a minute.
• Now add in 1-1½ cups ladleful of batter into the pan, let it sizzle for a minute of medium heat.
• Lower the heat to low flame, cover the pan and cook for 15 mins until it turns crispy on the bottom. Insert a clean knife or spoon and see if its cooked, it should come out clean.
• Now flip the Dibba rotte and cook it for another 5-10 mins. Do not cover the pan at this time.
• Turn off the heat, remove the dibba rotte on a plate, cut into wedges and serve with chutney, podi or pickle of your choice.
  

Notes

• There is no need to ferment it, you can make Dibba rotte as soon as you grind the batter. But feel free to use the fermented idli batter too, the sourness adds a nice flavor profile to the Dibba rotte. 
• If you are using wet grinder or blender, make sure to add water in increments to make a soft, fluffy and smooth batter.
• I would recommend you to use a cast iron kadai or appam pan to get irresistible crispy exterior. 

If you’ve tried this recipe, please share your valuable feedback in the comments below. Also you can Tag your photo and share it with #mycurryveda on Instagram @mycurryveda  or on Facebook . 

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Sweet potatoes have a dense fiber composition, and it satiates the hunger for longer periods. Hence, in Indian subcontinent we widely use it as fasting food. On Maha Shivaratri, majority of devotees observe a special fast consisting largely of fruits along with plenty of water and milk which keeps them hydrated. And sweet potatoes are fast friendly, filling and healthy. So these Bakshalu makes a great recipe to make on this coming Maha Shivaratri.

Significance of Maha Shivaratri

The festival of ‘Maha Shivaratri’ which literally translates to ‘the greatest night of Shiva’ is one of the most revered Hindu festivals across the Indian subcontinent. The Temples across the nation witness an outpour of devotees who gather around the Shiva Linga with their abundant offerings to appease Lord Shiva. Prayers and vigils go on throughout the night of Maha shivaratri. But what makes the festival special is its characteristic fasting or the Maha Shivaratri Vratam. The vratam marks a very high significance for every Shiva devotee, with some opting to even go on fasting through the day without a single drop of water. But majority of the devotees observe a special fast consisting largely of fruits along with plenty of water and milk which keeps them hydrated.

What are Bakshalu?

Bakshalu are a traditional delicacy, that we make on festivals or special occasions as an offering to the deity. These bakshalu are stuffed flatbreads, which can be made sweet or savory. In the Telangana region, Bakshalu are a traditional dessert or sweet and it has various stuffings. And stuffings like chana dal, moong dal, sesame seeds, sweet potato, Kova, etc. are used.

Now call this bakshalu poli or Holige, obbattu, bobbatlu, burelu, polelu, vedmi, boli this one dish has many names and avatars across diverse India.

In certain regions of Telangana, people call these Kanda gadda bakshalu as Mouram gadda polelu or mouram gadda bakshalu. This Kanda gadda bakshalu are specially prepared for the Maha Shivaratri festival for the kids, as they are fasting friendly and filling too. 

Ingredients needed for Kanda gadda bakshalu

• Kanda gadda – Sweet potatoes, they are also known by Mouram gadda, Ratnapuri gadda in the Telangana region. 
• Jaggery / Sugar – As sweet potatoes alone are sweet enough, we will be using minimal amount of sweetener.
• Cardamom – this is completely optional
• Whole wheat flour – You can also use Maida / All purpose flour instead.
• Oil
• Ghee

How to prepare this Kanda gadda bakshalu?

 Like every other flatbread, this bakshalu can be either made with Maida/all-purpose flour or Whole wheat flour. And I like to use whole wheat personally as it’s more healthy and that’s what I have grown up eating. So if you prefer using All purpose flour or maida please feel free to use it according to your convenience.

Stuffing – First step steam the sweet potatoes, later mash them with jaggery / sugar, and keep them aside.

Now the kind of sweet potatoes we get in India are quite fibrous and stays firm when boiled or steamed. They doesn’t require any further cooking after steaming them. You can just steam/boil them, peel the skin, mash them with jaggery powder/sugar.

And as I’m staying in the US, the sweet potatoes, which I get here are quite soft, when I steam/boil them they turn very mushy. Hence, I cook the mashed sweet potatoes slightly until they turn firm.

Dough – This bakshalu can be made with two kinds of dough, One is the wet dough that has been soaked in oil for hours and the other is a semi-hard dough that we regularly use to make roti. If you are using slightly firm sweet potatoes that we get in India, I would recommend you to use the firm dough. And if you are using the American variety of sweet potatoes then go for the wet dough.

Is this recipe VEGAN ?

You can skip the ghee part while roasting the Bakshalu or stuffed flatbread to make it vegan-friendly. If you have Gluten-intolerance, please substitute the whole wheat flour with gluten free flour to make these Bakshalu.

Serving suggestion

These Kanda gadda bakshalu/polelu are  traditionally served with warm milk. But a simple drizzle of ghee on warm Bakshalu is good enough for savoring.

Checkout more traditional festive foods and more Telangana delicacies.

Godhuma thalikala payasam

Pappu bakshalu

Nuvvula bakshalu

Vadapappu bellam panakam

Godhuma Nooka sheera

Shegala payasam

Sattu Pindi

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KANDA GADDA BAKSHALU

A divine sweet potato stuffed flatbread, which are utterly delicious, healthy and filling. Makes it a perfect fasting friendly food.

Course Dessert, Snack

Cuisine Indian, Telangana

Keyword Bakshalu, Stuffed flatbreads, Vegetarian

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 10 Servings

Author Shravani Abhishek

Equipment

• Griddle
• Steamer

Ingredients

Stuffing

• 3 Sweet potatoes
• ⅓ cup Jaggery powder
• ¼ tsp Cardamom powder

Dough

• 1½ cup Whole wheat flour
• 2 tbsp Oil
• ½ cup Water *more as needed to make pliable dough

Instructions

Stuffing

• Heat a steamer, add water in the pan and place the sweet potatoes cut into discs on the steamer rack.
• Cover the pan and let the sweet potatoes steam until they are soft and mushy. It may take around 15 min. Turn off the heat and let them cool down to room temperature.
• Later peel the skin of sweet potatoes, mash them and add cardamom powder, jaggery powder/sugar as per your taste preference.
• If the stuffing is too wet, then cook the mashed sweet potatoes on medium flame until it turns firm.
• Later divide the stuffing into 10 equal portions, roll them into a ball and keep aside.

Dough

• In a mixing bowl, add whole wheat flour/APF , tsp of oil and water. Bring everything together and knead until it is soft and pliable.
• Add 2 tbsp oil and keep it covered for 2 hours. Let it remain soaked in oil. The more it rests in oil the more softer the bakshalu will be.

Let's prepare some KANDA GADDA BAKSHALU now !!

• Take a silicon sheet/ziploc bag/banana leaf, grease the surface. Take handful of dough and place it.
• Grease your fingers with oil and flatten the dough with your fingers to form a small circle.
• Place a small ball of sweet potato stuffing in the center and seal it on all sides forming a small ball.
  
• Now flatten the ball with the stuffing inside to form a thin Baksham.

Roasting the KANDA GADDA BAKSHALU

• Grease the tawa slightly with ghee and heat it. Now invert the silicon mat/ziploc bag/banana leaf with the Baksham over the tawa. After a few seconds, gently remove the silicon mat/ziploc bag/banana leaf.
• Now cook the Baksham both the sides until golden brown on medium heat.

  Once cooked, apply ghee all over the surface and remove from heat. Now Kanda gadda baksham is ready to be served. Enjoy it warm.
  

Serving suggestions

• Serve hot Kanda Gadda bakshalu with some warm milk or drizzled with ghee.
  

Notes

• If you are using the American variety of sweet potatoes, they tend to turn mushy or sticky when steamed/boiled. So cook the stuffing on medium flame until it turns slightly firm.

 If you’ve tried this recipe, please share your valuable feedback in the comments below. Also you can Tag your photo and share it with #mycurryveda on Instagram @mycurryveda  or on Facebook . Also follow @taste.of.telangana on Instagram for more traditional recipes, culture and stories.

The post KANDA GADDA BAKSHALU appeared first on mycurryveda.

 Winter is in the air ; the chill and pleasant weather calls for  nice soul satisfying hot meals from the pan to the plate . We at home,prefer piping hot parathas or rotis for dinner .

Parathas are filling and healthy as you can include almost as many veggies you wish either by kneading it along with the dough or even by stuffing it into the rolled bread .

Doodhi Parathas are a family favorite during winter, so this time when I had some fresh Zucchini in my fridge I thought of making some delicious parathas with them. I have used green zuchini ,but you can also use the yellow zuchini which are widely available in the market .

Zucchinis belong to the squash family and are used in a variety of recipes across cuisines . Unlike cucumber ,zucchini needs to be cooked before eating.  Zucchini may either be shredded, grated , sliced or even used as cubes depending on the recipe that it is being used in .

For the paratha,I have peeled the zucchini and then grated it finely and kneaded along with the wheat flour with various spices and flavorings. 

If you want to try some healthy,delicious and tasty parathas, please click on the recipe links below 

• Aloo Paratha

• Pudina Paratha

• Palak Paratha

• Moong Paratha

• Doodhi Paratha /Bottlegourd paratha 

• Achaari Ajwain Paratha

• Capsicum Paneer Paratha

• Beetroot Paratha

• Kasuri Methi Paratha 

Ingredients 

Method 

• Squeeze out the excess water from grated zucchini and add it a mixing bowl along with the spices (red chilli powder , haldi powder , jeera powder and salt) . Mix it well with your fingers .
• Add the wheat flour and the corriander and knead into a smooth and firm dough without cracks .Apply some oil over the dough and keep covered for 10 mins. 
• Pinch out big lemon sized balls from the dough and roll them into a medium thick roti .
• Heat a tawa or griddle and place the rolled out paratha on the tawa .
• Flip it over when you see small bubbles and brown spots on the under side .
• Apply some oil around the paratha and roast it until its well done.
• Take it off the tawa and serve hot with some chilled curd or raita of your choice. 

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