besan ki katli | savory cakes made using chickpeas paste

Besan ki katli or chana daal ki katli is something I have been craving for very long, that too in it's purest form as I have worked on a healthier version of this dish in the past 4-5 years (it's a shame that i haven't posted even that one as yet)...      

Before I move to the recipe of this very traditional UP dish I want to tell you a very funny incident, I was watching the TV show 'highway on my plate' hosted by Rocky n Mayur. I love this show not just for the yummy traditional food they showcase but for the friendly leg pulling both the hosts do with each other as well as with their hosts sometimes. In this particular episode they were visiting Reewa and were being hosted by some prince (belonging to the royal family of the state). Among the other traditional vegetarian dishes they were served this dish called 'Indrahar' ( meaning the food of Indra, the king of all the Hindu gods). Indrahar was made with a mixture of all the lentils in a similar way this besan ki katli is made.

The prince of Reewa estate described this dish in a very interesting way. He told that this is a very healthy meat substitute and the members of his family have been eating this for generations. In his own words...my grandfather, my father and myself have been eating this indrahaar, and see how strong we have been :) Telling all of this with his swollen chest to show the strength, I wonder how he was going on and on about the health and vigor of the male members of the family only. As if the ladies of the family did not need any healthy food, or as if healthy food was made for the male members only. The way he was telling and the way Rocky and Mayur were mimicking him was hilariously funny.

But it frustrates me even today whenever I think of it. No, I am not a feminist that way but do get frustrated when there is a bias at this level.

Now coming to the recipe of this healthy dish, as healthy as you can think of.

It can be made with besan (gramflour or chickpea flour) or with split chickpeas (chana dal) or with any other daal for that matter or with a mixture of daals as it is done in indrahar :)

If you make it with besan the texture of the katli will be very smooth, I like it a bit grainy so I use chana daal, soaked overnight and ground to paste. It is actually a lentil dumpling or lentil cake which can be very very versatile. It can be a fat free snack, a fried or shallow fried snack or can be curried in different types of gravies.

ingredients...

chana daal 2 cups soaked overnight
garlic cloves 4 nos
ginger 1 inch piece
green chilies 3-4 nos.
whole cumin 2 tsp
black pepper corns 2 tsp
red chilly powder 1 tsp ( optional ) I did not use this time
garam masala 1 tsp (optional  I do not use
turmeric powder 1 tsp
salt to taste
oil 1 tsp for the kadai n 1/2 tsp to grease a thali

procedure....

Grind everything together except oil into a paste, the consistency should be like a cake or idli batter so water can be added wile grinding for convenience.

Now heat oil in a thick base kadai and pour the paste into it and start stirring, it needs constant stirring but do not worry as it's not going to make your arms fall off. After all eating Indrahar makes you stronger :-)

The mixture gets curdled first, and then within a couple of minutes of heating, it starts sticking to the kadai. Keep scraping and turning for about 5 minutes and you will see that it cooks to become a cohesive, sticky ball of dough. By this time a lovely cooked aroma indicates that it's done.

Keep a greased thali ready, dunk the ball of cooked daal dough into the greased thali......

Now with wet hands pat this dough to make it flat on the thali , like this....

Let it rest for about 10 minutes or till it is cooler, then cut in diamonds or squares ...

It can be made into small balls, especially if you intend to make a kofta style curry with it, for that you don't need to spread it on a greased thali and can proceed right from the kadai......make balls and do whatever you want :))

They can be had like a tea time snack without frying when they are warm and fresh, they keep well in the fridge for a couple of days and in the freezer for months. If using from the fridge you need to shallow fry them for a tea time snack ....

This is a real healthy tea time snack .

Besan ki katli, as it is called in my family is a childhood favorite of mine and I am glad that Arvind loves it too. I make a spinach version of this dumpling snack in microwave and will post that very soon

It is an eastern UP specialty and I have seen some bihari families making it too, a friend of mine told that it is called 'khadahara' in her family. The bengali version is called 'dhokar dalna', a bit different in taste and in appearance of the dumplings.

I have posted a recipe of this  besan katli in mustard gravy but it can be prepared with any kind of gravy which suits your taste.

Enjoy....

besan katli ki sabzi UP style

Besan ki katli is a chickpea flour savory cake that is shallow fried and then curried in a mustard gravy. This besan ki katli curry is often called dhoka subzi as it masquerades as a fish curry for vegetarians, there is a Bengali version of this curry called Dhoka'r dalna which mean the same. The besan or chickpea flour cakes resemble fish steaks in appearance and have a meaty texture, hence a special dish for vegetarians during festivals or family get-togethers. This is one of my favorite vegetarian recipes too. The pungency of mustard is balanced well by tomatoes and generous helping of coriander greens and the chickpeas cakes absorb every bit of it. 

The bengali version of this curry, dhokar dalna is quite a yummy curry with a slight sweetness to it, but this curry is a UP version, eastern UP to be precise. I feel the curry is influenced by Bihar and Bengal with minor changes, only had got a bit more pungent, hot and sour in this version. But a really good balance of flavors as besan ki katli soaks up flavours of mustard and chillies etc magically.

ingredients for the katli

besan 1 cup
water 1.5 cup
turmeric powder 1 tsp
salt to taste
cumin seeds 1 tsp
asafoetida a pinch
garam masala powder 1tsp
mustard oil 1 tbsp


procedure

Mix everything together to make a batter. Pour it all into a non stick pan or an iron kadhai and start cooking while stirring the mixture continuously. The mixture thickens and dries up within 7-8 minutes of cooking and forms a lump. This the an indication of it being ready, remove the pan from the stove.

Quickly grease a flat plate with oil and spread this mixture over the plate, patting it down using the spatula or a large flat knife. Spread it as thick as you like, make the edges smooth and let it cool down. Cut in diamond shapes when perfectly set. These diamond shaped chickpea flour cakes are called besan ki katli and will be shallow fried before currying.

Shallow fry the katlis in a flat base frying pan, browning them  lightly on both the sides. Reserve for currying or have them as a tea time snack if you wish.

ingredients for the gravy

yellow mustard seeds 2 tbsp
coriander powder 1 tsp
black pepper powder 1 tsp
turmeric powder 1 tsp
green chilies 4 nos
red chilly powder 1 tsp
garlic 10 cloves
tomatoes 2 nos.
mustard oil 2 tbsp
cumin seeds 1 tsp 

fenugreek seeds 1/2 tsp

a generous handful of coriander leaves to garnish

procedure

Soak the mustard seeds in a little water for 10 minutes and make a fine paste of it along with all the powdered spices and garlic in the mixer. Keep aside.

Now heat oil in a pan and throw in the cumin and fenugreek seeds, let them both crackle a bit before pouring in the mustard paste into it. Add salt and cook stirring it all for 3-4 minutes or till the spices become aromatic.

Add 1.5 cups of water, slip in the besan ki katlis and simmer for about 15-20 minutes.

Add slit green chilies and quartered tomatoes in the last 5 minutes of simmering. Finish with coriander greens and serve with plain boiled rice and raita, kachumber salad etc.

You can add brinjals or even shallow fried okra to the same curry to include some vegetables in it too.

You can make a curry of the besan ki katli in a tamatar pyaz ka masala as well. I normally add a few makhana or green peas whenever I make besan ki katli subzi in tamatar pyaz ka bhuna masala.

One made, the besan ki katli can be frozen in the steamed form and then can be thawed, shallow fried and curried whenever required. A healthy curry will be ready with minimal effort if you have bhuna masala in the freezer too.

These katlis can be added to kadhi as well. But they usually don't last long once you make them. Most of it gets over in snacking with chai.