shakarkandi ke roth or shakarkandi ki meethi poori | deep fried flat breads with sweet potatoes

Shakarkandi is Sweet potato in Hindi. Indian Sweet potato is basically a yam whose leaves are also edible but we are taking about the use of the tuber right now, in the making of a deep fried flat bread.

Someone was talking about shakarkand ki poori and I was reminded of the last time I made them. I was in an impression that I had already shared the recipe of shakarakand ki poori on the blog so came here to search for it. And lo, I couldn't find it here. Because I never posted it. Damn.

The blogs of mine serve as a cloud storage for me and my mind automatically comes here to search for what I had cooked long time back. This shakarkandi ki poori or roth as we call it, was cooked 2 years ago and I had forgotten to share it. Not a good thing as the recipe wont be accessible for even my own use.

Thankfully this shakarkandi ki poori is a traditional recipe and I have cooked it several times in the past to know it like the back of my hand.

If you are getting confused between the names shakarkandi ki poori and shakarkandi ke roth (roT), let me explain it for you. Yes these two are a little different from each other.

Shakarkandi ki poori is a little softer, uses some milk too while kneading the dough and uses a little more flour compared to the quantity of sweet potato pulp. 

Shakarkandi ke roth are made using very little flour compared to sweet potato pulp (mash), just enough to bind the boiled and mashed sweet potatoes. So shakarkandi ke roth are almost like a crusty flat bread that cooks on medium flame for a long time to get crusty on the outside and softer inside.

To make the frying time shorter, I make a hole in the middle (just like a doughnut) so the cooking is even and quick. We like them hot but these are great at room temperature too and make great picnic or journey food.

For picnics you would like them served with some nice chocolate dip of fruit preserve. When eating them hot, we like to drizzle some raw honey over them. Yum.

It is a great breakfast option on weekdays when the family is relaxed and can have as finger food reading the heap of weekend newspapers.

ingredients...
(makes enough for 2 and some leftovers too)

sweet potatoes cleaned and rinsed thoroughly 250 gm
whole wheat flour 100-120 gm
*green cardamom powder 2 pinches (optional)

*You can use cinnamon powder, nutmeg powder or clove powder individually or in combination for a deeper flavour. I use a mix of these three mostly.

No sugar required, but add a little jaggery if you like it really sweet.

Ghee for deep frying. These roth do not absorb much ghee as the dough is not too loose, take care to boil the sweet potatoes with skin to ensure lesser moisture in them. If boiled after peeling and slicing they absorb a lot of water and the dough will be loose in consistency and the pooris may absorb more ghee while frying.

procedure...

After through cleaning, boil the sweet potatoes in pressure cooker with just about 1/4th cup water. It takes about 2-3 whistles to cook.

Cool the pressure cooker and start mashing the sweet potatoes while they are still warm. I prefer using them with the peel but you may discard the peel if it looks scabby or dirty. For such vegetable I always recommend getting organic produce.

Now add the spice powder of choice and add the flour slowly while kneading it into a dough. No water or milk is being added, the quantity of the flour will just to make a smooth dough. If the sweet potatoes are more moist they may take some more flour.

Heat the ghee, divide the dough in about 20 gm portions and roll them into small thick discs, make a hole in the center and fry on medium heat till they get lightly browned. At the stage of frying too you may fry them on high flame to get softer pooris and fry on low or medium to get firm roth.

Serve hot or cold with honey, fruit preserve or even some fresh cream or yogurt if you like.

There is the natural sweetness of sweet potatoes that you wouldn't want to spoil using sugar or jaggery. I suggest eating this roth with some sweet condiment if you find it not as sweet as you like.

And please fry it in ghee only, oils don't suit such traditional recipes.

I have seen some people enjoying these sweet pooris with pickle too, try it you may start liking such sweet and sour combinations in food.

And I just got to know that Maharashtrians also make a similar fried bread with sweet potatoes with a slightly different recipe and call it Ratalyacha Gharya. I am sure this meethi poori with shakarkandi is made all over India in some or the other form.

Ragi ki roti step by step procedure | how to make ragi ki roti

How to make ragi ki roti easily is the question everyone asks when I suggest them to try it. Ragi is the Finger millet that is highly recommended as a healthy alternative grain. Making flat breads or ragi ki roti with it is a challenge for many and I used to get a few requests now and then. It is actually quite easy if you use your microwave in the dough making process. You can easily make the ragi roti dough by heating the ragi flour slurry in microwave and then kneading it like any other dough.

Ragi is also known as Nachni, Mandua or finger millet in different languages.

I had clicked these pictures long back when someone was not able to make millet flour rotis, I had sent her all these step wise pictures in mailbox but forgot to post on the blog. Here it comes for all my friends and readers.

We love rotis made with mixed flours and individual millet flours as well, this Ragi roti is enjoyed most with a chokha or a mash like Hummus or Baba ghanoush. It actually behaves like a cracker if you cook it for a couple of minutes on the flame. If you cook quickly it stays soft as a normal whole wheat roti should be, just a little fibrous in mouth feel when the roti gets cold.

The procedure to make the dough is a little tricky if you are doing it for the first time. The flour is mixed with water to make a slurry and then cooked either on stove top or in microwave so the slurry cooks and makes a glutinous dough. Ragi flour turns glutinous when cooked like this.

If you do it in microwave, the process becomes really easy though.

Let's see how the dough is made...

A cup of flour and 1.5 cup of hot water...

Mixed together to make a slurry like this...

The slurry is cooked in microwave for two minutes, the slurry looks set around the margins...

Look at this picture how the slurry gets set...

Take a spoon and mix it vigorously, the slurry is hot so be careful, the mixture become glutinous like this picture...

Microwave once more for a couple of minutes. The mixtures gets a bit dehydrated and stiffer but yet doesn't look like a dough...

Now add some more dry flour and knead using a sturdy spoon as the  mixture is hot. Adding the flour will lower down the temperature and you would be able to handle it with your fingers in a few minutes...

The dough looks like this..

Pinch off a ball, smoothen it to make it round...

And roll out a roti as you would do for a whole wheat roti, using some flour for dusting..

It behaves well under the rolling pin. No sticking on the surface and no cracking.....

Flip it on a hot tawa...

Flip to the other side in 30 seconds...

Wait for another 30 seconds and then fluff it up on open flame.

The Ragi ki roti is ready. You see this way of making the dough takes about 5-6 minutes if you are using a little more than a cup of Ragi flour and your Ragi rotis come out nice and soft. Most importantly they don't crack and stick to the rolling surface.

Recently I clicked pictures of a quicker method that I worked out to make ragi ki roti and other millet flour rotis and bhakhris. I make a thick slurry or a very loose dough of the flour and microwave it for a minute (for one cup flour and 1 cup and a little more water). Then mash the sticky cooked dough with a sturdy fork or potato masher before kneading it with hand for a few seconds. See these pictures for more details.

The kneaded dough is rolled and cut into smaller portions to roll out rotis like above..

A nice meal with ragi roti is something to look forward to.

I hope this post will be helpful to many who are trying to include gluten free grains or other whole grains in their diet. Ragi has multiple health benefits and I have posted a Ragi dosa, a Ragi uttapam and Ragi Idli in the past. More ways to include this wonderful grain in your daily meals..

Please let me know if this post is helpful to you...

puran poli made easy | step by step recipe of puran poli

A sweet stuffed flat bread that gives the cinnamon roll a run for its' money. That is puran poli for you, a step by step recipe so you can make this decadent soft flat bread for yourself..

Stuffed with a delicate mixture of chickpea and jaggery and lightly spiced with cardamom, rolled out to make a flaky crust encasing a melting goodness of a uniquely sweet filling. As simple as that.

This sweet stuffing is so tasty that it defies the fact that it is made using a simple and cheap ingredient. Actually when I made it for my MIL when I was a newly wed, she guessed it to be khoya and jaggery. The texture of the chickpea cooked with jaggery or sugar becomes almost like khoya and given the fact that a certain khoya paratha was a family favorite there, this sweet puran poli fell in the same category immediately.

I like my puran poli stuffed with a melt in the mouth kind of filling and not a dry crumbling type which makes it tough to swallow the poli without a slug of milk. I have a similar reservation about a certain daal ki puri too which is made with a savory stuffing of chickpea. This melt in the mouth kind of filling is not that tough to make my dear friends. Actually a lot easier than the dry filling. Let's see how to make the filling of puran poli....

ingredients...
(makes about 10-12 puran polis)
for the filling..
chana daal (split chickpea) 1 cup
jaggery powdered 3/4 cup (i used unrefined brown sugar)
green cardamom 2 nos.
water 2 cups
for the pastry..
whole wheat flour 1.5 cup approximately (depends upon how much filling you can stuff in each poli, it is a skill to stuff more filling in a small ball of dough)
pinch of salt
water to knead a dough

procedure for the filling...

Boil the split chickpea in pressure cooker along with the water indicated.
Cook for 7-8 minutes after the first whistle, lowering the flame after the first whistle.
Let the cooker cool down, open the lid and add the jaggery to the cooked daal.

Now cook the daal along with jaggery till the mixture gets a bit thick (about 5 minutes).

It is time to blend the mixture now. A hand held stick blender is a useful device for such things and helps in blending the mixture right inside the pot. I used the stick blender but the mixture can be transferred to the food processor to be blended smooth.

Return the mixture back to the cooker, if doing it in a food processor and continue to cook for about 5 more minutes to condense the mixture. Transfer to a bowl .

The mixture still looks a little loose consistency to make a chapati filling. But the secret to a melt in the mouth kind of filling is this consistency of the filling mixture. Almost like molten chocolate.

It has to be kept in the fridge so it gets a little harder and manageable when cold. It will be easier to stuff inside the poli after this, but when the poli is roasted on the pan the filling will again become soft and melting kind.

Look how it looks after a half an hour rest in the fridge. It is a small portion and needs lesser time in the fridge. For large quantities you will need to keep it longer in the fridge.

As I said, stuffing the mixture inside the poli is a skill but a few pointers can work wonders if you follow them carefully. I am not uploading any pictures of the stuffing process as the instructions will be enough to understand and also because the hands get really messy and clicking pictures during stuffing is not a possibility.

Just follow the instructions and note the pointers.

procedure for the pastry...

Knead a dough exactly when required, kneading enough to make it soft and elastic and a little softer than roti dough. Refrigerated dough does not behave well with a meting type filling.

The consistency of the dough should be exactly like the filling, so if the filling is soft, the dough should be as soft, or just a bit harder than that.

Use finer dusting flour to roll the poli, using maida for dusting is a good option as whole wheat flour does not stretch as much as maida.

Also, if you are making puran poli for the first time, use maida instead of whole wheat flour to make the dough as it will be easier to roll with such a tricky filling.


Pinch a small portion of the dough, make a ball and then make a depression in the middle to shape it like a bowl. Now spoon out a bigger portion of filling and place inside the dough bowl, stretch the edges and seal the bowl to make a ball again.

Use some dusting and flatten the ball with your fingers on the rolling board first before rolling it with the help of rolling pin. Some of the filling mixture may look like being exposed and it enhances the taste but take care not to let the filling leak out of the pastry. A thin even layer of pastry over a rich filling is what you have to work for.

Carefully lift the poli and flip it over the hot pan. Roast both sides till pinkish brown patches are formed and the poli is cooked through. Apply little ghee after taking the poli off the heat.

 Repeat to make more polis and keep them in a butter paper lined container. Serve hot.

See how the filling is exposed and yet held up together inside thin layer of pastry. A right consistency of the dough makes it possible and rolling it with soft even hands is also critical. The taste will anyways be great with such a flavorful filling but if the poli is rolled perfectly it will make the effort worth.

Such a dark color of the filling is due to the dark brown colored unrefined sugar I used. This kind of filling makes a really nice and soft puran poli whose puran doesn't get crumbly and scatter in the plate. It sticks to the pastry and melts in the mouth when you take a bite.

Use of whole wheat for the pastry and a dark brown colored filling makes a rustic looking puran poli, but the taste will blow your mind away.

We have always liked it this way, the way we were introduced to this dish in younger times.

Puran poli had come to our house through a marathi friend of my younger sister and this is the way they used to make it. We adopted it and it stayed with us the same way.

Leftovers polis reheated in the microwave are great for breakfast with a glass of milk or as a meal with a bowl of fresh yogurt Although it goes well with some sweet and sour kind of pumpkin curry too, we always try and have it in more than one ways whenever I make it....

The puran (filling) keeps well in the fridge and a freshly made dough is all needed to make fresh polis anytime.

Have you tried any flat bread with a sweet filling? Some friends tell me it tastes great with fresh coconut milk. I am yet to try that.

Indian flat breads : aloo kulcha, sourdough or yeast flat bread stuffed with potatoes

Aloo kulcha or alu kulcha, a baked flatbread stuffed with potatoes that can become a favourite if made well. The recipe is easy to follow and that makes it even better.

This is the third post in the Indian flat breads series. There will be more flat breads in the future but these three were prepared in the last two weeks or so and are being posted in one go. This aloo kulcha is the most favorite kind of flat bread here, along with the paneer kulcha. Needless to say this is the most repeated type of kulcha here in my home .

The dough ingredients and procedure is same as the whole wheat kulcha. The stuffing is made with boiled potatoes, finely diced onions, chopped green chillies to taste, chopped green coriander leaves (or methi leaves sometimes) and salt n pepper to taste.

Stuff the potato mixture into the dough balls, it's better if you can fill large amount of stuffing into the kulcha as it comes out more flavorful. The amount of stuffing should be a bit more than the size of the dough ball. It's not difficult if you take care that the stuffing consistency is similar to the dough consistency, it is stuffed with ease and then it is flattened with ease too ... with the help of your wet fingers of course.

Bits of stuffing peeping through the dough layer looks good and tastes good too. Spread the flattened kulcha on the hot griddle in one quick motion .

And wait till one side is browned and the kulcha comes out of the griddle easily. It can be baked over naked flame like the plain kulcha but if it is too heavy due to the stuffing it falls down in the process. So using a wire mesh is convenient....

Repeat with the kulchas asI know you would want to make many of them.

This particular kulcha is great even when cold and may be a great tiffin box option with suitable side dishes. I make empanadas (baked in the oven) with the same dough and stuffing and that is great for kids tiffin box, easy to hold and eat while talking to friends.

I served it with methi matar malai, a creamy curry with fenugreek leaves and fresh peas. The husband loves to dip the aloo kulchas in fresh creamy curds of fresh malai and he wants a bowl of malai (preferably) of dahi along with it.

See how the kulcha is crisp on the outside and soft and spongy inside...

I like big chunks of potatoes and not too fine onion , you can keep the potatoes finely mashed or whatever way you like. The recipe just needs to illustrate the process of baking these kulchas over gas flame basically .... the stuffing can be varied and adjusted to taste .. 

These tips and tricks to make great kulcha or naan will be handy whenever you start to make these alu kulchas. Do let me know if you try this recipe.

Enjoy...

indian flatbreads : whole wheat kulcha recipe, the way they make it on the streets of old Delhi

Kulcha is a yeasted flat bread and is commercially available in the northern India, especially in Delhi. The traditional kulcha dough is fermented with sourdough starter or the dough is left to ferment naturally and then flat breads are made in tandoor. But now a days the commercially available variety is baked in modern commercial ovens, made with yeasted dough they are soft spongy and spotless white sprinkled with some herbs sometimes.

Delhi street vendors sell chhole kulche on a typical street cart carrying a wide brass handi (urn) for the piping hot chhole. They use the ready made kulche out of packets,  just toasting the kulcha quickly on a hot griddle with some butter and serving with hot chhole. I have tasted that chhole kulchea few times and it is the best kind of street food you can find in Delhi.

Here comes the same bazar wala kulcha made with whole wheat flour ... I have tried baking this kulcha over the griddle, in the oven and in the microwave in the past and this version which involves cooking the kulcha first in the microwave and then toasting on the griddle works best to make it just like the ready made ones. They look and feel just like the ready made  kulche (when made with maida) when they are just out of the microwave, white and spotless. After microwaving they can be kept in the fridge and toasted when required. I have been getting requests from many of my friends for this bazaer wale kulche, so friends... the wait is over.

Here they are, toasted on the griddle for those brown spots....

Before moving to the recipe i must make it clear that it is somewhat similar to the pita bread and the pizza base available ready made in the markets, but this kulcha is thinner and softer and can be folded without breaking, as is shown in the pictures. The best part is, it can be made with the same yeasted dough. Just keep the dough a bit softer and you will see how the texture of the bread changes.

ingredients...

whole wheat flour 2 cups
all purpose flour (maida) 2 tbsp
salt to taste
any oil of your choice 1 tsp
mint or coriander leaves to garnish the breads
vegetable oil for greasing
fresh yeast 1 tsp (or dry active yeast 1/4 tsp, or sourdough starter)
sugar 1 tsp

procedure...

Heat a cup of water to 40 degree C or just warm to touch. Dissolve sugar into it and add the fresh or dry yeast to it. Keep this water in a warm place and wait till it gets frothy.

Add the maida and salt, it usually gets more frothy while adding the maida and becomes like a slurry. Whisk this slurry for a couple of minutes (it helps the dough to get a stretch). Add the remaining wheat flour and knead a soft dough adding some lukewarm water as needed.

Keep the dough in a warm place to rise and become double in quantity. At this stage the dough can be kept in the fridge too for a couple of days and then proceed with the rest of the process...bring it to room temperature and them keep it warm to proceed.

Punch the dough and make small balls, keep the balls greased and covered ....wait till they rise to double. Flatten the dough balls on a greased rolling board using your oiled fingers, brush plain water on the surface and stick some mint or coriander leaves. 

In the picture you can see the spotless microwave cooked  kulcha on the left side in the ceramic plate, on the right side you can see how i pressed the dough with hands to flatten it on the rolling board (chakla) and then coriander leaves are stuck to it.

As I said the dough for this flat bread needs to be a bit soft, so it is a bit tacky to roll using a rolling pin sometimes, using your fingers to flatten it is far more convenient.

I prefer keeping a hot griddle ready when the kulcha comes out of the microwave, toast the kulcha with some butter and it gets lightly browned in just a few seconds..

I served the kulcha with cheat's version of matar paneer, as I didn't want to have chhole with these whole wheat kulche. Matar paneer or any mutton curry is a great accompaniment to these whole wheat kulchas.

indian flatbreads : recipe of whole wheat naan, tips and trick to make naan at home

There are many types of Indian flat breads and the most common is our daily roti or chapati .The roti can get thinner to make roomali roti and a bit thick and fluffy or flaky to become a rot or moti roti of several types.

The leavened breads are kulcha or naan. Naan and kulcha can have many variants further. Parathas are shallow fried flat breads made in a zillion avatars, plain, spiced, stuffed or layered. Parathas can be folded or rolled to make a hundred something layers or stuffed with sweet or savory goodness.

Oh and then there are the fried pooris .... are you till counting ??

Forget it. Just think about what suits with your curry the most and get going. I had a few requests for whole wheat naan and kulcha recipes and I was procrastinating as usual. The credit goes to GB who writes a wonderful blog Peacocks and Paislies, she requested for naans and kulchas while complementing my blog hugely. See what complements can do to me :-)

So I made naans and kulchas and there will be a series of posts on these flat breads. In this post I am including two versions of naan, one is baked on a gas stove and the other is baked in an oven, both of them using the same whole wheat dough.

The ingredients ...

whole wheat flour 1.5 cup
all purpose flour 1 cup
egg 1 no.
fresh curds 3/4 cup
baking powder 1 tsp
baking soda 1/2 tsp
salt to taste

Procedure for the dough...

Mix the flours and the baking powder, baking soda and salt, make a well in the center and break the egg into it. Add the curds too and mix the liquids first and then incorporate the flour into it adding a little water to make a soft pliable dough. Keep the dough aside for an hour or so. In the fridge it keeps for a day.

Procedure to bake the naan on gas stove ...

Heat a tawa or griddle. Keep a shallow bowl of water nearby.

Make small balls of the dough depending on the size of naan you want. Flatten the balls either by tapping your palms or on the rolling board. A round, oval or a typical drop shaped naan can be made as required. To make it drop shaped you have to pinch one side with your thumb and index finger and pull to stretch, though it is optional.

Dip the flattened naan in the bowl of water and spread on the griddle in one quick motion. If you are patting the naan flat using your palms, you will need to wet your palms to flatten them smoothly and then the naan will be already wet and needs not be dipped into the bowl of water.

A wet naan will stick to the griddle until it is cooked properly even if you invert the griddle, which you are going to do just after this. Wait till small bubbles appear on the surface, patting or rolling the other naans at the same time, if you are used to making chapatis it's not at all difficult. 2-3 naans can be baked on the tawa at a time and this makes it so easy for the cook, especially when you have to bake too many naans. Now is the time to invert the tawa over the gas flame to cook the naan on the other side and to get those spots...

Keep the flame under control as you don't want charred naans. The naans will get unstuck as soon as they are cooked through, use a pair of tongs to remove them. Butter them lightly immediately by rubbing a cold cube of butter over them, or you may want to serve it with a blob of butter melting enticingly.

Serve right away as the crisp exterior and soft flaky interiors of the naan are best when hot, once it cools down it becomes soft, still good but everybody likes a hot naan and you know that.

We had this naan with chicken n chickpea curry, that is, our chicken chhole with some spinach thrown in, a healthy meal. Most of the people love the naan with a butter gravy but it's a rarity at our place ...

I personally like this tawa baked naan, you may like it baked in the oven so I made that way too....

baking the whole wheat naan in the oven...

Flatten the same dough and arrange on a greased baking tray. I spread finely chopped garlic and little butter on top of the naans to make garlic naan. Garlic paste or chopped garlic can be added to the dough if you like it that way.

Bake till pinkish brown, insert a knife under the naan to see if the naan is cooked through. It should get unstuck promptly and should be lighter in weight. You may want to butter them again before serving....

As I mentioned, I personally like the tawa baked naan as it seems easier for me to make (or for anybody who make chapatis everyday) plus this one stays soft and flaky even when it has cooled. The oven baked whole wheat or even maida naan gets a bit chewy so consume those right away.


Tips and tricks to make great whole wheat naan at home...

1.  Knead the dough really well by stretching and folding it several times till it gets elastic. It imparts flakiness in naans.
2. Keep the dough soft and sticky if you can manage. It gives a nice crust and the crumb remains soft and flaky that way.
3. It is best to make the dough balls in advance and keep them covered with a wet cotton napkin. Pat it with hands or roll with soft pressure. This allows the naan to become more fluffy.
4. Wet the naans before patting them on the griddle. It helps to achieve a great crust and the naan sticks to the griddle giving you a chance to invert the griddle and flame it for a while. This gives you results closer to an actual tandoor.
5. Serve the naans immediately after being baked, topped with butter. If you need to keep them for a while you can butter them and stack them over a cotton napkin. It helps the naans stay warm till served and soft too. Once buttered the naans can be reheated on flame if required.
   

Now a quick recipe of chicken wale chhole....


Chicken (boneless breast pieces  are used for this. A large piece including the backbone and ribs is boiled along with the soaked chickpeas so that all the chicken flavor comes into the gravy.

Then a bhuna masala paste is fried along with the boneless chicken pieces on low heat, till the chicken gets cooked. The boiled chickpeas are added and given a good boil. I added baby spinach and coriander leaves in the end and served hot with these hot naans.

One thing to take care while making the naans with whole wheat flour, it will not be as soft and flaky as the white flour ones but it's perfectly good otherwise. They are soft with a nice bite (and not chewy as the maida ones get as soon as they get colder even while eating) and the flaky character of naan is retained to a lesser extent.

This recipe of naan is mostly followed by the restaurants because it is quick and doesn't need yeast or sourdough. But in homes it was made with sourdough always. If you want to bake sourdough whole wheat naans and kulchas you can follow the sourdough recipes here.

Hope this post helps you bake whole wheat naans easily at home. Do write to me for queries and feedback. I always appreciate hearing back from you.