Besan (Gram Flour) Puda (Dosa)
January 18th, 2007 filed under Miscellaneous, VeganThis is a great dish to serve for breakfast or a light lunch. This recipe is quick to prepare and can be served many different ways.
Makes 5 pudas.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup besan (gram flour)
- 1/4 cup rice flour (optional)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon chopped green chilies
- 1 cup shredded zucchini (Italian squash) (shred the zucchini with the skin on)
- 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro (green coriander)
- About 6 tablespoons of oil to cook
Method
In a bowl, mix the besan (gram flour), rice flour (which helps for the crispness), salt, and cumin seeds. Add the water slowly. Mix until there are no lumps and the batter is smooth. Add the chopped green chilies, chopped cilantro (green coriander) and shredded zucchini. Mix well.
Use a non-stick skillet and place on medium-high heat. To check if the skillet is ready, put a few drops of water on it. If the water sizzles right away, the skillet is ready. Now pour about 1/2 cup of the mixture and spread the batter evenly on the skillet, using the back of a serving spoon. Starting from the center, spread in circular motion outwards until it is evenly spread. Spread to about 7 inch diameter circles.
The top of the puda should start drying. Put 1 teaspoon of oil and spread over gently, using a flat spatula. Lift the puda from one side using a flat spatula (A flat spatula makes it easy to flip the puda). Flip the puda when it turns golden-brown. Next, press the puda lightly with the spatula all around so the puda cooks evenly. The puda should be golden brown on both sides to ensure it is crispy.
Serving Suggestions
- You can serve the puda with yogurt, chutney, spicy pickles, or ketchup.
- You can also fold the puda with shredded cheddar cheese, sliced tomatoes, or roasted vegetables.
Variations
- The zucchini can be replaced with finely chopped spinach, shredded potatoes, or very finely shredded cabbage.
- If you make the puda without vegetables, do not use rice flour. This will cause the pudas to be very dry.
- If you don’t have cilantro, you may replace with ground coriander powder. If you don’t have green chilies, you may replace with red chilly powder or flakes.
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July 22nd, 2008 at 5:46 pm
Hi Shehla,
This is a nice forum because there are people from so many countries who write their questions or comments.
Dosas are a classic south Indian dish - cooked like a very thin pancake and served with south Indian style lentils (Sambhar) and coconut chutney and/or wrapped around spicy potatoes. Cheela are slightly thicker and a little softer. There is a lot of variations to both dosa and cheela.
If you have a chance to go to a south Indian restaurant, give dosas a try.
July 22nd, 2008 at 3:19 pm
Hi Jaya,
Thanks a lot for your advice.I really appreciate it.Well Cheela is also not a familiar term for me as I am from Pakistan,my parents are from Delhi,and I think doosas are not popular in that part of India
Thanks again.
July 22nd, 2008 at 2:27 pm
Hi Shehla,
At the bottom of the recipe there is a section for Variations. It will give you ideas for how you can substitute or even omit certain ingredients. You will see it for the Besan Dosa too. It will help answer your question about the zucchini.
This dish is like something called “cheela” in Hindi if that is a more familiar term to you.
July 22nd, 2008 at 2:18 pm
Dear Auntie,
I am not familiar with doosas,anyway I did try the moong daal doosa and it turned out great.Now I want to try the BESAN DOOSA, so is it necessary to add shredded zuccini or can I substitute it with something else or just eliminate it from the recipe.
Thanks a million.
July 13th, 2008 at 6:43 am
Thank you for this recipe! It was tasty, filling, crispy and good! Oh, and also fast.
July 8th, 2008 at 11:34 pm
[...] does not have to be combined with other flours (although it can). Try a French socca, and Indian Besan Puda, or a Sicilian [...]
June 30th, 2008 at 10:09 am
hello aunty ji
I love your recipies I make them all the time and they always taste lovely
god bless you and have a long life
June 23rd, 2008 at 1:09 pm
Hii Manjula aunty…
I have tried a lot of ur recipies… They always come out very good… This puda was excellent… I & husband had it for dinner… A wonderful recipe… The cheese version was Amazing… Thanks a lot.. U take so much effort to teach us!! Thank u so much…
Priya!
May 31st, 2008 at 12:28 pm
Can you design a ‘printer friendly’ feature on your website? I am excited to try some of your recipes! I am gluten intolerant, so I am ready to try some new flours. Thank you for sharing. Laureen
May 12th, 2008 at 3:28 am
I tried this besan puda recipe and found it fantastic! I was looking for a quick recipe that used chick-pea flour to have a proteic breakfast (I prefer savoury to sweet) and this is great: very tasty and quick.
Thank you for all the work you are doing. Regards, Dorica (Italy).
May 2nd, 2008 at 4:47 pm
Hello Rita, you can add pinch of it other wise fenugreek powder will give bitter taste.
May 2nd, 2008 at 6:00 am
Thank you so much for this recipe! I’ve been looking for a dosa recipe that uses flours and does not require a food processor and overnight fermentation. I am wondering if you ever add methi/fenugreek to this recipe? I bought the powder, thinking I’d be mixing it with the other flours, but I don’t know how much to add or if I should add it at all…
Please let me know if you think it would add or subtract to the dish!
Thanks,
Rita
April 15th, 2008 at 4:47 pm
Great dish..Thanks once again aunty!