Chole Bhature - Deep Fried Bread & North Indian Style Curried Chickpeas

Bangalore weather has been very weepy the past few days. The sudden chill got to my bones and I wanted nothing more than to keep my feet curled up underneath me, tuck my blanket around me and snore away to glory. But for some strange reason, images of chole bhature kept creeping into my mind from nowhere, making it impossible to slip into the sinful pleasures of oblivion. (Could this mean I am a glutton?) After tossing and turning around in the darkness for a while, I realized that the only way to catch some sleep would be to give in to this particular call of chole bhature fate. I pulled myself out of bed and dragged my feet to the kitchen, tossed some chickpeas into a pot of water, measured out flour and curd and yeast for the bhature, mixed up my dough and let it rest on the stove, and returned to bed with the happy thoughts of chole bhature warming my heart.

Bhatura is essentially a deep fried leavened bread that is made with plain flour and fermented with curd and sometimes yeast. You have to pair this soft bread with spicy channa masala or chole which is North Indian style curried chickpeas. Warm and hearty, this is a perfect meal for the cold days that await us the rest of this year.

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Bhatura Recipe:

You will need:

3 cups plain flour
2 teaspoons dried yeast
2 teaspoons sugar
5 tablespoons thick curd
1/4 cup lukewarm water
1 tablespoon oil
2 teaspoons salt

To deep fry, oil

Method:


Combine yeast, sugar and water in a bowl, cover and stand in a warm place for about 10 minutes or until the mixture is frothy. 

Sift flour and salt into a large bowl, stir in yeast mixture, oil, salt and curd and mix into a soft dough. Knead dough on a floured surface for about 5 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover and stand in a warm place for about six hours. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, knead until smooth and let it rest for another half an hour.

Depending on how large or small you want the bhatura to be, divide the dough into big or small balls. Dust some plain flour onto your working surface. Using a rolling pin, roll out each ball into slightly thick rounds and keep aside.

Heat oil (enough to deep fry) in a wok over medium high flame. Slide in the rolled out dough into the hot oil and fry on each side for a few seconds till it puffs up and is lightly browned. Make sure that it is fully submerged in oil while frying by pressing it down slightly with your spatula.

Note: You can add an egg to the dough, but you may need to add more flour so that the dough is not too wet.

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Chole Recipe:

You will need:
2 cups raw chickpeas (kabuli chana) + water
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 bay leaf
4-5 pepper corns + 1 cardamom pod + 3 cloves + 1 teaspoon fennel seeds + 1 cm piece cinnamon + 1/2 a star anise
1 tablespoon red chili powder + 1 tablespoon coriande powder + 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
2 onions, slices thinly
1" piece ginger + 4 - 5 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
2 small tomatoes, chopped
1 sprig curry leaves  + 1/4 cup coriander leaves
2 tablespoons oil
1 tablespoon tomato sauce
To taste, salt

Method:
Soak chickpeas overnight. Pressure cook with enough water to cover the chickpeas till done (about 4-5 whistles).

In a pan, heat oil. Add mustard seeds and let them splutter. Add all the spices, bay leaf and curry leaves and fry well. Toss in onions and saute till translucent. Next,  the ginger and garlic need to go in. Reduce heat and add chili powder, coriander powder and turmeric powder. Mix in tomatoes and saute till well softened and the mixture thickens. Add drained chickpeas and mix well. Sprinkle salt to taste, add water as required and boil till the gravy thickens to desired consistency. Finally mix in tomato sauce and sprinkle coriander leaves.

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Serve chole bhature with lemon wedges, onion slices and red hot pickles.

Enjoy!

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