Instant rice flour dhokla
There are not many occasions when mil tells me to take over the kitchen and it sure as hell is worth preserving such memories on a blog :D. My peripa was in town for a few weeks & they were coming over for an evening cuppa chai.. well coffee mostly. Mil did not want to make pakoras or bajiyas since just the morning of the very same day, my cousin had a small house warming party & there was an overload of food there including vadais. So mil thought something light & non oily would be a great option but she couldn’t come up with any options herself. When I suggested dhokla, she liked the idea but said i’d have to do it since she doesn’t have ‘EXPERTISE’ in that area. I literally wanted to freeze that moment you know :). When expert cooks like mil/ mom & other moms out there say stuff like that, they don’t realise what a huge compliment that is :D. So I was super glad to take on the job but didn’t want to try the usual besan dhoklas (the khaman/ common dhoklas??!!). My friend’s wife makes these really awesome white dhoklas that they call khatta dhoklas. The traditional way is to soak up rice & make a batter using the grinder or you could use ready made mixes available. I did not want either of these methods and I tried to do something similar to the besan dhokla from my site and instead using rice flour. It was a super duper hit this one. My nephew (8 yo) loved it as much as my cousin & the rest. My nephew loved it so much that right after I clicked these pics, he gobbled them off right off this very same plate that I usually use just for photos :D. Mil feels the next time around we make this, we should try adding some rava/ sooji for an added texture. And ooh, this kinda tastes somewhere in between more kali & vadaam koozh (for the uninitiated.. all I can say is you guys don’t know something that holds supreme importance in my life :D). For those of you who know of it, am pretty sure you guys must love both those supreme food & this one alike :D. So try it out.
- 1 cup rice flour
- 2 nos green chillies
- 1 inch ginger
- 1.5 tsp eno fruit salt
- 1/2 tsp asafoedita
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup thick curd
- 1.25 cups water
- 1 tsp refined oil
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- a pinch asafoedita
- a few curry leaves
- a small handful fresh coriander leaves
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In a wide pan/ kadai, dry roast rice flour for a few minutes (max 5 minutes) on medium heat (the flour shouldn't turn brown).
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Turn off the heat & let the flour cool down.
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Meanwhile, grind together green chillies & ginger into a paste (Add 1 tsp of water if required).
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Once the flour cools down, add eno, asafoedita, salt & sugar. Mix well.
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To this add, whisked curd, water & green chilil/ ginger paste. Mix well to form a batter.
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The batter consistency will have to resemble the consistency of that of idli batter.
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Grease a plate/ idli plate & pour the batter.
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Steam for 15-20 minutes. You can insert a tooth pick into the dhokla to check if it's done.
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Turn off the heat once done & keep the lid closed for a few minutes.
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Open, take out the plate/ idli plate & cut into pieces/ scoop out the pieces.
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In a small pan, heat 1 tsp oil & prepare a seasoning using mustard seeds, green chillies, curry leaves, & add coriander leaves once you turn off the heat.
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Pour this seasoning on the dhoklas & spread.
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Serve the dhoklas warm alongside some green chutney/ red chutney (or ketchup in my case).
- The dry roasting of the flour should be done just for a few minutes. My mil said you know its roasted enough when you pick up a bit in between your thumb/ index finger & you are able to draw a line easily without it sticking to your fingers.
- Eno fruit salt helps in fluffing up the dhoklas & should be added right before we intend to make it. If you intend of resting your batter a bit before making it, I suggest adding this in the end.
- While making the batter, add 1 cup of water first & then add the extra 0.25 cups as required.
- I found it a bit tricky with this one to figure out if it was cooked or not. It took a few minutes longer than the traditional idlis. I stuck in a toothpick to the center of a few pieces of the dhokla (after wetting it in water). Once it came out clean, knew the dhokla was cooked.
Stepwise pictures
In a wide pan/ kadai, dry roast rice flour for a few minutes on medium heat.
Just stir/ mix everything every minute to make sure the flour gets evenly roasted.
After 5 minutes, turn off the heat and let the flour cool down. The colour of the flour should still be white.
Meanwhile, in a small mixer jar add together a big piece of ginger & some green chillies.
Grind it into a paste. Add a bit of water if required (~1 tsp).
Once the flour is cooled down, add the other dry ingredients (eno fruit salt, salt, asafoedita, sugar) & mix. Add the wet ingredients – whisked curd, water & ginger green chilli paste. Mix everything well. Add 1 cup water at first & if required add the rest of it.
The batter should be of the same consistency as that of idli batter.
Grease a plate (or small idli plate in my case) with some oil/ ghee & pour the batter into the plate.
Steam for 15-20 minutes. You can insert a tooth pick into the dhokla to check if it’s done. Turn off the heat once done & keep the lid closed for a few minutes. Open, take out the plate/ idli plate & cut into pieces/ scoop out the pieces. In a small pan, heat 1 tsp oil & prepare a seasoning using mustard seeds, green chillies, curry leaves, & add coriander leaves once you turn off the heat. Pour this seasoning on the dhoklas & spread.
Serve the dhoklas warm alongside some green chutney/ red chutney (or ketchup in my case).
