Handvo and Dhokla are the two most famous exports of Gujarati cuisine. And if you are well versed with Gujarati cooking ways, you are sure to churn-up numerous varieties of slow and instant versions of both these farsan. Yes, they fall under the category of farsan/snack. However, they can happily qualify for a one-pot meal. The contents of conventional Handvo-Dhokla flour are rice+lentils with millets added to liking. Still, if you choose to be adventurous and break the boundaries, the sky is the limit with the options to create these farsans.
While most of us now prefer to use handvo+dhokla flour bought from the neighbourhood flour mill, the generations before us always had mixed and milled their own flour for Handvo-Dhokla mix. Care was taken to include an heirloom variety of glutinous and aromatic rice along with lentils, both in Kanki/broken form. The mixed grains were washed and sun-dried before milling. The flour mix makes a convenient option, especially for agrarian folks who tend to their farms in the early morning and lack time for the soak grains+grind+ferment ritual. Unlike the urban thali, where either of this duo can be part of the meal, the rural communities make Handvo or Dhokla for dinner and eat it with milk. Hence, they set the batter to ferment in the morning by mixing the flour with cultured sour buttermilk and go on to cook it for dinner which is usually before sunset.
The beginning notes to making them can be pretty similar i.e. you set the batter to ferment. After which, you can take it either way. Add a bunch of ingredients, bake it into a crusty handvo or keep it minimal and steam out spongy dhoklas. Either way, it is just as delicious.
Selecting a folk rice for this dish
The rice selected for handvo can be a combination of slightly sticky grains to produce an idli rawa-like consistency and aid fermentation and aromatic rice for fragrance and flavor. Here we have used Krishna Kamod, but any medium grain like Pal Thondi, Kuji Patalia, Bihari Marcha Chawal or similar will work.
Krishna Kamod na Chokha no Handvo
Ingredients
- 2 cups rice, small grained, slightly sticky, aromatic rice is preferred
- 1 cup peas boiled
- 1 cup bottle-gourd grated
- 1 medium sized potato finely chopped
- 3/4 cup sour yogurt
- 1/2 cup broken cashews
- 2 tablespoons raisins
- 1 tablespoon jaggery/sugar
- 4 tablespoons ginger and chilli paste
- 1 inch fresh turmeric rhizome, minced or 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1/2 teaspoon red chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1/4 cup sesame seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon asafoetida
- 4-5 dried red chillies, round ones preferred
- 2 cloves
- 1 inch cinnamon stick
- 1/4 cup groundnut oil
- 1/4 cup coriander, chopped
- salt to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
Instructions
- Wash and soak the rice for 5-6 hours
- After the rice has soaked, drain and grind it to a coarse batter with very little water.
- Transfer the batter to a stainless steel or ceramic bowl.
- Add the yogurt to the batter. Mix well.
- The consistency of the batter should be thicker than idli batter.
- Allow the batter to ferment over-night or 6-8 hours.
- Once the batter has fermented, add the boiled peas, grated bottle-gourd, chopped potatoes, ginger + chilies, minced turmeric, red chilli powder, jaggery and salt. If required, add some water to bring the batter to idli batter/cake consistency.
- Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a small kadai over medium flame. Add half the mustard seeds, half the sesame seeds, asafoetida, cloves, cinnamon, red chillies, cashews, raisins and add the tempered mix to the rice-veggie batter.
- In a well-seasoned skillet, preferably one with a handle, add 1 tablespoon oil, add the remaining mustard and sesame seeds. Pour the batter over the oil, level and cover it. Cook the handvo on a gentle flame.
- Once the top of the Handvo has firmed up, and you notice a golden browning of the sides, place a plate over the top of the cooking pan, hold it with your left hand and with the right on the cooking pot handle, flip the handvo onto the plate.
- Now slide the uncooked side back into the skillet. Pour some oil on the sides and cook the other side to golden brown. Remember to keep the flame low at all the times.
- By now a skewer inserted in the centre of the Handvo will come out clean. Turn off the flame when that happens.
- 10 minutes after you have turned off the flame, transfer the Handvo on a wire rack and let the crumb set.
- Cut it into wedges and serve with pickle or your choice. Green chutney also works well. And don’t forget the a cup of masala chai.
