Maharashtrian
Puran Poli
- Duration: 25 minutes
- Serves: 2 to 4 people
-
Spice Level: Zero
Authenticity Slice
Try serving Puran Polis with dry potato subzi, plain rice and Katachi Amati (sweet and sour lentil soup) to make it a full meal. It is always a good idea to use milk instead of water to knead the dough with, as it makes the Puran Polis softer and more succulent. You could also use arhar dal along with chana dal to make them thinner. If the chana dal mixture becomes too dry, add in some poha or a spoon of rice flour to even it out.
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Trivia Tadka
Puran Poli is a Maharashtrian sweet dish that is usually made using split Bengal gram. It is a must-make during the festivals of Holi, Diwali and Ganesh Chaturthi. In the Vidarbha region of eastern Maharashtra, the Puran Polis are softer, since the stuffing is made of jaggery. In western Maharashtra, however, powdered white sugar is the preferred stuffing, resulting in crunchy Puran Polis.
Ingredients
For Stuffing:
- Split chickpeas (chana dal) (¾ cup)
- Water (2½ cups)
- Sugar, powdered (¾ cup)
- Green cardamom (hari elaichi) powder (a pinch)
- Saffron (kesar) (a few strands)
For Poli
- Wheat flour (atta) (2 cups)
- Salt (a pinch)
- Oil (1 tbsp)
- Water (⅓ cup)
- Ghee (for frying and garnish)
Method
For the stuffing
- Wash and soak the dal in water overnight.
- Discard the water the following day. Then, add the dal to a pressure cooker along with 2½ cups of fresh water and cook through 4 whistles.
- Drain the water and mash the dal.
- Mix the mashed dal and the powdered sugar and add to a kadhai placed on medium heat. Keep stirring continuously.
- The sugar should soon melt and start to thicken.
- In a cup, mix kesar with 2tbsp warm milk. Add the kesar –milk to the sugar mixture.
- Once the mixture has dried and thickened, turn off the flame and let it cool.
For the Poli
- Mix together the atta, salt and oil, and by adding a little water at a time, knead into a smooth and soft dough. Cover and let it rest for 15 minutes.
- Divide the dough and the dal mixture into 6 equal portions.
- Take a dough ball and roll it out into a circle about 3-inches in diameter. Place a portion of the stuffing at the centre of the circle.
- Gather the edges of the dough, bring them together at the centre, and pat till it is sealed.
- Using a rolling pin, gently flatten the stuffed dough pocket into a roti-sized Poli.
- Place a tawa on a medium flame and fry the Puran Poli on it using a little ghee, just like you would a paratha.
- Slather some more ghee on top and serve.
