Pithla
loose gram flour curry slackened with sour buttermilk, garlicky and made in ten minutes
Allergens in Pithla: milk, peanuts, mustard.
Ingredients
Quantities for 4.
- 75g Besan
- 400ml, sour Buttermilkthe sourness is the point; cultured buttermilk is already sour
- 8 cloves, crushed Garlic
- 4, slit Green Chilli
- 1 small, finely chopped Onionoptional
- 3 tbsp Groundnut Oil
- 1 tsp Mustard Seeds
- 1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds
- 10 Curry Leaves
- 1/2 tsp Turmeric
- 1/4 tsp Asafoetidause compounded-free hing to keep this gluten-freeoptional
- 150ml Water
- 3 tbsp, chopped Coriander Leavesoptional
- to taste Salt
Cookware
stovetop, kadhai
Checked against the ingredient list for ten allergens: milk, egg, fish, crustaceans, tree nuts, peanuts, sesame, mustard, soy and gluten. Brands vary, so read the label on anything new to you.
Before you start
- Whisk the besan into the cold buttermilk before anything goes on the heat. Lumps formed in a hot pan never come out.
- Sour buttermilk gives pithla its character. Cultured buttermilk is sour already; fresh buttermilk needs a squeeze of lemon stirred in and used straight away. Keep it in the fridge until it goes in the pan.
- Have the bhakri dough ready if you are eating it the proper way; pithla waits for nobody.
Method
- Whisk the besan into the cold buttermilk with the turmeric and salt until completely smooth, then whisk in the water.Push the slurry through a sieve if you see any lumps. Thirty seconds now saves the dish.
- Heat the oil, pop the mustard seeds, then add the cumin, curry leaves and hing.
- Add the garlic and green chilli and fry 1 minute until the garlic smells sweet but has not coloured.
- Add the onion, if using, and cook 4 minutes until soft.
- Pour in the besan slurry in a slow stream, stirring continuously.
- Bring to a gentle boil and simmer 8 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon and the raw besan smell is gone.It thickens a lot as it cools, so pull it off looser than you want to serve it.
- Check the salt, fold through the coriander and pour into bowls.
- Serve immediately with hot jowar bhakri, raw onion and a green chilli.
Storage
Keeps 2 days refrigerated but sets firm. Reheat over low heat with 3 to 4 tbsp water, whisking, until it loosens back to a pouring consistency.
Nutrition Good estimate
One serving of Pithla (209 g) is about 229 calories, or 110 calories per 100 g.
Low protein: 9 g a serving, 15% of the calories
| Per serving209 g | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 229 kcal | 110 kcal |
| Protein | 8.7 g | 4 g |
| Carbohydrate | 21.0 g | 10 g |
| of which sugars | 8.6 g | 4 g |
| Fibre | 3.1 g | 2 g |
| Fat | 12.9 g | 6 g |
| of which saturated | 2.5 g | 1 g |
| of which unsaturated | 9.3 g | 4 g |
Nearest database match used for asafoetida, curry leaves. Estimated from raw ingredients using USDA FoodData Central.
More like this: Quick Indian recipes (30 min) · Healthy Indian recipes · Vegetarian Indian recipes · Gluten-free Indian recipes · Maharashtrian recipes
Times, yields, allergens and nutrition are guidance. Use your own judgement on doneness and on storing. More in About.