Puran Poli

Puran Poli is the traditional Maharashtrian flat bread. It’s basically whole wheat flat bread stuffed with jaggery and lentil filling. In this the lentil used is the split skinned bengal gram or channa dal. The flour is kneaded with clarified butter and water. Prior to the dough making, the stuffing is prepared. And finally they are rolled and stuffed and further rolled to a round shaped flat bread cooked with a griddle on the fire. It’s finally seasoned with clarified butter to give that extra texture .

In the state of Maharashtra it’s prepared on the Ganesh Chaturthi or celebrations like Diwali, Navratri or Gudi Padwa. In Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh they prepare a nearly close dish but with slight variations called as Obbattu or Bobbatlu or Holige. The later dishes uses all purpose flour and either channa dal or toor dal sometimes flavored with coconut. I learnt this dish from one of my close friend and I make it at-least once in a year.

This year, on the first day of the Navratri, when the home was filled with festive mood I cooked Puran Poli. Here goes the recipe:

Ingredient:

For the stuffing:

1. Channa Dal – 1 cup
2. Jaggery – 1 cup grated or ground
3. Ghee – 1 tbsp
4. Elaichi Powder or Cardamom Powder – 1 tsp
5. Salt – a pinch

For the dough:

1. Whole Wheat Flour or Atta – 2 cups
2. Clarified Butter or Ghee –  2 tbsp
3. Water – to knead the dough
4. Salt – 1 tsp

Steps of Preparation:

Steps of Preparation of the Filling:

1. Soak the Channa Dal for about 2-3 hs.

   

2. Take a wide bottomed sauce pan or vessel and add 2 cups of water to the Channa dal and let it cook for about 30-40 mins.

   

    

   

3. Then after the Channa Dal is cooked you can mash it and add the clarified butter, Jaggery, salt and Cardamom Powder.

   

   

4. Mix thoroughly the mashed mixture and cook for about more 15 mins until the entire stuffing is dehydrated.

   

   

5. Let the mixture cool, so you can scoop out the small portion and make a small laddoo shaped balls.

   

Steps of Preparation of Dough:

1. Slowly add water to the whole wheat flour or atta.
2. Knead till the dough is soft. It approximately takes around 10-12 mins.
3. After it’s completely kneaded, cover the dough with a wet muslin cloth and let it breathe in the air. This process makes it fluffy.

Steps of Preparation of Puran Poli:

1. Make a large sized ball and roll it into a small round of radius 2.5 cm, which is similar to the size of a poori.

   

   

2. Put the stuffing in the center of the rolled dough.

   

3. After adding the stuffing, try pinching off the excess dough after enclosing the stuffing in the centre of the small ball.

   

   

4. Roll the small round shaped dough into the round shaped poli or paratha.

   

5. Heat a griddle (tawa), place the rolled Poli.
6. Heat the Poli till bubble comes. Flip it once and let the other side brown properly.

   

7. Add 1 tsp of ghee / clarified butter and brush it to the top facing side.

   

8. Flip the Poli and repeat the previous step.
9. Heat the Poli till it is golden brown.