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Khaman Dhokla – Indian Steamed Bread

Simple fermented khaman dhokla for a delicious and gluten-free snack
Simple fermented khaman dhokla for a delicious and gluten-free snack
Simple fermented khaman dhokla for a delicious and gluten-free snack

What exactly is khaman dhokla? Well, a dhokla is an Indian steamed bread made from a fermented batter. Like a dosa, it can be made from all sorts of different grains: rice, semolina, lentils, and chickpeas.

Chickpea flour and rice flour fermented khaman. A lightly spiced, steamed bread.

Dhokla has a cake-like structure. It is traditionally eaten for breakfast or snack. It also works as an appetizer. Serve it with your favorite Indian pickle or chutney.

I have made dhokla with soaked lentils and rice, which are then ground up (like a dosa or idli). This recipe is much simpler. It uses chickpea flour and rice flour, so it avoids the grinding required with other dhokla recipes.

DIY Steamer

If you don’t have a steamer here is a simple alternative. I’ve used it for everything from a steamed British pudding to fermented khaman dhokla.

  1. Pour batter into a greased 6-inch cake pan or a greased pudding bowl that is small enough to nest inside a large pot.
  2. Put 2-inches of water into the bottom of the pot.
  3. Place a glass jar on the bottom of the pot that is tall enough to sit just above the water level. A small jam jar works well.
  4. Place your pudding bowl on top of the jar.
  5. Steam with the pot lid on, occasionally checking the water levels. To keep the water from dripping off the top of the pot onto the pudding, either cover the pudding with tinfoil or wrap the pot lid in a tea towel.
Chickpea flour and rice flour fermented khaman. A lightly spiced, steamed bread.
My simple steamer setup.
Print

Khaman Dhokla

Indian-inspired yogurt fermented khaman dhokla as an appetizer.
Print Recipe

★★★★★

5 from 2 reviews

Khaman dhokla is an Indian steamed bread made from a fermented batter. It is traditionally eaten for breakfast or snack but is also nice as an appetizer.

  • Author: Emillie
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 15 minutes
  • Total Time: 20 minutes
  • Yield: Serves 6-8 1x
  • Category: Side Dish
  • Method: Steamed
  • Cuisine: Indian
  • Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

Units Scale

Ferment

  • 3/4 cup chickpea flour
  • 1/4 cup rice flour
  • 1/2 cup yogurt
  • 1/4 cup filtered water (chlorine-free)

Remaining Ingredients

  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp oil

Topping

  • 1 Tbsp oil
  • 1 Tbsp shredded coconut
  • 2 tsp sesame seeds
  • 1 tsp mustard seeds
  • 1 diced chili and 5 curry leaves (optional)
  • 2 Tbsp cilantro

Instructions

  1. Mix the chickpea flour, rice flour, yogurt, and water in a glass container and allow to ferment at room temperature for 8-12 hours.
  2. When you are ready to make the dhokla, mix in the spices, baking soda, and oil.
  3. Pour the batter into a 6-inch cake pan, cover with tinfoil, and steam for 15-25 min (until a knife comes out clean). See the section above for an easy homemade steamer.
  4. Heat the oil and fry the spices and coconut until they are fragrant and just starting to brown.
  5. Pour the toasted spices over the freshly steamed dhokla. Top with cilantro and serve warm.

Notes

  • Though yogurt is traditional in this recipe, feel free to substitute it with milk kefir or buttermilk.
  • Instead of chickpea flour, you could use just rice flour, lentil flour, garfava flour, etc. Though changing the flour would officially change the type of dhokla, it doesn’t really affect the recipe.

Keywords: vegetarian, egg-free, sugar free, bread, cake, savoury, chickpea, rice, lentil, breakfast, dinner

Filed Under: TravelTagged With: Beans, chickpeas, Indian

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Comments

  1. REBECCA LOWE

    May 21, 2018 at 12:27 pm

    I am going to try this this week. I have really been enjoying your blog. I used to make tempe. We were making it in 1993. Then I started having a lot of failures. Thought it might have been the soy beans. I am interested in trying again.

    Reply
    • Emillie

      May 21, 2018 at 12:41 pm

      Thank you! I’ve never had a tempeh failure… so maybe it was your culture? Good luck this time around!

      Reply
  2. Steph C

    July 14, 2018 at 1:35 am

    I have read that fermented vegetables are a cause of stomach cancer in Asia and if you do a web search there are a lot of scientific studies to back this up. I love fermenting veggies so am worried. Have you heard this? Thanks

    Reply
    • Emillie

      July 14, 2018 at 7:25 am

      I know that too much sausage and fermented meats can cause cancer because of the salt and nitrates. And kimchi, with fermented hot peppers can be problematic, because the hot peppers are hard on the stomach. Sauerkraut and other fermented vegetables are beneficial for your stomach and digestive system. However, if you have issues with salt, try using less salt in your ferments by using a good vegetable starter. (I think I link to one in my Resources section).
      Keep Fermenting! Emillie

      Reply
  3. Anonymous

    January 25, 2019 at 2:01 pm

    Can I use greek yogurt or plain yogurt instead of Kefir?

    Reply
    • Emillie

      January 25, 2019 at 4:11 pm

      Yogurt or kefir will both work. I would avoid Greek yogurt as it is too thick.

      Reply
  4. Erica

    April 6, 2020 at 9:31 am

    Hi Emilie! I want to make this recipe and start exploring more fermented foods. Your website will definitely serve as knowledgeable inspiration! Thank you for being here 😉 Now, since I am a complete beginner when it comes to fermenting, I need to ask you, do I ferment at room temperature or in the fridge?

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Emillie

      April 6, 2020 at 10:56 am

      Fermentation always occurs at room temperature. Things may ferment in the fridge, but it really slows everything down. So I store stuff in the fridge when I want to stop the fermentation. 🙂 I recommend checking out this post on basic fermentation advice: https://www.fermentingforfoodies.com/how-to-ferment/
      Cheers, Emillie

      Reply
  5. Ashok

    October 1, 2020 at 2:55 am

    Thanks Guys, Your Recipe Was Too Fantastic. Me and My Family Loved it. I Will definitely Share your Rrecipe with my friends.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Emillie

      October 1, 2020 at 11:31 am

      Thanks!

      Reply

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Hi, I'm Emillie, an island-dwelling fermentation enthusiast. Fermenting For Foodies features healthy recipes designed to feed your microbiome.
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