Chhole Bhature (Spicy chickpeas curry and fried soft wheat bread).

Made for each other.

Originating from #Punjab (northern part of Indian Subcontinent) #Chhole #Bhature is a world famous food and makes a complete meal. In India these are also often served as street food. #Chhole #Bhature combination is one of the "made for each other" type of food.

When you have Chhole Bhature on the plate, accompanied with onion and green chilies there is no desire of having something else. Quite easy to make, these are a great option for #lunch/#dinner whether its for #guests or for yourself. Everyone #loves Chhole Bhature so you've got one less thing to think about when you are having guests at your place. Different people make this combo in different ways; this is how I make it and I'm always applauded by family and guests every time. So, here I bring the recipe of Punjabi Chhole Bhature for you.

I made these for 5-6 people. You can always adjust quantity accordingly.

List of Ingredients for Chhole:

1. Chhole/White Chickpeas - 3 cups.

2. Tomato Purée - 2 Cups

3. Oil (Any) - 2 tbsp.

4. Salt - per taste.

5. Tea leaves/Chai Patti - 1 tbsp

6. Asafoetida/Heeng - 1 tsp.

7. Cumin Seeds/Jeera - 1.5 tsp.

8. Ajwain/Carom seeds - 1 tsp

9. Turmeric Powder/Haldi - 1 tsp. (Optional if making black/kaale chhole)

10. Chopped Ginger/Adrak - 1 tbsp. (Ginger paste will also do)

11. Red Chili Powder/ Laal Mirch Powder - 1tsp.

12. Chana Masala - 1.5 tsp.

13. Whole Coriander/Saabut Dhaniya - 1 tbsp.

14. Bay Leaf/Tejpatta - 3-4

15. Cinnamon/Daalcheeni - 1 stick

16. Cloves/Laung - 6-7

17. Whole Black Pepper/Saabut Kaali Mirch - 5-6

18. Green Cardamom/Chhoti Elaichi - 2 or 1 Badi Elaichi/Black Cardamom

19. Dry Red Chili/Sabut Laal Mirch - 2

List of Ingredients for Bhature:

1. All Purpose Flour/Maida - 3.5 Cups.

2. Semolina/Sooji - 1/2 cup

3. Salt - as per taste

4. Oil - 2 tbsp.

5. Yogurt/Dahi - 1.5 cups.

6. Baking Soda - 1.5 tsp.

Easy to follow steps:

In a container, add chhole, wash them, then add half tbsp salt and soak them in warm water, preferably overnight or for 5-6 hours. They'll double in size/quantity, and that's when we transfer them in a pressure cooker and add half tbsp salt, 1 bay leaf and a cinnamon stick. To make kaale chhole/pindi chhole, boil one tbsp of tea leaves in 2 cups of water and strain the water into the soaked chhole. You can also use tea bags or tea infuser if you have. Pressure cook it for 5 whistles and leave it at low heat for 10-12 minutes. Let the pressure release on its own and check the chhole once the pressure is completely released.

Meanwhile, mix all purpose flour, semolina, half tbsp salt, yogurt, baking soda and oil together and start binding everything. Add warm water slowly to knead a very soft dough. Cover it with a damp cloth/kitchen towel and let it rest in a warm place (like oven) for at least 3 hours. This step will ensure that dough is getting fermented slightly. I keep it in oven with the bulb on to keep it warm.

Dough preparation (Add water at this stage)

Till the time our dough gets lightly fermented, we will make fresh masala. Roast whole spices (Coriander Seeds, Bay Leaf, Cinnamon, Cardamom, Black Pepper, Cloves, Red Chili) on low flame till they spread aroma. Then make a coarse powder of this roasted blend of spices. I used #Mortar #Pestle for this step.

Now in a pan, heat oil. Add asafoetida, cumin seeds, carom seeds, turmeric powder, chopped ginger and stir it until the ginger is golden brown. Add tomato purée, red chili powder and salt. Simmer purée until oil separates, add chana masala to it and cook for a minute. Pour boiled chhole into the purée and mix well. Check salt and add accordingly. Let curry simmer on low-medium flame/heat for 15 minutes. Keep an eye and stir occasionally to be sure that it does not stick at the bottom. If you want, slightly mash chhole to get a thicker consistency. Now add fresh masala and mix well. Garnish with cilantro/dhaniya and serve hot.

And here's our Chhole! Waiting for Bhature (The Partner)...

Chhole/Chickpea Curry.

Knead bhatura dough well before rolling. Grease rolling pin and board. Make a lemon sized ball of dough and spread it with the help of rolling pin. Bhatura dough tends to shrink as you roll, so make sure you roll it slightly bigger applying pressure to the corners. For frying, heat oil in a kadhai/pan to very high temperature. Now transfer a bhatura in it. Keep pressing bhatura from all the sides so that it puffs up well, before turning it over. Watch this video to learn the tricks -

Our Chhole Bhature is ready with some onion and green chilies.

Enjoy the treat!

Hope you liked the recipe and didn't find it too difficult. Let me know if this recipe got you high on flavors. Don't forget to subscribe for more updates. Leave a comment for any questions/thoughts. Talk to you in my next mouthwatering recipe!