Bengali dhokar dalna (fried lentil cakes in potato and tomato gravy)
Indian cuisine › Bengali · Curries With Bumbi · ♥ 1.1K likes · 45.5K views · 9 min video
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Ingredients
Method
Techniques
- ½ cup chana dal
- ½ cup mutter dal
- water
Soak half a cup each of chana dal and yellow split peas overnight in plenty of water; drain.
- ginger
- 1 whole green chilli
- 2–3 tbsp water
Blend the lentils with a few pieces of ginger, a green chilli and two to three tablespoons of water to a thick, slightly grainy paste, not too fine or the dhokas will be dense.
- hing (asafoetida)
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- ½ tsp sugar
- 0.125 tsp baking soda
Mix in a pinch of hing, half a teaspoon each of salt, turmeric and sugar, and an eighth of a teaspoon of baking soda.
Seasoning the paste
- 2 tsp oil
- 1 tbsp oil
Heat a tablespoon of oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat (not too hot), add the lentil paste and stir continuously on medium-low until it comes together like a dough; switch off at once or it gets too dry.
Spread the dough on the oiled plate and flatten with a spatula or damp fingers; cool completely.
Setting and cutting the dhokas
- 4 tbsp oil
Shallow fry in four tablespoons of oil over medium heat until golden brown on both sides, not too dark or they cannot soak up the gravy; fry in batches and handle gently.
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- ¼ cup water
Mix a spice paste of a teaspoon of turmeric, two teaspoons of Kashmiri chilli powder, a teaspoon of cumin powder and about a quarter cup of water.
Spice paste and whole spices
- 3 tbsp oil
- 2 whole green cardamoms
- 1 whole small cinnamon stick
- 2 whole cloves
- 3 whole small bay leaves
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 whole dry red chilli
Heat three tablespoons of oil in a pot, lower the heat and add two green cardamoms, a small cinnamon stick, two cloves, three small bay leaves, a teaspoon of cumin seeds and a dry red chilli; let the cumin splutter without burning.
- potato
- ¼ tsp hing (asafoetida)
- 1 tbsp finely grated ginger
Add the potatoes, a quarter teaspoon of hing, a tablespoon of grated ginger and the spice paste; stir a few seconds on low.
- tomatoes
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ cup water
Add chopped tomatoes, a teaspoon of salt and a quarter cup of water; cover on medium three minutes to soften, then cover again until the potatoes are tender.
- 2 cup hot water
- 2 tsp sugar
Add about two cups of hot water, since the dhokas soak up the gravy; taste, add a little salt and two teaspoons of sugar.
- 1 tsp garam masala powder
When the gravy boils, add the dhokas and their crumbs and a teaspoon of garam masala; cover on very low heat five to six minutes.