Dholl Puri

Had a pretty cool day. Spent most of the time in the kitchen, giving a helping hand to my other half. Woke up at 9.00 am. After the usual market chores, a quick glance at the weekly news and a copious breakfast (which sustained me until a delayed lunch time at 2.45 pm), settled with the preparation of a special meal.

We often make special preparations on Sundays when everybody is at home. I’m not a good cook though. It’s not my stuff. Sierra does most of it. But I do try my hand on occasions. So what did we cook? Are you used to Indian cuisine? We prepared what we call “dholl puri”. What’s that? Shrugging? OK, let me tell you.

It’s a common quick snack sold everywhere, in the street corners, here in Mauritius. Of Indian origin, it’s a sort of flat bread stuffed with dholl and eaten with “chutney” (oh! Another new stuff, but not as awkward as it may appear – it’s simply a kind of paste made of tomatoes crushed with onions, garlic, coriander leaves and chilies, which are all oriental aromatic stuffs). You may accompany it with any curry or plate (fish, chicken, beef, veggies or whatever) if you wish. We made chicken curry today, right?

Now, for the “dholl puri” you need some flour, dholl, salt and aniseed. Bring the dholl to boil and then crush it to a uniform mash, adding salt and ground cumin to taste. In a separate bowl or plate knead the flour into dough and make small balls. Reshape the ball hollow like a bowl and fill it with the dholl mash you made earlier. Close the flour ball by sticking the open ends together; then roll it in a flat circular shape (using a roller on a flat surface). Depending on the amount of the dough used it should be no more than 6 inches in diameter approximately. Place the flat and circular dholl-stuffed dough on hot plate and cook for a few minutes, turning it upside down to ensure it’s cooked on both sides. Your “dholl puri” is ready.

With chutney or curry, enjoy.

3 Comments

  1. beccy April 22, 2007
  2. alfaking April 23, 2007
  3. beccy April 23, 2007

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