Dhokla / Dhokra: Steamed, Spiced Lentil Slice (ઢોકળા)

STEAMED, SPICED LENTIL SLICE

STEAMED, SPICED LENTIL SLICE

The Gujarati Kitchen

Servings

30

Cook Time

15 minutes

Cuisine

Gujarati

A traditional Gujarati snack food that can be enjoyed at any time. A steamed spiced slice made from lentils.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup dried split chaana dal
  • 1/4 cup yellow split moong dal
  • 2 3/4 cups water, divided
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 4 1/2 tablespoons oil, divided
  • 1 tablespoon fresh green chilli, minced
  • 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons eno, lemon (fruit salt)
  • 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
  • 1 tablespoon fresh coriander, chopped

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, soak chaana and moong dals in 2 and 1/2 cups of water and rest at room temperature overnight.

  2. Drain dals, add lemon juice, 3 tablespoons of oil and remaining 1/4 cup of water, blend with a hand blender into a paste. Add chilli, ginger, salt, sugar, turmeric and stir. Add eno and mix well so it froths up.

  3. Grease a 10” tardi or 26cm round cake tin with oil and pour mixture in. Place tardi or cake tin inside a steamer with a low level of boiling water. Cook on a high heat for 5 minutes, lower to a medium heat for a further 5 minutes. Turn off heat and leave in the steamer to rest and cool.

  4. In a vaghar pot or small frypan, heat remaining 1 and 1/2 tablespoons of oil on a high heat, add mustard seeds until popping, then drizzle over the slice. Garnish with coriander and slice into 3cm slices. Serve warm or cold.

Dokla: the light, fluffy snack every Gujarati home knows

If you've grown up in a Gujarati household, you know dokla (you'll also hear it called dokra). It's the snack that turns up at breakfast, afternoon tea, family gatherings and last-minute visits. It's soft and spongy, a little tangy from the lemon, with a gentle warmth from green chilli and ginger. Then comes the best part: a drizzle of hot oil with popping black mustard seeds.

Dokla is made from chaana dal and yellow moong dal. The lentils soak overnight and are blended into a smooth batter, then steamed until light and airy. There's no deep-frying and no flour, so it's naturally vegetarian and gluten free. It's also very easy to love.

This is how we make it in our kitchen. The recipe makes 30 to 40 slices, which is enough to share (or not).

A few things before you start

  • Start the night before. The dals need to soak overnight. Most of the work is simply waiting.
  • Eno is the magic ingredient. Eno fruit salt makes the batter froth up and gives dokla its fluffy texture. Add it just before steaming and get the batter into the steamer quickly.
  • No tardi? No problem. A tardi is the traditional round steaming tray. A 26 cm round cake tin works just as well.

How to serve dokla

Dokla is lovely on its own, but it's even better with green coriander chutney or a sweet tamarind chutney. Serve it with a cup of chai for a classic Gujarati afternoon.

Made this recipe? Tag us on Instagram @the.gujarati.kitchen. We'd love to see your dokla!

Love this recipe? You'll find more of our family favourites in our award-winning cookbook, A Little Bit of This, A Little Bit of That.
Over 100 Gujarati dishes Mum has cooked for our family for decades, finally written down with exact measurements.
Get your copy of the cookbook here →
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Hands holding the Gujarati cookbook A Little Bit of This, A Little Bit of That on a table with chai

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