Vatidal Khaman with Chutney
Get ready for a taste explosion straight from the heart of Gujarat! Surati Vatidal Khaman is like little bites of sunshine wrapped in a cloud of fluffiness. These golden-yellow delights are a dance of flavors, with a hint of tangy sweetness and a burst of zesty spices. Imagine biting into a piece of edible happiness that's as light as a feather but heavy on satisfaction. Whether it's breakfast, snack time, or just a 'yum' moment, these Khaman bites will have your taste buds doing the cha-cha. So grab a plate and join the party where each bite is a step closer to foodie bliss!
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Ingredients
Khaman Batter & Steaming
- 3 cup Chana Dal (Split Chickpeas)
- 1 jug Water, for Soaking
- ¼ cup Yogurt
- 1¾ cup Water, for batter
- 1 tsp Salt, for fermentation
- 1 tbsp Salt, for Khaman dish
- ⅓ cup Powdered Sugar, white
- 1 tsp Turmeric Powder
- 1 Eno Powder Packet, small
- 2 tsp Oil
- 4 cup Water, for steaming
Pickled Peppers
- 6 pcs Jalapeno Pepper
- 1 tsp Salt
- 4 tsp Oil
- ½ tsp Asafoetida
Green Chutney
- 1 bunch Cilantro
- 2 Green Chili
- ¼ cup Mint Leave
- ½ cup Besan Sev
- ½ cup Unsweetened Coconut
- 1 tbsp Sugar
- 2 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Jeera (Cumin Seeds)
- 1 tbsp Lemon Juice
- 6 pcs Khaman, from prepared Khaman
- ½ cup Chilled Water
Basic Tempering for Khaman
- ⅓ cup Oil, for basic tempering
- 2 tsp Mustard Seeds, for basic tempering
- 2 tsp Sesame Seeds, for basic tempering
Enhanced Tempering for Khaman
- ½ cup Oil
- 2 tbsp Mustard Seeds
- 2 tbsp Sesame Seeds
- ¼ tsp Asafoetida
- 2 pcs Green Chili, julienne slices
- 10 Curry Leaves
- ⅓ cup Sweetened Coconut, Shredded
- ½ cup Cilantro, Finely Chopped
Instructions
Batter Preparation
- Take the measured Chana Dal (Split Chickpeas) into a large bowl. Pour water into the bowl to soak the split chickpeas l for 6 to 8 hours (or overnight). Soaking ensures that the Chana Dal becomes soft.3 cup Chana Dal (Split Chickpeas), 1 jug Water
- After 6-8 hours (or in the morning), rinse the soaked split chickpeas for 2 to 3 times by gently rubbing with your fingers.
- Empty the bowl into the mixer jar. Add ¼ cup Yogurt (curd or Dahi and 1 cup water into the jar. Close the jar tightly with lid and grind the mixture so that the batter is fine coarse. If the water seems less, add about ¾ cup so that batter is just the right consistency. Batter consistency is very important for making Khaman with just right texture. Read more into the Notes section below.¼ cup Yogurt, 1¾ cup Water
- Empty the batter into large bowl (or other large vessel). Add 1 tsp salt into the batter and mix it well. Salt helps speed up the fermentation process. The batter shall be pouring thick consistency - neither lumpy thick nor runny watery consistency. Read more about more about that into the Notes section below.1 tsp Salt
- Now cover the bowl with the batter and place it it warm place for fermentation process for 8 hours. Kitchen oven or other warm places are good for all seasons. If you need more time (let's say in winter), add 1 to 2 additional hours.
Spicing the Khaman Batter
- After 8 to 10 hours, the raw fermented batter will be ready. Nicely fermented batter is essential for great quality soft and fluffy Khaman. Remove the covering from the bowl and give a nice mix to the batter by gently starring it.
- Gujarati people love sugar as you may know (count me in), and so this dish is no exception. Add ⅓ cup sugar. You may skip this if you don't want to consume sugar. Add 1 tsp turmeric powder and salt as per you taste. I have used 1 tbsp salt. Mix sugar, salt and turmeric into batter thoroughly until sugar melts.1 tbsp Salt, ⅓ cup Powdered Sugar, 1 tsp Turmeric Powder
Making Khaman - The Steaming Process
- Pour 3 to 4 cups of water into the steaming pot or steam cooker. Cover it with lid and bring the water to boil. Meanwhile, we will work to prepare Khaman pans.4 cup Water
- Spoon out about 6 ladles of prepared Khaman batter into another bowl. Add 1 small packet of ENO Powder (Fruit Salt Powder) into this bowl. Quickly mix the ENO to incorporate into the batter by whisking until the batter becomes light and fluffy. Run the whisk around the bowl and sides to mix it evenly.1 Eno Powder Packet
- Now, grease 2 steels pans used for steaming Khaman by apply 1 tsp oil in each pan. Pour the ½ of the Khaman batter into each pan. In a nutshell, we are making 2 plates of Khaman in 1st batch. Shake the dishes slightly to level out the batter. Evenly spread out batter is important. It ensures that Khaman are cooked evenly during the steaming and surfaces are smooth.2 tsp Oil
- Put the pans with Khaman batter into stacking stand. The steamer should be now ready. So, open the lid and put the stacking stand inside the steamer. Close the steamer with the lid that has steam escape vent. Allow the steaming for at least 15 minutes on medium heat. 15 to 20 minutes are sufficient for the steaming process.
- After 15 to 20 minutes, open the steamer and take out the stacking stand and Khaman pans. Allow Khaman pans to cool down for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Repeat all above steps for steaming except 1st step. If there is not enough water, add more water for steaming. Finally, you should have 4 pans of steamed Khaman.
- Once Khaman pans have cooled down, slice the Khaman. You can slice them to create diamond, square or rectangle shapes. For rectangle shapes, slice the Khaman block 1 inch apart horizontally and ¾ inch vertically as shown in the video. You can also slice them as how you prefer. Taste is more important than shape in my opinion. After putting the 2nd batch for steaming, I did some work in parallel like slicing Jalapeno peppers and then slicing 1 plate of Khaman to make the chutney. Other Khamans were sliced just before tempering process. As you see the recipe video, you will realize that.
Special Green Chutney for Khaman (Khaman Chutney)
- In the mixer jar, add cilantro (coriander leaves or dhaniya), green chili (mirchi), mint leaves (phudina), besav sev (ready gram flour sev), unsweetened shredded coconut, sugar, salt, lemon juice, cumin seeds (jeera or jeeru).1 bunch Cilantro, 2 Green Chili, ¼ cup Mint Leave, ½ cup Besan Sev, ½ cup Unsweetened Coconut, 1 tbsp Sugar, 2 tsp Salt, 1 tsp Jeera (Cumin Seeds), 1 tbsp Lemon Juice
- Add 6 to 7 Khaman pieces and chilled water into the jar. Close the lid and grind everything to make the smooth silky chutney. Add additional chilled water if needed. Chutney should not be watery. It should be nice thick consistency as shown.6 pcs Khaman, ½ cup Chilled Water
- Empty the Special Khaman Chutney into bowl. Garnish the green chutney with some shredded coconut and coriander leaves (cilantro).
Making Pickled Peppers
- Take 6 to 8 jalapeno peppers and rinse them thoroughly. Remove the stem and shoulder part from the top of jalapeno. Slice each jalapeno pepper into half and remove all seeds by scrapping gently. It's important to remove the seeds so that its spice level (heat or hotness) is subdued and they are slightly mild, or just hot enough to enjoy.6 pcs Jalapeno Pepper
- Cut each jalapeno wedge (sliced half) into 4 to 5 pieces as shown in the video. Add 1 tsp salt and 4 tsp oil into the slices. Use canola oil, sunflower oil, peanout oil or vegetable oil. Other oil varieties such as Olive oil, sesame oil, coconut oil, etc. adds additional flavor that does not go well with Khaman in my opinion.1 tsp Salt, 4 tsp Oil
- Add a pinch of asafoetida if you like. This step is optional. But it add nice aroma and flavor to the pickled peppers and compliment Khaman well.½ tsp Asafoetida
- Mix all ingredients well into the bowl and cover it. Put the pickled jalapeno in microwave oven for 2 minutes. Remove from oven after 2 minutes stir them and put again for additional 2 minutes. Now, pickled jalapeno peppers should be ready and they will taste so yummy, trust me!
Making Khaman - The Tempering Process
- In the tempering pan (tadka pan), add ⅓ cup oil and heat it on medium flame. Add mustard seeds and sesame seeds in the oil. When they start to crackle, lower the hear and remove the tempering pan. With the spoon slowly, pour the mix on the sliced Khaman.⅓ cup Oil, 2 tsp Mustard Seeds, 2 tsp Sesame Seeds
- Pour oil in the large kadai pan and put it on high flame to heat. Add mustard seeds and sesame seeds. When you hear crackle, lower the hear. Now, add a pinch of asafoetida, slices of green chilies and curry leaves. Saute the mix for 2 to 3 minutes.½ cup Oil, 2 tbsp Mustard Seeds, 2 tbsp Sesame Seeds, ¼ tsp Asafoetida, 2 pcs Green Chili, 10 Curry Leaves
- Add all sliced khaman pieces and mix them gently with tempering mix. Saute the Khaman for 5 to 6 minutes. Add shredded sweetened coconut and finely chopped cilantro on the top. Mix khaman well so that they are thoroughly coated. Now, Vatidal Khaman are ready to be served with pickled jalapeno and special green chutney for khaman.⅓ cup Sweetened Coconut, ½ cup Cilantro
Let's Watch
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