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Tag: Sattu

  • Litti Chokha

    Litti chokha is the signature dish of Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh, once a travellers' meal because it keeps well and needs no utensils to cook. It is said that soldiers and farmers baked littis in the embers of cow-dung fires, and today the street vendors of Patna still roast them over coal in wide clay ovens.

    The litti is a ball of whole wheat dough stuffed with sattu, roasted gram flour, mixed with mustard oil, garlic, ginger, ajwain, lemon, green chillies and the sour tang of pickle masala. Roasted until the crust is firm and slightly charred, it is cracked and dipped in ghee. Chokha is the smoky accompaniment: fire-roasted brinjal, tomato and boiled potato mashed with raw mustard oil, garlic and onion.

    It is eaten for lunch or dinner, at festivals and picnics, and has become popular across North India. The pungency of raw mustard oil is essential to both parts. An oven gives good results at home, though nothing quite matches the smoky flavour of coal-roasted littis. The chokha can be made while the littis bake, so both are ready together and can be served piping hot.

    At a glance

    RegionBihar
    CuisineBihari
    DietVegetarian
    CourseMain course
    Prep time40 minutes
    Cook time45 minutes
    Total time85 minutes
    Serves4
    Spice levelHot
    DifficultyMedium
    Gluten-freeNo
    Key ingredientswhole wheat flour / sattu / brinjal / tomato / mustard oil

    Ingredients

    For the litti dough

    • 2 cups whole wheat atta
    • 1/2 tsp ajwain
    • 1/2 tsp salt
    • 2 tbsp ghee
    • About 3/4 cup water

    For the sattu filling

    • 1 1/2 cups chana sattu
    • 1 small onion, finely chopped
    • 4 garlic cloves, minced
    • 1 inch ginger, grated
    • 2 green chillies, chopped
    • 1/2 tsp ajwain
    • 1/2 tsp kalonji (nigella)
    • 2 tbsp mustard oil
    • 1 tbsp lemon juice
    • 1 tbsp achar masala from mango pickle
    • 3 tbsp chopped coriander
    • 3/4 tsp salt
    • 2 to 3 tbsp water

    For the chokha

    • 1 large brinjal (about 400 g)
    • 3 tomatoes
    • 2 potatoes, boiled and peeled
    • 1 small onion, finely chopped
    • 4 garlic cloves, minced
    • 2 green chillies, chopped
    • 2 tbsp raw mustard oil
    • 2 tbsp chopped coriander
    • Salt to taste

    To serve

    • 1/2 cup melted ghee

    Method

    1. Knead atta, ajwain, salt, ghee and water into a stiff, smooth dough. Rest 20 minutes.
    2. Mix all filling ingredients, adding water a spoon at a time until the sattu holds together when pressed but is still crumbly.
    3. Divide the dough into 10 balls. Flatten each into a cup, fill with 2 tbsp sattu, seal and roll into a smooth ball.
    4. Bake on coals or in an oven preheated to 200 C for 30 to 35 minutes, turning every 10 minutes, until the littis are firm, golden-brown and sound hollow when tapped. A gas tandoor or appe pan on low heat also works.
    5. For the chokha, rub the brinjal and tomatoes with a little oil and roast directly on a gas flame, turning often, until charred all over – about 12 minutes for the brinjal, 5 for the tomatoes. Cover to steam, then peel.
    6. Mash the brinjal, tomatoes and potatoes together. Mix in onion, garlic, green chillies, raw mustard oil, coriander and salt.
    7. Crack each hot litti slightly with your fingers and dip it in or brush generously with melted ghee. Serve with chokha.

    Tips

    • Raw mustard oil in both the filling and the chokha gives the authentic pungency; do not cook it.
    • If the sattu filling is too dry, the litti will taste dusty; it should clump when squeezed.
    • Achar masala from the pickle jar adds the characteristic tang – use a little oil from the pickle too.

    Serve with

    Baingan-tomato chokha, green chutney and ghee.

  • Sattu Paratha

    Sattu, flour made from roasted chickpeas, is the protein staple of Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh. Farmers and labourers carry it to the fields mixed with water and salt, and in homes it becomes litti, sharbat and these stuffed parathas. Cheap, filling and shelf-stable, it is one of the oldest convenience foods in India.

    The filling is dry, savoury and sharp: sattu mixed with raw onion, garlic, green chilli, ajwain, kalonji, lemon and mustard oil, often with a spoon of masala from the mango pickle jar. Once rolled inside a wheat dough and cooked on a tawa with ghee, it gives a nutty, smoky paratha that keeps you going until lunch.

    At a glance

    RegionBihar
    CuisineBihari
    DietVegetarian
    CourseBreakfast
    Prep time25 minutes
    Cook time25 minutes
    Total time50 minutes
    Serves4
    Spice levelMedium
    DifficultyMedium
    Gluten-freeNo
    Key ingredientssattu / whole wheat flour / onion / mustard oil

    Ingredients

    For the dough

    • 2 cups whole wheat flour (atta)
    • 1/2 tsp salt
    • 1 tsp oil
    • About 3/4 cup water

    For the filling

    • 1 cup sattu (roasted gram flour)
    • 1 small onion, very finely chopped
    • 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
    • 1 inch ginger, grated
    • 2 green chillies, finely chopped
    • 2 tbsp chopped coriander
    • 1/2 tsp ajwain
    • 1/2 tsp kalonji
    • 1 tbsp mustard oil
    • 1 tbsp lemon juice
    • 1 tbsp mango pickle masala (optional)
    • Salt to taste
    • 2-3 tbsp water if needed

    For cooking

    • Ghee or oil, as needed

    Method

    1. Knead the atta with salt, oil and water into a soft, smooth dough. Cover and rest for 20 minutes.
    2. Mix all the filling ingredients in a bowl. Squeeze with your hand – the filling should hold together when pressed but crumble when poked. Sprinkle 1-2 tbsp water if it is too dry.
    3. Divide the dough into 8 balls and the filling into 8 portions.
    4. Roll a ball into a 10 cm disc, place a portion of filling in the centre, bring the edges together and pinch to seal. Flatten gently.
    5. Dust with flour and roll carefully into an 18 cm paratha, applying light, even pressure so the filling does not break through.
    6. Cook on a hot tawa over medium heat for 1 minute until small bubbles appear, flip and cook another minute.
    7. Spread ghee on both sides and cook, pressing with a spatula, until both sides have golden-brown spots, about 1 minute per side. Repeat with the rest.

    Tips

    • Chop the onion very finely; large pieces tear the paratha while rolling.
    • If the filling is too dry the paratha tastes powdery, too wet and it leaks – aim for damp sand.
    • Wrap cooked parathas in a cloth to keep them soft if packing for travel.

    Serve with

    Curd, mango pickle and aloo chokha or a hot cup of tea.