Khaman

Khaman, a traditional Gujarati dish is a savory snack made out of chickpea (gram) flour. It is steamed and is typically served during breakfast, snacks or as a side dish. Soft, spongy and delicious! They also make a great mid-afternoon or tea time snack. Chickpea flour is very low glycemic index and high in protein. It is healthy and great option for diabetics too!

I have failed making this from scratch after many attempts over the years. However last Diwali I visited india and learned to perfect this dish from my grandma. She is an expert when it comes to traditional Indian cooking! Khaman can be very tricky to make so make sure to follow the recipe exact and you should totally be fine! You can easily make mistake if there is even slight change in one of the ingredients. The key is to get the precise measurements when it comes to the batter and beating the batter to make sure that it is airy prior to steaming.

Every house hold in india has a different and unique way of making this dish. Traditionally it is made with ground bengal gram lentils, which are fermented overnight to develop a light sourness and steamed in flat wide platters the next morning. But follow this is an instant recipe for a perfect savory, sweet, tangy soft spiced steam cake when it is made precisely! This dish always comes to rescue whenever we crave for something quick and filling to eat! It is paired perfectly with tea and cilantro mint chutney. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Serves [4]

[Calories 250, Fat 5g, Carbs 30g, Fiber 7g, Protein 10g]

Ingredients for batter:

1 cup besan (chickpea flour)

2 tbsp Sugar

2 tbsp of oil

0.5 tsp citric acid (nimbu ke phool)

3/4-1 cup Water (add slowly – pancake consistency)

0.5 tsp of salt

1 tsp Turmeric powder

1 tsp of plain fruit salt (ENO) – goes in right before you steam (LAST INGREDIENT to be added)

1 tsp ginger-chili paste (optional)

Ingredients for tempering

1 tsp Mustard seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp Sesame seeds (optional)

1-2 pieces of curry leaves

2-3 green chillies chopped

2-3 Dried red chillies (optional)

3-4 tsp Oil

1/3 cup of coconut water

Ingredients for garnishing

1-2 Tbsp Grated coconut (optional)

1 Tbsp Cilantro (chopped)

Method:

You can make this on stove top or instant pot. I will share both methods with you and you can decide which way you like to cook this.

Tempering

You can make tempering while the khamans are steaming. Heat oil in a small pan and add the mustard seeds. Let the mustard seeds crackle. Add the green chopped chillies.Slowly add the coconut water and turn off the heat. Using a small spoon pour it evenly over the steamed and cooled khaman.

Stove top method

You can use any medium size pot that had a good sealing lid and will hold our mold or tray inside. Add 2 cups of water and let it come to boil. Place trivet in the boiling water. Over the trivet, place your greased pan/mold/tray.

Add all the batter ingredients into a bowl except for the fruit eno. Whisk the ingredients until smooth like a pancake batter consistency. In the end when you are ready to cook the batter prep everything like greasing your pan or tray with oil. Then lastly, adding the fruit eno and whisk until the batter gets airy. Immediately add the airy batter into greased mold or tray and its ready to be steamed.

Close the lid and steam for 20 minutes. To check if they are cooked take a clean knife or toothpick. When inserted into the center it should come out clean. If the toothpick has the batter on it, then you need to steam for some more time. If done than remove from the pot and let it cool completely before adding tempering over it. Cut khaman in shape desired after tempering. Serve cilantro-mint chutney and tea.

Instant pot method

I use the stackable pans which I got from amazon. Prior mixing the batter I usually turn on instant pot and prep it, so its ready when the batter is ready. Add 2 cups of water into the inner pot of the instant pot. Place a trivet and turn on the instant pot on saute mode. Once the steam starts forming than place your mold/ tray on top of the trivet.

Close the lid and set on the steam for 15 minutes on high pressure. Once done, manually release pressure after 8-10 minutes. To check if they are cooked take a clean knife or toothpick. When inserted into the center it should come out clean. Remove the khaman from the instant pot and allow to fully cool down before you drizzle your tempering over it. You can cut khaman whichever shape you like after tempering. Garnish and ready to be served with tea and cilantro-mint chutney.

Notes

Make sure to use fresh batch of fruit eno. If you dont have fruit eno than you can replace with same amount of baking soda. If you dont have citric acid, than add 1 tsp of freshly squeezed lemon juice.