Puran Poli Recipe - Sweet and Savory Elaichi Flavored Pooran Poli

Puran Poli

It doesn’t need any introduction, as every Indian would have eaten this sweet flat-bread sometime in his/her life. With its numerous variations, puran poli is eaten across length and breadth of India and this recipe is for making one of most widely popular, sweet and savory, elaichi (cardamom) flavored pooran polis having delicious stuffing made of tuvar dal. The use of nutmeg powder, even though in very small amount, compliments the flavor of cardamom and jaggery making it even tastier. Follow the given step by step photo recipe to make it at home.

Note: Read tips and variations given below to make Gujarati, Maharashtrian, Konkani and South Indian style puran polis.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Tuvar Dal (arahar dal)

3/4 cup Sugar or Jaggery (gud)

1/2 teaspoon Cardamom Powder (elaichi)

1/8 teaspoon Nutmeg Powder (jaifal), optional

2 tablespoons + for smearing Ghee (clarified butter)

1 cup Wheat Flour + for rolling

1½ tablespoons Oil

Directions for Making Puran (stuffing):

Wash tuvar dal in water for 2-3 times and soak it in water for 30 minutes. Drain excess water and pressure-cook it with 1½ cups water in a pressure cooker (3-5 liter capacity) for 3 whistles over medium flame. Let pressure inside cooker comes down naturally; open the lid and drain any excess water.
Gently mash the dal with backside of a spoon or masher. Heat a medium size heavy based pan or non-stick pan over medium flame. Add cooked dal, sugar or jaggery and ghee in it and mix well.
Stir continuously and cook until mixture turns thick or for approx. 15-20 minutes.
You can check the thickness of puran is appropriate or not by placing spatula vertically straight in the center. If it does not fall, then the mixture is thick enough otherwise stir and cook for 3-4 minutes more and check again. Add cardamom powder, nutmeg powder and mix well. Turn off the flame and let mixture cool at room temperature. Divide mixture into 6 equal portions.

Directions for Making Puran Poli:

Take wheat flour in a medium size bowl and add oil. Now, add water as required and knead smooth dough (like paratha dough). Cover the dough and let it set at room temperature for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, knead it again and divide it into 6 equal portions.
Take one portion, give it a shape of ball and press a little. Coat it with dry flour and roll it out into a 4-5 inch diameter circle (like puri) using a rolling pin. Place one puran (stuffing) portion in the center of rolled puri.
Wrap stuffing with all sides of puri and seal top where all sides merge. Pinch off excess dough and give it a round shape of ball.
Press stuffed ball a bit and make thick pattie, coat it with dry flour.
Roll it out using rolling pin into approx. 6-7 inch diameter circle. Heat a tawa over medium flame. When the tava is medium hot, place raw puran poli over it.
Cook it until golden brown spots appear on the bottom side. Flip and cook another side until brown spots appear there as well. If required, repeat flip and cook process one more time to cook it evenly.
Transfer it to a plate and spread as much ghee as you like on both sides. Repeat the same process for remaining dough and stuffing.

Tips and Variations:

Do not cook tuvar dal with too much water otherwise stuffing will not turn thick easily.
To roll them out easily, prepare the stuffing couple of hours in advance and place it in refrigerator. Refrigeration makes it little hard which in turn makes roll out process easier.
Use milk instead of water for making dough. This will make soft outer layer.
You can use rither chana dal (gram lentil) or tuvar dal to prepare stuffing.
Use jaggery instead of sugar and chana dal or tuvar dal to prepare stuffing to make Maharashtrian style pooran poli.
Obbattu or Holige is popular sweet dish in Karnataka and Tamilnadu. To make south Indian style puran poli, use gud (jaggery), grated coconut and chana dal or toor dal for stuffing and maida for outer layer.
Prepare Gujarati style puran poli by making stuffing of just tuvar dal and sugar.
Make Konkani style puran poli by preparing stuffing of grated coconut, chana dal and tuvar dal.

Taste: Sweet and soft

Serving Ideas: There are many ways in which this simple Indian sweet flatbread can be enjoyed. In different parts of India, it is served differently. However, the most common way of eating it is either on its own or with simple potato curry.