Chole Bhathure

I clearly remember November 1981...was very little girl and my parents took us on holiday to Delhi, Agra,Haridwar, Jaipur and other places....So many of these experiences, now simply my memories so I like to tell my children now and then! and they love to hear them as well..that time our parents didn't own any videos or cameras...:-(( so, everything is just in our minds and hearts !! And first time ever we had Chole-Bhathure in Delhi, it was 21st November 1981..oh boy! me and my brother (who is 2 yrs older than me) were hooked on this dish..whenever mum asks us for food our answer was one word 'Chole-Bhathre'! maybe we didn't wanted to eat any vegetables..:-P..........while we were in Delhi we had this dish but than we had to forget about it, it was always there in back of our minds, but we never asked mum to make it...well those days in Gujarati people didn't know much about Punjabi food and also mum was working that time so she wasn't experimenting too much in food..like what we do now days..but, I always wanted to try this dish..so when I started to cook, by asking people or maybe watching few cookery show I learnt a little, still couldn't make the same way as punjabis do..:(( after that when I got married and came to U.K, I met a girl who also came to UK after getting married, she was typical punjabi girl from Delhi, and you guessed it right! I was thrilled to meet her and she was too, coz she wanted to learn some Gujarati food...and we had so much fun to teaching each other lots of dishes...since I've been making Chole-Bhathure, I sometimes make variations of this dish...my family loves it and I get immense pleasure from feeding them...I also made this dish for my bro and sister when I went last time to India! This time also, we were all reminded of November 1981, so we ate and talked happily about that time.

So what is this Dish which I'm singing about..please see here   coming to recipe

For Chole you will need:-

• 3 cup boiled chick peas(garbanzo beans)you can use tin
• 1 big Onion finely chopped(I like mine pureed)
• 2-3 tsp Green chillies and ginger-garlic paste
• 1 cup tomato pureed
• Salt to taste
• pinch Asafoetida
• 2-3 tbsp Chole or Chana masala(easily available in Indian Shops)
• Red chilli powder, Tumeric powder,Garam masala and dry coriander and cumin powder also Dry mango powder(adjust to your taste)
• 3-4 tbsp Olive oil(you can use any)
• Fresh finely cut coriander, slices of Onion and lemon wedges for garnishing..

For Bhathure you will need:-

• 2 cup Plain flour
• 1/4 cup semolina(fine)
• 1 tsp fast action dry yeast
• 1 tsp each salt and sugar
• 1tsp ghee or oil
• Oil for deep frying
• 1/2 cup milk-Sieve the maida flour, add ghee,semolina,milk,yeast and knead to a smooth dough. Cover with a muslin cloth and keep aside for more than 3-4 hours.

Method:-Chole

• In a heavy bottom pan heat oil and fry onion for 5-6 minutes or untill golden brown.  Add CGG paste and fry for another 3-4 minutes.  Now add Tomato puree and all the masala powder and let it cook the masala untill you see ol leaving masala.  Add chick peas and mix really well and add about 1 cup water and let it simmer for about 12-15 minutes or untill gravey thickens.  Garnish it..

Method:-Bhathure

• Make small balls from the dough, roll into thick puris(small circles) and fry in oil on both sides..Bhathure should be white colour not brown or golden...also I made few methi(fenugreek) bhathre's by adding some Kasoori Methi(dry fenugreek leaves)..Serve it hot with Chole and Enjoy as much as my family did!! 

Sending this mouthwatering dish to my on going event Joyful Eating Whilst Travelling! I know I don't have any Delhi holiday pics in this post as I mentioned we didn't have cameras that time, so I am posting my recent holiday pics while I was last time India..my two best friends!!

Sending this recipe to Mirch Masala's event My Lagume Love Affair(MLLA) Edition 21, Brainchild of Susan