Khaman the popular Gujarati snack in a sandwich style is a party pleaser. Vegetarian foodies love Khaman but a lot of them fail to cook a perfect khaman. Just like the Handvo and the pittod/khandvi , khaman is another popular gluten free snack from Gujarat and is traditionally prepared by soaking and grinding chana dal and fermenting and then the rest of the khaman cooking process.
But these modern days we tend to apply the easier ways and it is quickly prepared with besan (Chickpea flour). This perfectly spongy, moist and luscious flavours of the spicy khaman with the sweet and tangy Imli and coriander chutney makes this Khaman a widely popular dish in most of the Indian homes!
Originally a Gujarati dish, it’s most of the time a critical dish to make if the batter goes wrong. Khaman is made from fine chickpea flour(besan) and is mixed in a proportion with water to achieve a consistency. After which it is steamed.
Other popular gujarati dishes are on the blog links below
- Thepla
- Papdi chaat
- Kasaar/sukadi
- Dahi vada
- Moong dal khichadi
- Dudhi muthiya
- Bharwan shimla mirch / capsicum
Many people have different ways and Ideas to make it. Before this recipe I had failed cooking a perfect khaman a dozen times. It needs to be spongy, moist , soft and light. After this recipe, if followed correctly Khaman can be perfectly achieved. It’s easy and a 15 minute job. It’s super quick to serve any impromptu guests and a perfect tea time snack too.
Difference between khaman and dhokla
A commonly made mistake or we can say popularly khaman is addressed as dhokla which is not right.
Khaman is a soft yellow sponge steam cake and made out of chickpea flour or by soaking and grinding chana dal. And Dhokla is a white steamed cake made out of rice and lentil mix similar to the dosa mix and made using yogurt.
This recipe is a fusion of khaman with sandwich i.e layers of yellow sponge flavoured with sweet and tangy dips in the layers.
Let’s check out the recipe in detail
Khaman Sandwich (Dhokla)
Ingredients
- 1 cup besan (chickpea flour)
- 1 tbsp semolina / sooji / rawa
- 1 tsp ginger paste
- 1 tsp green chilli paste
- 1 tsp citric acid crystals
- 1 tsp sugar
- Salt as per taste
- Pinch of turmeric (optional if want a yellow color)
- 1 tsp Eno fruit salt (non flavoured) Or 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup water
- steamer
- Oil for greasing
For sandwich Dhokla
- Tomato ketchup / sweet tamarind sauce
- Coriander / mint chutney
For tempering
- 2 tbsp Oil
- 1 tsp Mustard seeds
- 1 tsp White sesame
- Curry leaves
- Coriander
Instructions
- Take 1 cup besan and add semolina to it.
- Add the ginger and chilli paste.
- Add salt, sugar, and citric acid and mix it well when dry.
- Keep a steamer and water in it to boil. Grease a plate or Dhokla stand with oil properly on edges too.
- Now add water to the Dhokla mix and whisk it to break all lumps. Do not over stir or whisk. It should be gentle and slow.
- In the end add the fruit salt or baking soda and fold the batter again. The batter doubles upon adding soda.
- Pour the batter in the Dhokla plate and insert the plate in the steamer.
- Close the lid and steam it for about 9-10 minutes.
- Open the lid and remove the plate. Allow it to cool before cutting.
- I made Dhokla in 3 layered plates to sandwich it.Now make sugar syrup by mixing 2 teaspoon of sugar and 4tbsp of water.Pour this syrup on each layer generously.Apply tomato ketchup or sweet tamarind sauce (chutney) on one layer.Apply coriander chutney on the other layer.Stack all the three layers keeping the plain layer on top.
- Now add the temper on it.Heat oil in a tempering panCrack mustard seeds, curry leaves, sesame seeds, and a slit cut green chilli to it. Pour 1/2 cup water and switch off the flame. Add 1 tbsp of sugar and stir the tempering.
- Now pour this tempering on the khaman top layer generously. Garnish with coriander!!
- Plain khaman without sandwich.
Notes
- Khaman is absolutely soft and luscious so if it cooks properly with a perfect sponge there is a lot of room for the syrup to penetrate and taste amazing. With the syrup the Dhokla doesn’t dry out and it’s easy to eat too.
- You can simply make one layer temper it and enjoy plain khaman.
- Khaman can be steamed in a pressure cooker(without a whistle), a deep wok with a stand inside and a lid or a steamer.
- It can also be made in microwave (cooking time 8 minutes and cover the bowl with cling wrap while cooking.
- It can be skipped if you don’t want to make it too sweet. Just add 2 tbsp in the tempering.
Check these easy and delicious healthy appetizer links on my blog
- Veg Puff
- Pinwheel sandwich
- Coriander nuggets/ Kothimbir vadi
- Kondule
- Veggie protein balls
- Beetroot cutlets
If you like and try this recipe do write reviews in the comment section below.
You can also email me at veggie.bites.2020@gmail.com
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Rashika..i exactly tried your proportion….and it really turned out yum….i cant tell u how many times i failed…many thabks for such a detailed recipe…kuddos
That’s great Richa, thanks for trying the recipe and reviewing it.