Today’s recipe is much of an allied to the recipe that we posted here last week- Aloo Rassedar . In most of the northern belt of Agra, Benares and several other important cities of Uttar Pradesh , Poori (and its variants like Bedmi Poori) and Aloo Rassedar is a popular breakfast choice.
Even in Delhi that is known for being a melting pot of flavors- migration from northern states being a primary reason- this combination of dishes is hugely popular as breakfast option.
Poori is a crispy and deep fried Indian Bread , made of wheat flour (or plain flour ‘Maida’) and that is well paired with huge variety of dishes like different form of veg gravies, kormas, and dry preparation, desserts like Halwa, Kheer and condiments like pickles (achar). In a typical Indian household, roti, Phulka or chapati form a part of daily meal whereas Poori is reserved for only for special occasions. Poori has a great deal of significance attached to its name and has attained this unique distinction of being a symbol of richness, prepared only during festive occasions or as a part of feasts that accompany rituals like marriages.
As much as aesthetically pleasing Poori may seem, there is whole lot of science involved in making a Poori. Though you don’t need to know the intricacies involved in making a perfect Poori but knowing the why’s can help us in preparing a perfect Poori every time.
A perfect Poori must be crisp, flaky, puffed and soft whereas the imperfect one can be easily identified by its soggy appearance, an indication of the Pooris having guzzled tons of Oil. Nobody likes to see their plate filled with soggy, oily and unpalatable Pooris. Two most important factors that must be remembered all the time when you make Pooris are a) amount of water that goes into making the dough and b) temperature of Oil while frying
For a) I would recommend adopting a cautious approach and adding water in small proportions and keep kneading to form a stiff dough. I have used the adjective ‘stiff’ comparing to the softness of the Phulka dough. I will urge you to click on video link below to understand more on this factor.
For b) Temperature of Oil plays a far crucial role in ensuring Poori does not become soggy. This temperature must be in vicinity of 150 ̊-175 ̊C (300F-350F). The simple principle of evaporation and conduction must be revisited to understand why these numbers are important. Poori dough is formed by incorporating moisture to a flour. It is worth remembering that water starts evaporating (converting into steam) at 100 ̊C. This moisture trapped Poori when dropped in Oil that is suitably heated to 150-175 ̊C, the outer cover gets heated first and then by conduction the heat gets transferred to inner layer. At this stage, moisture in the inner layers is converted into steam which rises up causing the Pooris to puff up. Finding no escape route this steam stays trapped inside. As a corollary to this fact, if you make a hole in a rolled out Poori before frying it, it will never puff up.
While it is advisable to server Pooris hot, if you intend to not serve them immediately, adding a bit of sugar to the dough, assists in keeping the Pooris puffed for a longer duration of time.
So next time, when your Pooris don’t puff up, you know where you could possibly have gone wrong. Make some hot Pooris and serve them with the accompaniment of your choice and remember to share your feedback with us in the comment section below.
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Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 20-22
- 250 gms Wheat Flour
- 1 tbsp Semolina
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Sugar
- Water, as required
- Oil for frying
- We will start with kneading the Poori dough. In a large bowl, put Wheat Flour. Add Rava, Salt and Sugar. Mix well.
- Add 1 tbsp. Cooking Oil and mix again.Knead dough adding water gradually.
- Knead into a firm dough. Dough must be firm than roti/phulka dough. We have used ¾th cup water for kneading process. Apply some Oil and let the dough rest for 10 mins.
- After 10 mins, Knock into a smooth dough.Knead well to ensure that dough has no cracks. Make small balls from the dough.
- Roll the dough into a log. Cut the log into equal sized portion and roll into balls. Apply some Oil on Board and roll balls into Pooris.
- Pooris must not be too thick or too thin.
- Heat Oil for frying in a pan. Put a small portion of dough in Oil. If the dough rises up, it indicates that the Oil is sufficiently heated and we can start frying the Pooris.
- Press the Pooris gently so that it rises up. We have added Sugar to the dough,so that Pooris stay puffed up for longer time.
- Pooris are ready to be served. We have served Pooris with Aloo rassedar and Shrikhand.
Click here to watch recipe video
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