Luchi
Bengal's puffed white breads: maida rubbed with ghee (moyan), rolled into small rounds and fried until they balloon but stay pale. They are the Sunday breakfast and festival bread, eaten with aloor dom, cholar dal, begun bhaja or kosha mangsho, and at Durga Puja. Radhaballavi is stuffed with spiced urad dal, and koraishutir kochuri with green peas in winter. Jain homes make them just like this.
- 55 minTime
- 35 minHands-on
- 4Portions
- 8 gprotein per portion
- 470kcal per portion
Ingredients for 4 portions
- 300 gMaida
- to tasteSalt
- 2 tbspGhee, for the dough
- ≈ 150 mlWater
- 5 tbspRefined oil, for deep-frying (what the luchis soak up)
Method
- Mix the maida with a pinch of salt and rub in the ghee with your fingertips until the flour holds together when pressed. Add the water little by little and knead into a soft, smooth dough. Cover.
- Let the dough rest for 20 minutes.
- Divide the dough into 20 small balls and roll them into 10 cm rounds. Don't dust them with flour; a drop of oil on the board stops them sticking.
- Heat plenty of oil in a kadai until hot but not smoking. Slide in one luchi at a time and press it gently with a slotted spoon until it puffs up, then turn it and lift it out after a few seconds, while still pale. Serve hot.
