Dal Dhokli- Wheat Dumplings In Lentil Curry

Dal dhokli is a easy and wholesome one pot meal prepared by cooking tiny wheat flour dumplings in seasoned lentil sauce or dal fry. You will love this dish for its wonderful taste and flavorful.

This is a hearty one pot meal made in north and Western Indian states like Rajasthan, Gujrat, Maharashtra. While the base recipe remains the same, every region has its won flavor touch making this dish unique and delicious. Here I am sharing the traditional Gujarati dal dhokli

You can prepare this dish in less than 45 minutes and makes for a wonderful hearty dinner on a monsoon evening 🙂

There are few recipes that brings us so much joy and is a fun to make. This dal dhokli is one such recipe which you will enjoy both the making and tasting 🙂

I have been a fan of this yummy dish right from the day I tasted this in my childhood. My mom picked up this dal dhokli recipe from her friend and have made this for us innumerable times. The joy of making small discs from the dough or dhokli is something I loved even as a child.

While my mom makes many delicious Gujarati recipes like khaman, khandavi, dal, muthiya, handvo we used to love this dal dhokli the most. We always found this amusing and fun to have the whole meal in just a bowl with a spoon 🙂 Yes it more like having a soup 🙂

What Is Dal Dhokli?

Dal dhokli is the ultimate one pot meal made by simmering tiny whole wheat flour dumpling simmered in a lentil stew that is spicy, flavorful and slightly sweet. You can call this as India’s very own pasta in lentil sauce. More about the dish here.

Dhokli means tiny wheat dumplings and dal means seasoned and tempered cooked lentils. So this is a delicious concoction of flavorful dal lentil stew mixed with wheat dumplings or homemade egg free wheat pasta.

If you are talking about comfort food, you cannot miss this dal dhokli. It is one of the best comfort foods that you will come back to again and again.

Soft, well cooked wheat dumplings that are mildly seasoned, hearty, flavorful and absolutely delicious dal with an aromatic and fresh tadka or tempering makes this dal dhokli a real winner.

This is such a favorite at our home that whenever I make we all can never get enough of it. The recipe is deceptively simple, but the flavor of this dish is huge.

So do try this Gujarati version of dal dhokli that is

• Super easy and quick to make – you only need 30 minutes to make this dish from start to finish and eating happens even fast 🙂
• Gluten free– To make gluten free dal dhokli use any gluten free flour for making the dumplings and do not use asafoetida in tempering.
• One pot wonder– you just need your pressure cooker to make this. You can also make this recipe in instant pot

Healthy, wholesome and power packed- Wonderful whole meal packed with protein.

Ingredients & Substitutes

Wheat Flour

The dumplings for this Gujarati dal dhokli recipe is made of whole wheat flour. You can use regular chapati atta for the same.

Instead of wheat flour you can also use any of your favorite gluten free flour blend to make this dish gluten free.

Yogurt

Yogurt is an optional ingredient used in the dumpling or dhokli dough for texture. You can add it or leave it out.

For vegan option you can just use any plant free yogurt like cashew or almond yogurt.

Other Ingredients

Ajwain or carom seeds for flavor, red chilli powder for heat, some oil and water to knead the dough, salt to taste.

To make the lentils curry or dal you will need the following ingredients.

Toor dal

Toor dal or arhar dal or split pigeon peas lentils and a small quantity of chana dal is the base of lentil soup or curry. You can also use a mix of masoor dal, moong dal and toor dal but traditionally it is made only with toor dal.

If you leftover dal fry from with any lentils, you can easily cook dal dhokli with it. See my notes for details.

Onion

Onions are added at two different stages in this recipe. At the beginning it is added along with tomatoes just like in Indian curries and finely chopped raw onions are added as garnish while serving.

Raw onions add a wonderful rustic flavor and taste and feel like eating chaat (at least for me 🙂 )

Tomato

Tomatoes are added for flavor, tangy taste as well as to lend some volume to the curry. Use ripe red tomatoes for wonderful flavor.

If you want to skip tomatoes you can do so, just double the quantity of onions and lemon juice in the recipe.

Spice Powders

You will need the basic spice powders like red chilli powder, turmeric powder, roasted cumin powder are used in this traditional Gujarati dal dhokli recipe. Whole spices or garam masala is not used in this recipe though.

Peanuts

I love the addition of peanuts in the tadka for dal dhokli here. They add such a wonderful crunch that contrasts the texture of soft dumplings and dal.

You can even add boiled peanuts to the dal instead of adding them in the tadka if you want them to be softer.

Mustard Seeds & Cumin Seeds

Mustard seeds along with green chillies, curry leaves, cumin seeds are the tadka ingredients for this recipe.

Oil

You can use any good cooking oil for this dish. You need just 2-3 teaspoons oil for the tadka. I sometimes use mustard oil or peanut oil for making dal dhokli recipe.

Lemon Juice

A good drizzle of lemon juice or lime juice ties up all the flavor and adds a wonderful zing to the dish.

How To Make Dal Dhokli Recipe

Making Dhokli or Wheat Dumplings

Take wheat flour, carom seeds, curd if using, salt, oil in a bowl.

Add water little by little and knead into smooth tight dough. Do not make the dough very soft.

Divide the smooth dough into 4 big balls. Shape a ball into a thin rope. Pinch small balls and press slightly as seen in the photo. Prepare dough ball from all the dough.

Spread the dumplings in a big tray as single layer. Cover and set aside.

Cooked Dal Or Lentil Curry

Pick rinse and add both the dals to the pressure cooker. Also add chopped onions, tomatoes, green chilies.

Add 3 cups of water, salt, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder and chili powder.

Bring the water to a rolling boil on medium heat.

Now slowly add the prepared dumplings or wheat dough balls, one or two at a time. Gently stir so that the dumplings don’t cling or settle to the bottom.

Cover the pressure cooker and pressure cook dal for 4 whistles or for 10-12 minutes in medium flame.

Once the pressure settles down, open the cooker and check the consistency. If it too water, simmer for few minutes so that the dal thickens. If it very thick, add 1/2 cup water and simmer for 5-6 minutes.

In the meantime heat 2 tablespoons oil in a small pan. Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, slit green chilies, curry leaves and also add peanuts.

Fry till peanuts turn golden.

Add to the boiling dal dhokli. Mix well.

To serve:

Serve piping hot with raw onions, chopped cilantro leaves or chopped coriander leaves and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

Expert Tips

This dish will thicken on cooling. So do not make it very thick. Also if the dish gets very tick on cooling, just add some water and simmer it gently.

To make Jain dal dhokli, just leave out onions and tomatoes in the recipe.

Ajwain seeds or carom seeds add a wonderful flavor to the dumplings. Also they ensure proper digestion. Do add them.

Do not make the dough very soft. it should be smooth and a bit tight just like you make for poori.

Instead of making small dumplings, you can roll the dough and cur out fun shapes like star, moon. This will make the dish more attractive for kids.

Instead of adding chana dal, you can make a slurry of 2 tablespoons roasted gram flour with water and add to the simmering dal.

You can double or triple the recipe.

Taste Profile

Chunky textured, moderately spicy, kid friendly.

Storing Leftovers

If you have leftovers of this dish, which is very unlikely, you can easily store it for a couple of days. You can store the leftovers in airtight containers in refrigerator for 2-3 days and freeze dal dhokli for a month. Do note that dal dhokli thickens on cooling so you may have to add some water and simmer it.

Serving Suggestions

Dal dhokli is a complete meal on its own. It is eaten with rice in Gujarat sometimes but we prefer to have it as such. You can serve with mango pickle, papad and raw onions.

It is best eaten piping hot, from a bowl with spoon. You can also serve it a bit warm to toddlers and kids. However this dish does not taste very good on cooling. You can reheat it gently by adding some water. Just add water and simmer for 3-4 minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions

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