Gujarati Handvo Recipe

Handvo is a Gujarati savory cake made with rice, lentils and veggies like bottle gourd. It is simple to make and outright delicious. You can make this snack in oven as well as on stove top in a pan. Serve with green chutney for a healthy and wholesome snack or breakfast.

Here is how you can make tasty Gujarati handvo recipe at home in four ways- in oven, in a pan, using handwa cooker and a pressure cooker!

For more Gujarati please check besan papdi, gujarati dal, dal dhokli recipes.

I was introduced to the delicacies of Gujarat many years back when we lived in Bangalore and I never looked back then 🙂

I simply love how Gujarati cuisine uses all simple and humble ingredients yet the dishes are nothing but delicious, hearty and very gourmet.

This handvo is excellent case in point indeed. You do not need any special ingredient or equipment for this recipe, but this dish is so tasty, wholesome and ridiculously easy to make.

So I first was treated to handvo in Bangalore. We used to have this piping hot from a small makeshift shop that served traditional Gujarati snacks like khandvi, khaman, muthiya etc.

Sometime later I got to taste this snack at a friend’s home and this time I made sure to pick up the recipe. Apparently there are many ways to make handvo. Here I have briefed all the methods so that you can choose and make whichever suits you.

So if you have tasted this only in a restaurant and want to try at home or do not know what it is, here is the detailed recipe with step by step photos ], all the tips you need to know along with somae variations.

About This Recipe

What is handvo?

Gujarati handvo is a traditional savory baked snack made with rice, various lentils like moong dal, chana dal, vegetables and spices. This delicious handvo cake is spiced with fresh ginger, green chilies. A generous tempering of mustard, sesame seeds, curry leaves add a wonderful flavor and crunch.

Grated bottle gourd the first vegetable of choice for this dish, however you can add any and all the vegetables you like.

Traditionally a special equipment called hando cooker is used for making handvo but it can be easily made in an oven or even stove top in a pan.

Those who have tasted must know, what a treat it is. It has that super flavorful crispy edges and very soft fluffy texture.

This is a very healthy, wholesome and filling this that serves as a wonderful breakfast or snack.

Why This Recipe Works?

This recipe of handwo is straight from a gujarati kitchen where it has been made for decades and decades. Furthermore I have adjusted the recipe to make this in an oven, stove top and also in instant pot. So you do not need the special cooker for my recipe 🙂

It contains various lentils and hence a protein packed dish. Adding chana dal along with moong dal lends a wonderful flavor

Next this dish is filled with a truckload of vegetables and tastes downright delicious. This is an instant recipe that requires no fermentation.

I have included the instructions to make handvo in a pan, oven, pressure cooker or an instant pot and handwa cooker. Do try and enjoy this dish. It is

A wonderful wholesome snack

Tasty and healthy

protein packed

Very easy to make

A big slice of this dish with lots of roasted sesame seeds and curry leaves is an excellent snack that will pick you up at anytime. Though it is served with green chutney it tastes so delicious as such. Let’s get into the recipe without any delay,

Ingredients

The basic ingredients you need for to make handvo are

• Raw rice
• Moong dal
• chana dal
• urad dal

Along with rice and lentils we also add vegetables, curd or yogurt and oil in this recipe.

If time is your constraint you can easily use handvo flour available in stores. It is basically a dry flour made with rice and lentils to which you will have to add yogurt, oil etc.

The other ingredients you need for making this recipe are

• Curd– curd or plain yogurt for that soft and porous texture. Use fresh thick curd for best result.
• Oil–  oil is again added to the batter for softness of handvo. I prefer to use groundnut oil while you can also use sesame oil or vegetable oil.
• Vegetables– You can add veggies like bottle gourd lauki, carrots, green peas, methi leaves etc. Bottle gourd especially adds to the soft texture of this dish. I have added a good dose of grated carrots, minced ginger, chopped green chilies and coriander leaves. You can also use methi leaves or fenugreek leaves for more flavor.
• Tempering– Roasted sesame seeds, curry leaves and mustard seeds are used as tempering here. I highly recommend adding a generous dose of sesame seeds, they are very flavorful and delicious with a wonderful crunch.

How To Prepare The Batter

• From Scratch– If you are making this batter from scratch, soak rice and lentils separately for 4-6 hours. Drain and grind to a coarse paste without adding water. To this batter add curd and mix well. At this stage you can either ferment the batter for 8-10 hours or make handvo instantly by adding fruit salt. I have added fruit salt here.
• Using Handvo Flour– Handvo flour is basically a mix of rice and lentils. It is a dry flour available in market. Measure 3 cups ready made flour into a bowl. Add yogurt, oil and mix well. Let it ferment or proceed at once by adding fruit salt. Fruit salt basically acts as leavening agent and makes handvo soft and porous just like the ones made from fermented batter.

How To Make Gujarati Handvo Recipe

Batter

Pick, rinse and soak the mixed lentils in 2 cups of water for 4-6 hours . You will need 3/4 cup toor dal or split pigeon peas, 1/2 cup chana dal, 2 tablespoons urad dal, 2 tablespoons moong dal. Also soak 1 cup raw rice for 4 hours separately.

At the time of grinding, drain and take the rice and lentils combined in a mixer jar.

Grind without adding water to a coarse paste.

Add yogurt and salt to taste. Mix well and blend again to a smooth paste. If absolutely necessary add 1/8 cup water.

Take the batter in a mixing bowl. Add chopped green chilies, grated carrots, grated bottle gourd, chopped coriander leaves, minced ginger and sugar. You can also use garlic ginger paste. Mix very well.

Just before making handvo, add fruit salt. It will react immediately with the batter. Mix very well again. Instead of fruit salt you can also add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda with 2 teaspoons lemon juice. Do not baking powder though.

Finally add oil and mix well. Now the batter is ready.

Making Handvo

Heat a cast iron or any sturdy pan with 2 tablespoons oil. Add mustard seeds, curry leaves and sesame seeds. Fry until the seeds turn golden.

Pour 3/4 cup batter into a round. Do not try to spread. Drizzle some oil around the edges.

Cover and cook in medium flame for 5-6 minutes. Flip and cook the other side for 3-4 minutes. The edges should turn crispy and handvo should have fluffed up very well.

Remove to a plate and slice into wedges. Serve hot.

Handvo in oven

Preheat your oven at 190 C or 375 F. Grease a 10 inch round baking tin well. Pour the prepared batter and tap well. Prepare the tempering of mustard seeds, curry leaves and sesame seeds. Pout this tempering over the batter. Bake for 40-45 minutes until the top turns golden and crispy.

Do note that the time taken for baking depends on the consistency of the batter, thickness of the handvo and your oven behavior. Keep watching after 35 minutes to avoid burnt top. After 35 minutes, remove the handvo from the oven and check if done by pricking with a tester in the center. Also you can go by the crispy golden top.

Once baked, let cool for 5 minutes, slice and serve with green chutney or tomato chutney.

Below is the picture of handvo baked in oven. I used a pizza pan, so did no get much height.

Using Handvo Cooker

A handvo cooker looks like this (Not an affiliate link). It comes with a tray or ring to fill sand, a baking tray and a lid. It has to be used on stove top.

Fill the tray or ring with fine sand. Grease the baking tray with oil. Prepare tempering as mentioned and pour into the greased tray. Pour the prepared batter and close with the lid. Place this over the ring or tray filled with sand. Cook in low to medium flame for 30-35 minutes.

Using Pressure Cooker

You can also make this dish in a pressure cooker. It is similar to the making of cooker cake. Just fill the base with sand or salt. Preheat for 10 minutes in low flame. Pour the prepared batter into a greased baking tray. Prepare and pour the tempering as mentioned in the recipe. Close the pressure cooker without gasket and weight valve. Cook in medium flame for 30-35 minutes.

Slice and serve as required.

Variations With This Recipe

Rice– Instead of regular rice you can add brown rice. You can also add a mix of rice and oats or poha. Just soak along with rice.

Spinach– You can add cleaned and chopped spinach leaves in the batter along with other veggies.

Zucchini– If bottle gourd or lauki is not available you can grated zucchini to handvo batter. Zucchini is also rich in water content similar to bottle gourd and makes the handvo soft and porous.

Flavoring– Instead of adding minced ginger and chopped chilies, you can make a coarse paste. Just grind together 2 green chilies, 1/2 inch ginger and 2 garlic cloves. Add this chilli paste to the batter.

Gujarati Handvo with fermented batter– Instead of adding fruit salt or baking powder you can ferment the batter. After grinding the rice and lentils together, just add salt and mix well. Cover and ferment for 8-12 hours.

Add yogurt, vegetables and other ingredients to fermented batter and prepare hanvo.

Make it vegan- to make this recipe vegan just use cashew or almond yogurt in place of dairy yogurt.

How To Store Leftovers?

Batter– If your batter is naturally fermented you can store it in refrigerator for 2 days. If you have made more batter, remove a portion before adding baking soda or fruit salt and store in airtight container in refrigerator. Do not store the leavened batter.

Cooked Handvo– Store any leftover handvo in airtight box for 2 days in refrigerator. You can freeze the same for a month. Just before serving, reheat it gently in a pan or microwave for  3-4 minutes.

Pro Tips

Do not add any water while grinding the rice and lentils. Just the moisture in the soaked and drained lentils is enough for grinding.

Adjust the batter consistency with curd or plain yogurt. Batter should be thick yet flowing similar to adai batter.

While making in a pan, use a thick and sturdy cast iron pan to withstand the heat and uniform cooking.

Instead of eno fruit salt you can use a mix of baking soda and lemon juice. Add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda and few drops of lemon juice.

You can store the batter for two days in refrigerator if it naturally fermented.

Once you add fruit salt or baking soda, cook handvo immediately. Do not store the batter after adding fruit salt.

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Until Next

Harini 🙂

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