Khaman Dhokla

Khaman dhokla is Gujarati steamed snack made of chickpea flour or besan. These delicious, soft & spongy savory chickpea flour cake are so good as breakfast or snack with chai. Vegan recipe.

These are also known as besan dhokla and the recipe is super simple. You can make this instant khaman at home in less than an hour and enjoy.

In this post I am sharing my perfect khaman dhokla recipe that will yield super soft fluffy, spongy, light and absolutely delicious khaman.

I first tasted this delicious khaman in a Gujarati snack bar many years back and absolutely loved it. We used to have dhokla, khandvi, mirchi bada, muthiya and many other Gujrati delicacies here often.

Making khaman at home is super easy and all you need is chickpea flour and a leavening agent like fruit salt.

These light, delicious and spongy chickpea cakes are so delicious with green chutney as snack or breakfast.

If you have never heard of this dish or have not tried making it at home, this post will help you with most detailed recipe and tips. Let’s get started.

What Is Khaman Dhokla?

Khaman dhokla is an instant dhokla recipe from Gujarati cuisine made of chickpea flour or besan. Khaman and dhokla are two different dishes actually.

Dhokla is steamed savory rice cake made of fermented batter while Khaman is an instant dish made of chickpea or besan batter leavened with baking soda or fruit salt. It is called dhokla just because the process of steaming is common to both the dishes.

Making khaman dhokla at home is super easy. We begin by making by a thick batter leavened with fruit salt or baking soda and steam until soft & spongy. The steamed cake is topped with a flavorful sweet and sour tempering of mustard seeds, curry leaves, green chilies, sugar & lemon juice. Some variations also add coconut and coriander leaves.

Steamed dhokla absorbs the flavorful tempering and becomes super soft, flavorful and very delicious. The tempering also prevents the dhokla from drying out and keeps it moist for hours.

In this post I am also sharing an easy method to make spongy khaman dhokla in pressure cooker or instant pot.

You can serve khaman or steamed savory cake as breakfast or snack with green chutney, tomato chutney or garlic chutney. You can also serve this as such with coffee or tea as snack. This dhokla is also called besan dhokla or yellow dhokla.

Do try this khaman dhokla recipe and enjoy. It is

a traditional Gujarati snack

super easy to make

soft and spongy

delicious and addictive

easy to make snack or breakfast.

Ingredients

Chickpea Flour

Chickpea flour also known as besan or gram flour or chana dal flour is the main ingredient to make khaman dhokla. Use fresh and fine gram flour that is not rancid for soft and fluffy khaman dhokla. You need not roast the flour, just add fine plain flour directly.

Sooji or Fine Semolina

It is an optional ingredient and lends a very light and crumbly texture to this dish, If you want to keep this dish gluten free, leave out semolina,

Fruit Salt or Baking Soda

We need a leavening agent for this instant khaman dhokla recipe as we are not fermenting the batter. You can use baking soda + lemon juice or fruit salt. If using fruit salt use plain unflavored ones. If leavening agents are not added, we will end up with hard ones instead of spongy dhokla.

Fruit salt is a combination of citric acid and bicarbonate of soda. Bicarbonate of soda is the leavening agent and citric acid is for activating it. Instead of fruit salt you can use 1 teaspoon baking soda as leavening agent and few drops of lemon juice for activating it. Baking soda reacts with lemon juice and activates it.

You can also use lime juice or citric acid crystals instead of lemon juice with baking soda. I have used this plain eno with no added flavors.

Tempering Ingredients

Once the dhokla is steamed we will add a quick tempering on it to add flavor and spice. The tempering ingredients used are mustard seeds, curry leaves, finely chopped green chilies, sugar, salt, sesame seeds and lemon juice.

Other Ingredients

The other ingredients used are water for dhokla batter, salt, minced ginger, asafoetida, turmeric powder.

How To Make Khaman Dhokla Recipe

Making Dhokla Batter

Place a sieve over a large bowl and add 1 cup gram flour or besan to it. Sift the besan into the mixing bowl.

2. Add 1.5 teaspoons semolina to it. Also add salt, a pinch asafoetida, 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 2 minced green chillies, 1/2 teaspoon minced ginger or ginger paste and few curry leaves. Adding curry leaves in the batter is optional but I like it for flavor.

3. Add 1 1/2 + 1/8 cup water and whisk well to form a thick yet flowing batter. It is the correct batter consistency. The batter should flow as ribbons when dropped from height. It should also form a thick coat at the back of a spoon,

There should not be any lumps in the khaman batter. Set aside.

Steaming Instant Khaman Dhokla

Grease a 6 inch box or cake pan really well with some oil. I have used a steamer plate. You can use any stackable container used for pressure cooker or instant pot too. Do not use steamer plate with holes.

n the meanwhile bring some water to rolling boil in the pot or pressure cooker to steam the dhokla.

7. Just before you are ready to steam the dhokla, add 1 leveled teaspoon of eno fruit salt to the batter. Mix fast and really well. You can also add 1 teaspoon baking soda and few drops of lemon juice. Add fruit salt or soda only when you are ready to steam.

The fruit salt will start to react and batter will fluff up.

Now pour the batter to the greased pan, tap the edges to level and place inside the pot with boiling water.

Close the lid and steam cook khaman dhokla for 15-20 minutes.

Once done, prick the steamed dhokla in few places to see if well cooked.

11. Allow to cool for 5 minutes, invert the plate and remove the dhokla carefully. Cut into squares and set aside till we prepare tadka. You can run a knife gently around the edges to remove the steamed khaman dhokla easily.

Tempering

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a small pan. Add mustard seeds and let them crackle. Now add cumin seeds, chopped green chilies, curry leaves and saute well. Also add 2 teaspoons sesame seeds if using.

13. Add 1/4 cup water and let it boil. Add sugar and dissolve well.

Switch off the flame and add lemon juice.

Mix well and pour over the sliced dhoklas. Add grated coconut and chopped coriander leaves all over.

Serve dhokla as snack or breakfast with green chutney, garlic chutney.

Making Khaman in Instant Pot

Place the steel insert inside your instant pot and switch it on. Press saute mode.

Once it displays hot pour 2.5 cups water and let it boil.

As the water is boiling prepare the khaman dhokla batter as explained above.

Pour the prepared batter in a greased box or tin. You can also use stackable vessels used for instant pot.

Now place a trivet or steamer rack inside the instant pot over the boiling water.

Place the box containing dhokla batter on the trivet.

Cancel saute and close the instant pot. Press steam and set timer for 15 minutes. Set pressure valve in vent position. Steam khaman dhokla for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, let the steamed dhokla sit inside the pot for 3-4 minutes. Prepare the tempering mean while. Instant pot will not beep in venting mode, so use a kitchen timer or keep watch on minutes manually.

After 4 minutes, carefully remove the steamed khaman dhokla container from the instant pot and invert it on a plate. Cut into squares.

Pour the prepared tempering over the steamed dhokla squares. Serve immediately.

Steaming In a Stove Top Pressure Cooker

Bring 2.5 cups water to rolling boil in a pressure cooker base. Prepare batter as explained in the recipe. Place a trivet and the place the pan containing dhokla batter on it. Close the pressure cooker lid and remove the weight. Steam for 12- 15 minutes.

You can also use idli plates and steam these dhokla batter for 15 minutes just like idli, it is the easiest method if you ask me 🙂

Pro Tips

Fruit salt (Eno) Vs Baking Soda.

I have made khaman dhokla several times using both fruit salt and baking soda. The dhoklas made with fruit salt is more airy light as citric acid reacts better that lemon juice.

I use baking soda and lemon juice only when fruit salt is unavailable. If adding baking soda, do not miss the lemon juice or citric acid.

Batter consistency

The consistency of batter is the key factor for making soft and spongy dhokla. You should make a lump free smooth batter that is not too thick or runny.

If the batter is very thick it will not raise well while steaming dhokla and if the batter is runny the dhokla will not set properly.

Water Quantity

The amount of water needed for batter depends on the quality of besan or chickpea flour used. If the flour is very fine as mine, you will need less water. Always start with less water and add more if needed.

Do Not Overmix

After adding eno fruit salt or baking soda, do not mix it very vigorously as it will make the fruit salt inactive. After adding fruit salt you should steam the batter immediately. Do not store the leavened batter.

Steaming dhokla

Use a deep pan with some height for fluffy and well raised dhoklas. There are plates especially available for steaming dhoklas, you can use them too. Cake tins or stackable pressure cooker vessels are ideal for these too.

Make sure the water is boiling in the steamer pot before placing the khaman container. Steam in medium heat for 15-20 minutes.

Storage

Storing batter– You can prepare the batter ahead and store for 2-3 days in refrigerator. Prepare dhokla batter as mentioned and do not add eno or baking soda. Store in airtight containers. Add eno only when you are ready to steam the batter.

Storing dhokla– You can also steam the dhokla and store them for 3-4 days. Steam, slice and let cool thoroughly. Do not add tempering. Store in airtight containers.

When you want to serve, thaw them for 15 minutes, prepare the tempering and add over the dhoklas.

Frequently Asked Questions

More Gujarati Recipes

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Handvo

Dal dhokli

Aamras

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