It is only for special occasions that I indulge in elaborate cooking and also in deep fried foods. Holi is one such festival where we indulge to the point of gluttony 😛 Holi is celebrated with great fervour in Bihar and UP and it was after my marriage that I saw how much importance was given to the food in Bihar on Holi. In my mother’s Punjabi household, it was Diwali which was celebrated with great fanfare while here, in Bihar, it is Holi. There is something called pukka khana, i.e. standard traditional food which is made diligently every year on this festival. Foods such as Dahi Bhalle, meat and pua, Chhena Malpua, sattu bhari kachori are ones that have to be there on the Holi lunch menu without fail year after year. The family has it for breakfast and lunch though! Meat is cooked with spices and gravy of onions and ginger-garlic on low heat and allowed to simmer in its own juices to the point where it begins to fall off the bone. It is then served with pua instead of any flatbread or puri. (I intend to do a post on the pua next time). Pua is not to be confused with Malpua. Dahi Bhalle is served with the sweet tangy spicy Tamarind Chutney. For vegetarians there is Chhole or Dal Makhani. The rich and indulgent food makes this festival of colors a double celebration for foodies 😀
For Pastry Dough
500 grams Maida (all purpose flour)
¼ C Sooji (Semolina)
Approx 2 tbsp less than 1/2 C Oil
220 ml Water Oil for deep frying
For Filling
200 gm Sattu Atta (sattu flour)
½ tsp Ajwain (carom seeds)
½ tsp Salt
2 tbsp Mustard Oil
2 tsp Lemon juice
1/4 C + 1 tbsp Stuffed Red Chili Pickle
1½ tsp very finely chopped Garlic
1½ tsp very finely chopped Ginger
2 tsp finely chopped Green Chilies
2 – 3 tbsp finely chopped Onion
3 tbsp finely chopped
Fresh Coriander
For Filling:
In a bowl, mix together the sattu, salt and ajwain. Add the mustard oil and lemon juice and rub them into the flour.
Next, add the red chilli pickle and squish & rub it into the sattu flour including the chilli skin and chili stuffing. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix everything well. Keep it aside.
For the pastry dough:
Mix together the maida and sooji. Now add the oil and rub it into the flour with your fingers. Add water and make stiff dough.
(While you are making the dough, add ample oil to the frying pan and get it ready for deep frying the kachori. Keep the frying pan on low medium heat.)
Making the Kachori
Divide the dough in 30 equal parts and roll each into three and half inch size discs. Fill each disc with one and half teaspoon of sattu mix. Bring the edges together and seal the top by slightly twisting it and pressing against the ball. Keep the balls covered with a moist cloth.
Fry in batches on low heat till the kachoris become golden brown in colour.
Serve hot with green chutney & tamarind chutney (I mix the two together and they make a great combo by the way). Enjoy!
Yield – 30 pieces (approximately)
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Those little cute parcels look so inviting! Sattu flour is new to me.
Hi Angie! Sattu flour is actually black chickpea flour that has been par boiled, roasted and powdered. This ingredient is specific to a particular region in India.
I can never resist fried foods! So I try not to eat them too often. Because I’ll eat the entire batch — particularly if I made these! They look wonderful — thanks.
Haha…thanks John. 🙂
These look very tasty. Love spicy doughs / breads with different flavors and these hit the mark. I’ve never heard of stuffed red chili pickle, but you can bet I’ll be on the look out for them.
Thanks MJ. This pickle is a very north Indian thing but should be available at Indian stores.
Oh! These look so good…I love all the spices in the filling…and they are so cute…sounds delicious with tamarind chutney.
I hope you are having a nice week 🙂