Decolonize Yo Diet:“Dhokla”

By: Chief Gigi Lopez, General Secretary

Black Power Comrades!

For this section of Decolonize Yo’ Diet we are going all the way to West India. This recipe was provided by a comrades grandmother from our Agitation & Propaganda Team!

We chose a very tasty snack called “Dhokla” that basically translates to fermented batter derived from rice and chickpeas. It is a very popular snack and street food in parts of India and can even be used for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or preferably just as a snack. One of my favorite things about this snack is that it can be served hot, cold or room temperature and it still slaps!

Now the reason why we chose this dish was because of the texture and flavor. “Dhokla” is one of the tastiest and spiciest dishes in India and gives u an “exotic” kind of flavor when eaten with different choices of chutneys (Chutney is a sauce or a dry base for a sauce. Some forms are spicy coconut dip, tomato relish, a ground peanut garnish or a dahi, cucumber, and mint dip.)The various chutneys helps to counter all that spiciness and to keep your mouth from burning. The texture of the Dhokla itself is very fluffy and sweet. So when u bite into the snack itself u can kinda taste 2 different types of flavors and textures which both balance each other out. 

Ingredients for steamed “Dhokla”:

 1 cup gram flour  besan)

1 tbsp citric acid

1 tbsp sugar 

To taste salt

A pinch of turmeric

Water (to make the batter)

1 tbsp fruit salt/baking powder

Ingredients for “Tadka”
This means to add more spices, tomatoes, garlic, onion, and ginger into an already cooked food to make it more spicy and delicious.

1 tbsp oil

1/2 tbsp mustard seed

1 dried red chili

7-8 curry leaves

Recipe:

1. In a bowl, mix gram flour, citric acid, salt, sugar, and turmeric. Add water and make it into a smooth batter with medium-thick consistency.
2. In a glass, add the fruit salt or baking powder. Add water to it and pour this into the dhokla mixture.
3. Grease the steaming tin with 2 drops of oil and pour the mixture into it. Steam for about 15-20 minutes or till cooked.
4. In a pan, add oil, mustard seeds, curry leaves, and red chilies. Let it splutter.
5. Pour the “Tadka” over the prepared “Dhokla”
6. Cut into pieces, serve and enjoy!