‘Pithla‘ is a regional speciality from an Indian state – Maharashtra. It is prepared using gram flour, onions and garlic-chilli paste with aromatic, warm tempering of curry leaves, cumin and mustard seeds. A garlic-chilli paste used in this recipe is one of my favourite and it is known as ‘Thecha‘. This thecha is hot and spicy in taste; which can also be served as sides. I prefer spicy food, so I enjoy using thecha in this recipe; however one can adjust it’s use as per taste.
Pithla is a soft, semi-thick and slightly wobbly in texture while packed with wonderful flavours. It has nutty taste from gram flour and garlic-chilli paste (thecha) adds spiciness. Although, the spice level is perfectly balanced with sweetness of onions and earthy flavours of tempering, thus overall it is lightly spiced, warm and comforting recipe. The hot and freshly prepared pithla can be best enjoyed with bhakri/chapati or served as sides with steamed rice.
Whenever I make this Pithla at home, it makes me very nostalgic and takes back to our Sinhgad fort trips in Pune. You can find one of the best pithla-bhakri meal on this fort and we always used to relish this hot meal along with lassi after our adventurous trek of Sinhgad fort 🙂
So, sharing my version of Pithla recipe in this post which is vegan and vegetarian friendly. It requires simple ingredients and can be ready under one hour; thus makes it a perfect recipe for your weekday meal.
Ingredients:
1 cup gram/chickpea flour
1 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp asafoetida
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 small onion
8-10 curry leaves
1-2 green chillies
3-4 garlic cloves
Salt as per taste
Handful fresh coriander leaves
Water as required
Method:
Start with preparing garlic-chilli paste. For this, you’ll need mortar and pestle.
Roughly chop garlics and chilli; then add into mortar and pestle along with little salt.
Crush everything together until rough paste is formed.
In a mixing bowl, add gram flour, turmeric powder and garlic-chilli paste.
Gently mix it together and then add around 1 cup of water. Combine everything until lump-free mixture is formed.
Next, heat a pan over high heat and add oil into it.
Once oil is hot; add mustard and cumin seeds. Let them sizzle for few seconds.
Turn heat to medium and add asafoetida into the pan. Next add curry leaves and gently combine everything.
Tip-in chopped onions into it and season with salt.
Stir for few minutes or until onions are softened.
Once onions are softened, turn heat to low and slowly add gram flour mixture into the pan.
This mixture immediately starts to thicken, so gently add water into the pan while stirring continuously.
Add around 2-3 cups of water and stir continuously.
Turn heat to medium and allow it to cook for another 10-15 minutes or until gram flour is cooked.
Cook until raw taste of gram flour goes off; if required add more water while cooking.
Gram flour mixture will starts to thicken. It should be thoroughly cooked in another 15-20 minutes.
Test taste and adjust salt if required. Simmer it for another 5 minutes.
Finally add finely chopped coriander leaves and mix it together.
Pithla is ready; serve it with hot bhakri, chapati or rice and some sliced onions, lime on sides.
If you enjoyed this recipe then do check out my other recipes here. If there are any suggestions, questions or feedback then do let me know in comments.
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Recipe
Maharashtrian Pithla Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup gram or chickpea flour
- 1 tbsp oil vegetable
- 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/4 tsp asafoetida
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- 8-10 nos curry leaves
- 1 nos onion small
- 1-2 nos green chillies
- 3-4 nos garlic cloves
- salt as per taste
- coriander leaves handful
- water as required
Instructions
- Start with preparing garlic-chilli paste. For this, you'll need mortar and pestle.
- Roughly chop garlics and chilli; then add into mortar and pestle along with little salt.
- Crush everything together until rough paste is formed.
- In a mixing bowl, add gram flour, turmeric powder and garlic-chilli paste.
- Gently mix together and then add around 1 cup of water. Combine everything until lump-free mixture is formed.
- Next, heat a pan over high heat and add oil into it.
- Once oil is hot; add mustard and cumin seeds. Let them sizzle for few seconds.
- Turn heat to medium and add asafoetida into the pan. Next add curry leaves and gently combine everything.
- Tip-in chopped onions into it and season with salt.
- Stir for few minutes or until onions are softened.
- Once onions are softened, turn heat to low and slowly add gram flour mixture into the pan.
- This mixture immediately starts to thicken, so gently add water into the pan while stirring continuously.
- Add around 2-3 cups of water and stir continuously.
- Turn heat to medium and allow it to cook for another 10-15 minutes or until gram flour is cooked.
- Cook until raw taste of gram flour goes off; if required add more water while cooking.
- Gram flour mixture will starts to thicken. It should be thoroughly cooked in another 15-20 minutes.
- Test taste and adjust salt if required. Simmer it for another 5 minutes.
- Finally add finely chopped coriander leaves and mix it together.
- Pithla is ready; serve it with hot bhakri, chapati or rice and some sliced onions, lime on sides.
Notes
- Use a lump-free mixture of gram flour with water.
- Cook gram-flour mixture over medium-low heat while stirring continuously.
- Add water as required which helps to cook gram flour mixture and will thicken eventually.
Although I have heard of “Pithla” I’ve never tried it. This looks really delicious though so I’ll have to try it out one day 😊
Thanks lovely 😊 Yeah it tastes amazing, simple but so good 🙂
Simple food is often the best 😋