Khaman Dhokla Recipe

5 from 7 votes

Moist and spongy traditional Gujarati khaman dhokla recipe! This instant savory besan (gram flour) khaman is a flavorful, steamed and so tasty.  This recipe uses no yogurt or curd so it is both vegetarian and vegan.

Serve this as an appetizer or snack with this besan khaman chutney or with coriander chutney.

Time to make: 30 minutes

  • Easy to make
  • Steamed dish
  • Vegetarian and vegan

About Besan

The main ingredient in khaman is besan flour. For this specific recipe, there is no substitute for besan. However, you can make other types of steamed dhokla such as moong dal dhokla.

  • In English, besan flour is gram flour.
  • Besan is made of ground Bengal gram or chana dal.
  • You can find besan flour at any local Indian store. Or online such as here.
Khaman in a pan steamed and topped with tadka.

Making Moist Khaman Dhokla

There is nothing I hate more than seeing a tempting looking plate of khaman only to take a bite and find it dry! While having a good chutney like besan khaman chutney makes a difference, I’ll outline what I do to make sure your khaman turns out moist!

To make moist khaman, My mom adds a simple ingredient. Water! While many may already do this, I don’t think people add enough water. As a result, we end up with that dry, choking feeling when eating khaman.

TIP: After the tadka is made, some water and a little sugar is added to the pot. Bring this to a simmer. Then pour all over the khaman. This helps:

  • Infuse the flavor of the tadka across all the khaman, making it tastier!
  • Adds moisture to the khaman. It may seem like a lot of water, but the besan soaks it all up.
Whisking khaman dhokla batter ingredients in a steel bowl.

Key Ingredient For Spongy Khaman: Eno and Making the Khaman dhokla Without Eno

Similar to a cake, this needs a reactor in the batter to help make it rise and become fluffy and spongy. The best way to achieve this is to use Eno. There is no yeast needed.

  • Eno is a fruit salt which is composed of basically 60% baking soda and 40% citric acid.
  • 1 tsp Eno = 1/2 tsp baking soda + 1/2 tsp citric acid
  • So you can substitute 1 tsp baking soda + 1 tsp citric acid if you do not have Eno. Note, I have not tried making it with baking soda as Eno is my preferred method.
Four khaman pieces on a gray plate with tadka poured on top.

Reheating Khaman or What if you have dry khaman from a store?

The best way to fix dry khaman is to sprinkle some water on top of the khaman before microwaving to reheat it.

Don’t use too much water, but sprinkle some with your hands all over the plate of khaman. Then, you can taste and add more if it is not as moist as you would like.

We have fixed many store bought khaman with this simple trick of my Mom’s!

Try it? Leave a review, love to hear feedback! Or tag me on Instagram @some_indian_girl

Khaman with tadka poured on top and dessicated coconut.

Instant 30 Minute Khaman Dhokla Recipe – (Besan)

Shilpa Joshi
Moist and spongy traditional Gujarati khaman dhokla recipe! This instant savory besan (gram flour) khaman is a flavorful, steamed and so tasty.  This recipe uses no yogurt or curd so it is both vegetarian and vegan.
5 from 7 votes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Appetizer, Breakfast, lunch
Cuisine Gujarati, Indian
Servings 4 servings
Calories 222 kcal

Equipment

  • Bowl for mixing
  • Whisk
  • Steamer
  • small pot

Ingredients
  

Khaman Batter

  • 1 cup besan gram flour
  • ¾ tsp salt
  • 1 tsp ginger blended
  • 1 tsp green chillies blended, about 1 whole
  • 1 tsp eno
  • 2 tsp oil
  • tsp turmeric
  • 3 tsp lemon juice
  • ¾ cup water plus 2 tbsp water, total 3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp

Tadka

  • 2 tbsp oil
  • 1 tsp mustard seeds rai
  • 2 green chillies cut
  • 8 – 10 curry leaves
  • ¾ cup water
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 3 tsp sugar

Instructions
 

Khaman

  • Lightly oil a pan with a brush. I used an 8 inch cake pan. Make sure to lightly coat sides as well. Put pan in pot to steam with water.
  • Whisk khaman batter ingredients together in a bowl.
  • Pour batter into oiled pan. Place in steamer (make sure you've added water to steam at bottom of pan). Turn on gas. Cover and cook about 12 minutes. Khaman will become fluffy. Check with a knife to ensure it comes out clean before turning off gas and removing pan.

Tadka

  • In a small pot, add oil and turn heat on medium – high. Once hot, add mustard seeds and green chillies. Once seeds are popping add sesame seeds. Reduce heat to low. Add in curry leaves.
  • Add water and sugar. Bring to boil and let simmer 3-4 minutes. Turn off gas.
  • Pour tadka on top of khaman and serve.

Notes

Eno is found online as well as your local Indian grocery stores.

Nutrition

Calories: 222kcalCarbohydrates: 23gProtein: 7gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 1gSodium: 834mgPotassium: 271mgFiber: 4gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 183IUVitamin C: 95mgCalcium: 38mgIron: 2mg
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