Khaman Dhokla Recipe
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.
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.
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.
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
Instant 30 Minute Khaman Dhokla Recipe – (Besan)
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
- ⅛ 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.