Gujarati Tawa Handvo Recipe - Healthy Pan Fried Lentil Cake
Here is a high protein recipe that you will absolutely love. Its packed withe flavor and taste and these tawa handvo can be had for breakfast or even a dinner along with green chutney and gor keri pickle. Serve these handvo along with a cup of chai or a bowl of dahi.
The Tawa Handvo is a nutritious protein packed meal is one of the most popular Gujarati one-dish meals. Traditionally the handvo is cooked in an earthen pot over low flame but due to conveniences in modern cooking techniques, families use ovens to bake them or use a skillet to pan cook them. I personally prefer the tawa (skillet) method, as it feels lighter to eat and has crispy edges giving it the additional taste to the palate.
Many families like mine love to add the juices from Gor Keri pickle into the batter to give a sweet and spicy taste and flavor to the finished dish. Serve Tawa Handvo lentil skillet pancakes along with Gor Keri pickle or with Gor (jaggery) and homemade butter for breakfast or a weeknight dinner.
Here are few more recipes from Gujarati Cuisine
20 M
30 M
50 M
3-4 Servings
Ingredients
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Main Ingredients
- 1 cup Rice , (raw rice)
- 1/2 cup Arhar dal (Split Toor Dal)
- 1/2 cup Green Moong Dal (Whole)
- 1/2 cup Chana dal (Bengal Gram Dal)
- 1/4 cup White Urad Dal (Whole)
- 2 Green Chillies
- 1 tablespoon Ginger , chopped
- 1 cup Curd (Dahi / Yogurt)
- 2-1/2 teaspoons Enos Fruit Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Turmeric powder (Haldi)
- 2 cups Bottle gourd (lauki) , grated
- Oil , to cooking
- Salt , to taste Ingredients for the seasoning of each tawa handvo
- 1/2 teaspoon Mustard seeds (Rai/ Kadugu)
- 1/2 teaspoon Sesame seeds (Til seeds)
- 1 teaspoon Curry leaves , finely chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon Asafoetida (hing)
- 1/4 teaspoon Red Chilli powder
- 1 tablespoon Oil Vegetables:
- 1/2 cup Green beans (French Beans) , finely chopped
- 1/2 cup Carrots (Gajjar) , finely chopped
- 1/2 cup Onions , finely chopped
How to make Gujarati Tawa Handvo Recipe - Healthy Pan Fried Lentil Cake
To begin making the Tawa Handvo recipe we first need to wash and soak the rice and lentils together in 3 cups of water for 4 to 5 hours.
Grind the rice, lentils, green chillies, ginger and salt along with the soaked water and yogurt to make a thick batter that is slightly coarse. The coarseness should feel like fine semolina.
The consistency of the batter should be such that when you use a ladle to pour it should fall in dollops. Stir in the salt and allow the mixture to ferment for 8 hours.
Once fermented you will notice the dough has risen. Gently stir in a tablespoon of oil to the batter. If your batter for some reason did not rise; stir 2 teaspoons of enos fruit salt into the batter and you will notice the air bubbles start popping out from the batter. Finally stir in the grated bottle gourd and turmeric. (This is the time you would stir in the other vegetables you would use)
Heat one tablespoon of oil in a nonstick skillet (8 inches diameter) on medium high heat; add the mustard seeds, sesame seeds and curry leaves; allow them to crackle. Turn the heat to low and sprinkle the red chilli powder and asafoedita into the oil.
Pour two ladles of batter into the pan and gently spread the batter evenly onto the pan. As you spread the batter the seasoning mixture will spread to the side; allow the seasoning to rest in places where it has spread as this gives a special crunchiness to the sides of the Handvo.
Turn the heat low, drizzle a teaspoon of oil around the batter and cover the pan. Simmer for 3-4 minutes until the top feels cooked and steamed.
Once you notice the top is cooked and there is no trace of raw batter, gently flip the Handvo with the help of a broad flat spatula to the opposite side and turn the heat to medium high.
Allow it to turn golden brown and crisp. Flip over once again and allow the other side to brown and crisp slightly. Continue making similar cakes with the rest of the batter and serve hot.
Serve Tawa Handvo lentil skillet pancakes along with Gor Keri pickle or with Gor (jaggery) and homemade butter for breakfast or a weeknight dinner.
