Traditional Bihari Litti Chokha Recipe

Shaheen Ali
Traditional Bihari Litti Chokha Recipe
4613 ratings.

Litti is a snack food found in India's Bihar  and Nepalese state of Madhesh. It consists of wheat and sattu combined along with spiced and stuffed into maida balls and deep fried in ghee or baked in the oven.

Although Litti very often confused with Baati from Rajasthan, it is a completely different dish in terms of taste, texture and preparation. It may be eaten with yogurt, baigan bharta, alu bharta, and papad. The litti are traditionally baked over a cow-dung fire, but you can either deep fry the littis or bake it in the oven.

Serve the Litti Chokha along with Aloo Choka and Baingan (Choka) Bharta, Yogurt & Pickled Green Chilies for lunch or dinner.

If you like this you might like a few of our favorite traditional recipes from India like - Pista Burfi RecipeMoong Dal Sookhi Sabzi, Godhi Chutney Podi RecipePunjabi Chana Masala and Dabeli

You can use Vivatta Whole Wheat Flour - the pure chakki atta to make the litti. They bring out great flavors of the wheat into the dish.

Cuisine: Bihari
Course: Lunch
Diet: Vegetarian
Prep in

45 M

Cooks in

60 M

Total in

105 M

Makes:

4 Servings

Ingredients

    Ingredients For Litti
  • 3-1/2 cups Whole Wheat Flour
  • 3/4 cup Ghee
  • 1/3 teaspoon Baking soda
  • 2 tablespoons Curd (Dahi / Yogurt)
  • 1/2 teaspoon Ajwain (Carom seeds)
  • 1 teaspoon Salt , to taste
  • Lukewarm Water , to knead the flour
  • Ingredients for Filling (Pitti)
  • 1-1/2 cups Roasted Gram Flour (Sattu Ka Atta)
  • 1 inch Ginger , grated
  • 2 cloves Garlic , grated
  • 2 Green Chillies , finely chopped
  • Coriander (Dhania) Leaves , a small bunch finely chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon Ajwain (Carom seeds)
  • 1/2 teaspoon Kalonji (Onion Nigella Seeds)
  • 1/2 teaspoon Fennel seeds (Saunf) , pounded
  • 1 tablespoon Mustard oil
  • Salt , to taste
  • 1 teaspoon Lemon juice

How to make Traditional Bihari Litti Chokha Recipe

  1. To begin making the Traditional Bihari Litti Chokha Recipe, we will first get all the ingredients ready and keep it by the aside. 

  2. In a large mixing bowl, sieve flour, salt and baking soda in a large bowl. Add ajwain and ghee and mix everything well until you get coarse crumbs. Add warm water little at a time and knead to make a firm dough and smooth dough. 

  3. Cover the dough in a wet muslin cloth and keep aside for 20 minutes.

  4. While the dough is resting, we will prepare the filling (pitti)

  5. In a large mixing bowl, mix sattu, ajwain, kalonji, fennel seeds, mustard oil, grated ginger, garlic, green chilies, coriander, salt and lemon juice. Stir well to combine all the ingredients. Check the salt and spices and adjust to suit your taste. If you find the mixture too dry, add a little water to make a lumpy mix (which is still dry and not completely wet).

  6. Keep this pitti mixture aside.

  7. The final step is to make the Litti. 

  8. Place the rested dough on a flat counter and knead again for 5 minutes. 

  9. Make small lemon sized balls from the dough and roll it like pooris. Hold the poori between your palm and fill 1 large tablespoon of pitti-sattu filling mixture into the dough.

  10. Gather the sides of the poori and bring them together on top and seal the ball. Press the ball gently to flatten it.

  11. Proceed to make Litti balls the similar way and arrange them on a greased baking sheet. Brush the litti with ghee, so the tops get crisp while baking.

  12. Preheat the oven to 180 C. Once the oven is preheated, place place the litti tray on the middle rack and bake the littis till golden in color. Different ovens have different heating times - it an take anywhere between 20 to 30 minutes to bake and turn golden completely.

  13. Once baked, remove the Litti from the oven and allow them to cool a bit before serving. 

  14. Serve the Litti Chokha along with Aloo Choka and Baingan (Choka) Bharta, Yogurt & Pickled Green Chilies for lunch or dinner.