Recipe: Mixed Dal Handvo

A traditional gujarati savoury cake, which is a nutritious meal in its own right, served with chutney and buttermilk.

Hebbars Kitchen

For handvo batter

1. Firstly, soak 1 cup rice, 1/2 cup bengal gram / chana dal, 1/2 cup yellow pigeon pea / toor dal, 2 tbsp black gram skinned / urad dal in a bowl for 3-4 hours.

2. After 4 hours, in the mixer grinder add the soaked dal & rice and 1/2 cup curd and blend to a smooth but slightly coarse paste.

3. Transfer the batter to mixing bowl. cover and allow to ferment overnight if you do not prefer to use eno fruit salt.

3. Further add 1 cup grated bottle gourd, 1/2 cup grated cabbage, 1/4 cup grated carrot and 3 tbsp chopped coriander leaves. (you can add any vegetables of your choice)

4. Also add 1/2 tsp ginger paste, 1 finely chopped green chilli, 1/2 tsp sugar, 1/4 tsp kashmiri red chilli powder, 1/4 tsp turmeric powder, 2 tsp oil and 3/4 tsp salt.

5. Mix well making sure the batter is slightly thick like idli batter consistency.

6. Now add 1 tsp eno fruit salt and mix gently. alternatively use 1/4 tsp baking soda or ferment overnight if you do not prefer to use eno fruit salt / soda.

For tempering

7. In a small pan, add 3 tsp oil.

8. Once the oil is hot, add 3/4 tsp mustard seeds, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, 1 tsp sesame seeds, few curry leaves and a pinch of hing. allow to splutter.

Baking the handvo in oven

9. Transfer the batter into the round cake mould (dia: 7 inch, height: 4 inch). make sure to grease the mould with oil to avoid sticking and line butter paper at bottom of the tray.

10. Once the tempering is prepared, pour it over the handvo batter.

11. Place the handvo tin into the preheated oven and bake at 180°c for 30 minutes. bake till the toothpick inserted comes out clean and crisp top layer is formed.

Alternatively, you can even cook the handvo on the tawa.

Handvo on tawa

Once the tempering is prepared, in the same pan pour 1.5 cups of handvo batter spreading evenly. cover and simmer for 5 minutes or till the top layer is dried. flip over gently making sure the bottom layer has turned crisp. cover and simmer for another 5 minutes or till the handvo is cooked completely.

Notes

1. You can alternatively use 1/4 tsp baking soda or ferment overnight if you do not prefer to use eno fruit salt / soda.

2. You can cook the handvo in the oven or on the tawa.