What is Moong Daal Khasta Kachori ?
Kachori is one of the most popular street foods in North India. The local vendors prepare it freshly and fry it in a ginormous pan during morning hours. The term khasta means flaky. So this variety is prepared with a thick layered flaky crust. It’s great for breakfast on-the-go and around evening hours for people to pick it their way home. A perfect warm indulging snack to keep you going, especially on those cold winter months. There are different variety of stuffing used in kachori and my favourite has always been Moong Daal Khasta Kachori loaded with asafoetida (hing) It’s often enjoyed with Fresh Coriander Chutney and Sweet Tamarind Chutney. Occasionally, it is also paired with Aloo Tamatar Sabzi for weekend breakfast. As for me, a cup of masala chai is enough to wash it down.
Ingredients you need
Moong Dal - Yellow mung beans are typically used for this Kachori recipe. Spices - The Mung bean is the key ingredient in the filling, and it is flavored with few spices, like cumin, coriander, dried fenigreek leaves, chili powder, turmeric, and the most important spice is asafoetida (hing) As you crack open the moong dal Khasta Kachori, you get this strong flavor of asafoetida (hing) which when cooked with mung bean makes it so earthy. Some people don’t like the smell of asafoetida and if you are one of them, do skip it. It is an acquired flavor for sure and we Indian grew up enjoying the aroma. Besan - Besan is chickpea flour, and it is used to add flavor and creates a bind as you fill it to the dough. All-purpose flour - The dough is prepared with all-purpose flour. You can definitely make it healthier by using, wheat flour too. Ghee - Ghee is used in several stages of the dish, as it adds flavor and richness to the kachori. Oil - Regular vegetable oil to fry the kachori.
Steps to prepare Kachori
1- Soak the moong dal in water for 5 hours or overnight. 2- Drain the soaked dal and then layer it on a dry cloth to soak all the moisture. Let it air dry for 30 minutes. 3- Coarsely grind the mung beans. Don’t blend it. You want to see some texture. 4- In a bowl, take all the spice powder and add a little water to make a spice paste. 5 - In a pan, heat ghee and let it melt. 6- Add the besan and stir it around to melt it. 7- Cook for the besan for 5 minutes by constantly stirring it. Keep the heat medium low. 8- Add the coarsely ground moong dal ad stir it around for a few minutes. Then add the spice paste ad continue cooking the moong dal, until the spice is nice distributes, and the raw flavor is gone. 9 - Once the moong dal is almost dry and crumbly, add dried fenugreek leaves, dry mango powder and asafoetida (hing) and mix it around. 10- Take the mixture to a bowl and leave it aside. 11- In the meantime, prepare the dough by add ghee, salt, and sugar to the all-purpose flour. 12- Mix it around to distribute the ghee evenly, and the texture of the dough should look crumbly. It should hold the shape when you take some and hold it tight. 13- Add water little by little to prepare the dough. Then cover the dough with a damp kitchen towel and let it rest for 30 minutes. 14- Divide the dough into mini dumplings. Roll the mini dumpling with hand and add the filling. Then take the edges and seal tight. Then gently press it to make a flat disc. 15- Pour oil in a heavy bottom flat skillet and once the oil is slightly hot, add the kachori and let it cook for 10 minutes. Keep tossing it around so it cooks evenly. This step is crucial to make sure the dough is cooked through. 16- As it puffs, crank up the heat and cook it until it’s golden brown in color. Enjoy warm kachori with green and red chutney along with sliced onion and fried green chili.
So, what the trick to flaky Kachori?
Adding fats to the flour – ghee is the best option, but you could also use oil. You have to incorporate the fats into the flour evenly before adding water and kneading.The filling shouldn’t be wet or too moist.The temperature of the oil should be low when you drop the prepared dumplings. It takes easily 15 minutes to fry these Kachori. It’s extremely important to continue frying in low to medium heat for about 10 minutes before cranking up the heat to medium for the golden-brown color.
If you follow these tips, the Kachori will definitely turn flaky and will stay flaky for several days.
The filling for the Moong dal khasta kachori:
You can choose various fillings and endless options are available. The key is to avoid retaining too much moisture in the filling. In terms of spice, I kept it mild but do taste the filling and add more spice, if you wish. I like to overload the moong daal filling with hing(asafoetida) because I absolutely love that flavor. If you don’t like asafoetida, exclude it from the recipe.
Shaping the Moong Dal Khasta Kachori
Divide the entire dough into tiny portions. And then, either by using a rolling pin or hand, shape the dumpling into a flat disc. The KEY here is to thin out the edges, because the edges come together to seal the filling. If you keep the edges thick, then it will turn into an uneven disc after shaping. Once the filling is done, some prefers to roll it thin, which I used to do before. But with time, I felt that just pressing with the dough with gently pressure is enough to flatten it out. As you shape the Kachori, remember to keep them covered, or else the dough dries out easily.
Reheating Left Over Kachori
Don’t microwave heat left over Kachori. Just keep it in a preheated oven 350 F for 5 to 7 minutes. While there is definitely a certain amount of work involved in making these, in the end, it does feel worth all the work. The best part is that you can make these in bulk and enjoy over the next few days. If prepared correctly, they easily last for 10 days and stay flaky. Just store in an air tight jar once it is cooled completely.
