Sindhi Dal Pakwaan

The Sindhi Community in India predominantly resides in the northwestern part of the country, namely in the states of Gujrat and Rajasthan. They prepare many delicious foods based on fresh and local produce available in their area.

Today’s recipe, Sindhi Dal Pakwaan, is one of the lovely contributions from this community. It is prepared on festival days and sometimes also as an evening snack.

I make it in my home when we are bored of the everyday Dal Chawal/ Dal Roti and want to enjoy new tastes and flavours. Recently, when I made a fresh batch of Mint-Coriander Chutney, I was quite tempted to make a dish in which I could use immediately. The first dish that came to my mind was Sindhi Dal Pakwaan. I already had tamarind chutney in the fridge, which was a blessing 🙂

I always make a batch of Mint-Coriander Chutney and Tamarind Chutney and keep them in the fridge. Once these chutneys are made, a major part of your work is done, when making Chat, Dahi Bhalla, Dhokla, Dahi Puri, Ragda Patties etc. Tamarind Chutney stays good in the fridge for about a month, and mint chutney can be used up to a week when kept in the fridge.

You Check out the recipe for Tamarind Chutney here.

You will find all these delicious recipes for evening snacks here. So, do check them out.

Vati Khaman with Mint Coriander Chutney — Dahi Puri

Now, coming to Sindhi Dal Pakwaan. This dish has two components: Dal and Pakwaan. Dal is a simple gravy made with Chana Dal. Pakwaan are crispy fried pooris. Unlike the usual pooris, they are crispy ( like chips). These two components are prepared separately. Then, the dish is assembled by adding chutneys and salads. The chutneys and salads elevate the dish to another level and make it lip-smackingly delicious!

So, let’s check out the recipe:

Equipment Needed:

Pressure Cooker
Pan for making Dal
Kadhai for frying Pakwaan
Spatula
Knives and Cutting Board

Ingredients Needed to make Sindhi Dal Pakwaan:

Ingredients for Dal:

1 Cup Chana Dal; washed and soaked in water for 4 hours
About 4 Cups of Water
1 tsp Turmeric Powder
2 tbsp Oil
1 tbsp Finely Chopped Ginger
1 tbsp Finely Chopped Garlic
2 Green Chillies; Slit
2 Dry Red Chillies
1 tsp Cumin Seeds
⅓ tsp Asafoetida
1 Medium-Sized Onion; Finely Chopped
2 Medium-Sized Tomatoes; Finely Chopped
Salt; to taste
1 tbsp Coriander Powder
1 tsp Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder
Fresh Coriander Leaves for Garnishing

Ingredients for Pakwaan:

1½ Cups Refined Flour
1 tsp Carom Seeds (Ajwain)
½ tsp Salt
1 tbsp Oil
Water; for kneading a firm dough
Refined Oil; for frying the Pakwaan

Other Ingredients:

Mint Chutney
Tamarind Chutney
Thinly Sliced onions and finely chopped Coriander Leave for garnishing
Any salad veggies of your choice ( Eg: Carrot, Cucumber, Raddish, etc.)

Some Notes about Ingredient Sourcing in Germany:

Chana Dal: Available in Indian shops.
Turmeric Powder: Available in supermarkets and Indian shops. Turmeric Powder is called Kurkuma Pulver.
Oil: I used sunflower oil. Read my article about Oils in German Supermarkets.
Ginger: Available in supermarkets. Called Ingwer in German.
Garlic: Available in supermarkets. Called Knoblauch in German.
Green Chillies: Available in Indian shops.
Dry Red Chillies: Available in Indian Shops
Cumin Seeds: Available in Indian Shops.
Asafoetida: Available in Indian shops.
Onion: Available in supermarkets. Called Zwiebeln in German.
Tomatoes: Available in supermarkets. Called Tomaten in German
Salt: Available in supermarkets. Read my article about Salt in German Supermarkets.
Coriander Powder: Available in Indian shops.
Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder: Available in Indian shops.
Fresh Coriander Leaves: Available in Indian and Turkish Shops. Also available in supermarkets, but the bunch is very small.
Refined Flour: I used Type 450. Read more about flour in supermarkets in Germany in my article.
Carom Seeds (Ajwain): Available in Indian shops.

Indian Ingredients can also be purchased from the online store of Spiceland, Frankfurt. Their quality is good, prices reasonable and they deliver all across Germany.

Method to make Sindhi Dal Pakwaan:

Method to make Dal:

Wash the soaked dal once more. Add fresh water (about 4 cups) and 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder.
Cook it in a pressure cooker till the lentils turn soft.
Heat oil in a pan. Add finely chopped ginger and garlic. Fry them on medium heat for about one minute.
Add green chillies, dry red chillies, cumin seeds and asafoetida. Fry for another 30 seconds on medium heat.
Add chopped onions. Fry them till they come translucent.
Add chopped tomatoes, salt, 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder, Kashmiri red chilli powder, coriander powder and salt.
Cover with a lid. Reduce the heat and cook it for about 5 minutes. Mix in between so that it doesn’t stick to the pan.
Add cooked chana dal.
Increase the heat. Boil the dal for about 5 minutes.
Garnish with fresh coriander leaves.

Method to make Pakwaan

In a mixing bowl, combine refined flour with carom seeds and salt. Mix well.
Add oil. Rum the flour between your hands so that the oil gets mixed properly with the flour.
Add water and knead a firm dough.
Cover and rest this dough for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes, knead the dough once more.
Make small portions of this dough. Each portion should be just a little bigger than the size of a marble.
Round the dough and roll it as thin as possible. Use dry flour so it is easy to roll.
Prick holes using a fork.
This way, roll and flatten all the dough balls.
Heat oil in a pan. On high heat, fry the rolled dough till it comes golden and crispy.
Transfer to a paper towel. Pakwaan is ready.

Method for assembling

Transfer the cooked dal to a serving bowl. Add tamarind chutney and mint chutney. Then garnish with thinly sliced/chopped onion and fresh coriander leaves.
Chop up any salad vegetables of your choice. I used thinly sliced carrots and onions. Squeeze lime juice on them and mix well.
Serve with pakwaan.

Here is the recipe in printable format: