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Dal  pakwan is a traditional Sindhi breakfast dish. These are crispy puris served with chana dal along with tamarind and mint chutney.

Traditionally this dish is served mainly for breakfast, but can also be served for brunch and evening snack. the preparation is time-consuming, but certainly worth the effort.

Make sure to fry the pakwan on low flame, else the pakwaan will not turn crispy and crunchy. This dish can also be served as a chat by pouring dal over pakwan and topped up with chutneys.

I was introduced to this dish by my ex boss Mr Jamal Syed,a hardcore foodie,who loves food.He had a maharaj at his home who used to make amazing dal pakwan and we used to wait for him to get it in lunch.I was so fascinated with the dish that I Googled for the recipe and finally got a perfect one and nailed it.

So here goes the recipe….

Ingredients :

For Dal:

1 cup Chand Dal.washed and soaked in water for 4 hours.

1 tbsp Ghee.

1/2 tsp Asafoetida.

1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds.

1/2 tsp Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder.

1/2 tsp Dhana Jeera Powder.

1/4 tsp Turmeric powder.

1/2 tsp Aamchur Powder.

Salt to taste.

For Pakwan:

1 cup Wheat Flour.

1 cup Plain Flour.

2 tbsp Ghee.

1/4 tsp Carom Seeds.

1/4 tsp Cumin Seeds.

Salt to taste.

Water to knead.

Oil for deep frying.

For Serving:

2 tbsp Green Chutney.

2 tbsp Tamarind Chutney.

1/2 Onion finely chopped.

1/2 Tomato finely chopped.

1/2 tsp Chaat Masala.

1 tbsp Coriander Leaves finely chopped.

Method:

For Dal:

In a cooker pressure cook 1 cup chana dal along with 3 cup water for 5 whistles.
Once the pressure settles down, open the cooker and check the dal has cooked well yet not mushy. keep aside.

In a large kadai heat ghee and splutter cumin seeds and asafoetida,keeping the flame on low, add turmeric powder,dhana jeera powder and Chilli powder,saute until the spices turn aromatic.

Now add cooked chana dal along with 1 cup water and salt,mix well,simmer for 2 minutes,add amchur powder mix well adjusting the consistency as required..
Remove in a bowl and keep aside.

For Pakwan:

In a large bowl take wheat flour,maida,carom seeds,cumin, seeds and salt,mix well.
Add ghee and mix well.
Now add water slowly and start to knead the dough.
knead to a stiff dough.

Pinch a ball sized dough and flatten, roll slightly thick as for paratha.

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Prick the pakwan with a fork to prevent puffing up while frying.

Deep fry the pakwan in hot oil.

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Fry the pakwan on low flame making sure they turn crisp and are cooked completely.

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Drain off on an absorbent paper to remove excess oil.

Pakwan can be stored in an airtight container for 10-15 days once its cooled completely.

Assembling of Dal Pakwan:

Pour the prepared chana dal in a bowl and top with 1 tsp of green chutney and tamarind chutney,top up with finely chopped onions and tomatoes, sprinkle little chaat masala,sev and chopped coriander leaves.Serve with Pakwan.

Happy Cooking !!!

Sameera.