‘Chole kulche’, the name is enough to make most Dellhites gush with joy. Here’s something, only true chole kulche fans of Delhi would know, the iconic dish, does not comprise the typical chickpeas that you use in your typical desi curries. Safed Matar or Chole Matar is what you call them, and they aren’t even fried and cooked endless on high heat. They are boiled until they are soft, almost mushy and then mixed rigorously with chopped onions, tomatoes, coriander leaves, garam masala, tamarind water et al until it is one hot and tangy mix. It is quite a sight to watch the street-side vendor do it actually. From the giant, aluminum vessel, firmly perched on the rear-end of their cycle, they pull out the chole, before serving it with ‘kulchas’ or leavened breads. Now, these Kulchas are quite different from the Kulchas you find elsewhere in the country, unlike the Punjabi Kulchas, they are not crisp. They are soft and elastic. They are white in colour and roasted with butter, making the bread a highlight of its own in the dish.
Celeb chef Saransh Goila went down memory lane to recreate these Kulchas that he would often have as a child. “Bachpan me 5 rupay me do kulche khaya karta tha delhi ki sadko pe, school ki bus se nikalke(As a kid I would have two kulchas for 5 rupees on the streets of Delhi, after getting down from school bus), he commented.
To make the kulchas he first prepares the yeast or khameer, for which he mixes instant yeast with sugar and water and lets it rest for 10 minutes. Then he mixed the jiggly yeast with maida and lets it rest overnight until it puffs up.
Then he proceeds to make the dough, for which he combines maida, dahi, khameer, sugar, salt and water as required.
Further, he mixes the dough to bring it together. Adds a little bit of oil to mix it again. And then he lets it rest and ferment for 2 hours or till it is double.
It is a cakewalk after this, all one needs to do is pull out small roudels and roll it flat like a “crricket ka maidaan”, as Saransh would put it. The series of metaphors do not end here, he aslo says that these kukchas are as big as the hearts of Delhiites.
Once the kulchas are flat, he sprinkles some Kalonji seeds on top and roasts it on Tawa greased with butter.
He concluded the video saying that these kulchas need to be very soft and not crispy, hence you must roast it accordingly.
Once the kulchas are ready, serve it hot with chole and savour every bite of this “delishaas” treat.
Would you like to try this recipe soon, let us know how you liked it. And do not forget to share the pictures.