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The culinary rituals of Holi vary from place to place in India. From fire-roasted papads in Rajasthan to the Sindhi Roat, Holi comes with delicious and unique foods from different parts of the country. However, the Marathi Holi is incomplete without relishing delicious Puran Polis. Like every other culinary ritual, making Puran Polis in Maharashtra also has a reason. Puran Poli is a sweet flatbread with a filling of Bengal gram and cane sugar or jaggery. The ingredients are symbolic of Holi’s agrarian roots as a harvest festival. Holi usually falls in March when Rabi crops are harvested. Al the ingredients used in making Puran Poli- gram, wheat and sugarcane are harvested during Holi. These newly harvested crops make for the celebratory meals for the festival. Wondering how to make Puran Poli? Here’s the recipe if you want to try it.
INGREDIENTS
For Puran
• 2 cups chana dal, soaked for 3-4 hours
• 2 cups cane sugar/jaggery
• 1 tsp cardamom powder
• 1 tsp nutmeg powder
• 1 tsp oil
• 1 tsp salt
For Poli
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• ½ cup ghee
• Rice flour (for dusting)
Image by- Puran Poli/Facebook
METHOD
1. Add the chana dal to a pressure cooker along with salt, turmeric and oil and cook for 5 whistles.
2. Once the chana dal is cooked, drain off all the water and transfer it to a bowl.
3. In a pan, add the chana dal and sugar/jaggery and allow the sweetener to melt and caramelize. Keep mashing the mixture while cooking.
4. Once the mixture starts to take the form of a dough, transfer it to a sieve and pass the mixture through it to get a smooth, lump-free filling.
5. Divide the Puran into medium-sized balls and keep them aside.
6. Add the dry ingredients for the Poli except for the rice flour and combine well. Gradually knead the dough by adding water.
7. Once the dough is ready, grease it with oil/ghee and rest for at least 30 minutes.
8. For making the flatbreads, take a medium-sized dough ball and flatten it well.
9. Add a Puran ball in the center and bring the edges together to stuff the dough with the Puran.
10. Dust your kitchen surface with some rice flour and roll the dough into a flatbread.
11. Add the flatbread to a hot tawa and roast on medium flame till it puffs up.
12. Grease the flatbread with 1 teaspoon ghee and remove it from heat.
Traditionally, Puran Poli is served with a generous amount of ghee on the side. You can replace the ghee with any chutney or pickle as per your taste preference.
