I never thought I will make Luchi again and that too in such rapid succession. But with all the deep-frying going on in Blogosphere I was really very hungry. Still, I restrained myself until Coffee came and commented (on my last post) that she thought the Puri I was talking about was Poori.
What Blasphemy!!!
Here I was being all devotional and reminiscing Jagannatha Puri and here comes this Gujju girl and mixes up not only Lord Jagannatha but a big chunk of geographical land called Puri for a flat deep fried 4 inch diameter bread called Poori
This got on my nerves and I thought I better join the gang and chant “Jai Poori-Bhaji” than chant “Jai Jagannatha” before I am relegated to the dungeons or to Blog Hell or something like that
The fact that a 3 year old would be thrilled by my decision helped.
So I made Luchi again, this time with Alu Charchari.
Here's my Luchi-Alu Charchari joining the Independence Day party at Anita’s.
Though the Luchi with Alu-Charchari was absolutely yum and the 3 year old had hers with some Maple Syrup too (instead of khejur gur ?), I tell you I am not going to do this again in the near future (which means next month and hope D doesn't read this). Not because it’s going to clog my arteries (What Rubbish!!!) nor for the deep frying smell (which I love) but simply because it’s too much work for me. Really it is.
There is no limit to the number of Luchis I make, they simply disappear as soon as I take them out of the oil. So I go on making them endlessly all the time eyeing them hungrily hoping to get this task over and hog on them, this wait totally stresses me out.
Also the Luchi dough has a considerable amount of shortening so rolling out the luchi is not a very easy thing for me. Next, rolling out the luchi and then frying them at the same time calls for a certain amount of finesse which I woefully lack. So I roll some and then heat the oil and due to my lack of patience half of my luchis don’t puff up well.
Though I am all in favor of making Poori/Luchi the national and even international dish, by if not making it every week at least by voting for it million times.
Here is some Luchi Guide I have come up with which might help the future generation.
Luchi should always be a joint venture. Get someone to fry while you roll or vice versa. Else try to achieve the pinnacle of luchi making and do it all by yourself
For 3 cups of flour 3 tbsp of oil is suggested as mayan or shortening. 2 tbsp works fine though. However if the mayan or shortening is very less the luchi is not soft as it is supposed to be.
The Luchi dough needs to be worked well, this is called “thasha” in Bengali. You need to knead the dough for sometime till you get the smooth end result. The best time to knead the dough is when you are very very angry, kneading vents your anger, therapeutic I tell you.
After making the dough, cover with a lightly dampened cloth or kitchen tissue and let it sit. After half an hour or so proceed to make the balls. (If I refrigerate the dough, after taking out from the refrigerator I just knead it once more with a light sprinkle of flour) Rolling out luchis now is easier.
Use oil and NOT flour to roll out luchis.
The heat of the oil is very essential in the luchi puffing up. Dip a corner of the rolled out dough in the oil, if you see a major bubbly reaction, you know the oil is ready for the luchi
Don't forget to press the luchi with the back of your slotted spatula/chalni. It helps in the luchi puffing up
Eat it hot, don't ever have a cold luchi. Ok you can, when it is part of Pujor Bhog or leftover from your friend's wedding party or leftover from any party if you are a grad student.
The Alu-Charchari is the quickest, tastiest aloo ever, it is very very simple.
All you have to do is this,
Heat the Oil. You can use Olive Oil since there's not much frying but since I was sending this to Anita's I didn't,
Temper with Kalonji/Nigella Seeds and freshly grated ginger.
Add potatoes and sauté, You are not going to fry the potatoes so sprinkle a little water as necessary and cover and cook. Remember to stir in between
Add the green chillies when you are half way and continue, cover, stir, cook routine till potatoes are done.
When done add salt and pepper powder
Add the green chillies when you are half way and continue, cover, stir, cook routine till potatoes are done.
When done add salt and pepper powder