Dholl puri is Mauritian protein packed dish – lentil stuffed flatbread served with white bean curry and various other toppings is very popular street food.
In my quest to ‘the explore Southern Hemisphere’, I am virtually visiting Mauritius. There were quite a few countries to choose from like Argentina, Chile, Australia but I finally chose this beautiful African island. About one-third of African continent is in the southern hemisphere which is about 10-12 countries.
Mauritius Cuisine
Mauritius is an island nation in the Indian Ocean. It’s cuisine is widely influenced by Creole, French, Chinese and Indian cuisines. There are also a lot of dishes that are unique to the island.
In the 19th century many Indian workers migrated to Mauritius and brought there dishes with them. Traces of both north and South Indian culinary traditions are seen in Mauritius. The dishes have evolved over the years with the inclusion of Mauritian flavors and have changed quite significantly from the original.
Mauricien Lentil Stuffed Flatbread
Today’s recipe dhall puri or dal puri is a beloved and popular street food in Mauritius. Dholl puri origin is believed to be from India. Bhojpuri speaking Indian workers introduced this dish to the country more than 100 years ago. No wonder it looks so similar to Indian stuffed paratha. The recipe has won the hearts of natives and tourists alike.
Here is what you need to make this delicious stuffed flatbread. Recipe requires few pantry staple ingredients.
- For the dough: all-purpose flour. But I added some whole-wheat flour (atta), to add some fiber and nutrition.
- For the stuffing: chana dal aka split yellow peas add necessary protein to the dish.
Instructions:
- Prep Lentils: Soak chana dal for 30 minutes. Then boil until very tender but not mushy. Drain and reserve the cooking liquid. Spread the cooked dal on a wide plate and let cool.
- Once cool enough to handle, grind to a smooth powder along with cumin and salt. Set aside.
- Make Dough: In a mixing bowl, combine the flours, salt and turmeric. Add the reserved dal cooking water and oil. Mix and knead until a soft, pliable dough forms. Add more water, if needed. Cover and set aside for 10 minutes.
- Make stuffed pancake: Divide the dough into 12~15 equal size pieces. Flatten them out into a flat disc and make a depression in the middle. Fill the depression with generous amount of dal powder. Bring the dough ends over the filling encasing it. Flatten it again and roll into a roti – the thinner the better.
- Place the stuffed roti on a preheated griddle or tawa and cook on medium-high flame until lightly golden on both sides. Brush with oil while cooking. Repeat with the remaining dough and dal filling.
Mauritian Dholl Puri
Ingredients
For the Dal Stuffing:
- 1 cup Chana Dal (Yellow Split Peas)
- 1 tsp Ground Cumin
- ½ tsp Ground Turmeric
- To taste Salt
For the Dough
- 2 cups All purpose flour
- 1 cup Wholewheat flour (or atta)*
- 2 tbsp Oil
- To taste Salt
Instructions
- Soak chana dal for 30 minutes. Then boil until very tender but not mushy. Drain and reserve the cooking liquid. Spread the cooked dal on a wide plate and let cool.
- Once cool enough to handle, grind to a smooth powder along with cumin and salt. I added a pinch of red chili powder – it is not traditionally used. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the flours, salt and turmeric. Add the reserved dal cooking water and oil. Mix and knead until a soft, pliable dough forms. Add more water, if needed. Cover and set aside for 10 minutes.
- Divide the dough into 12~15 equal size pieces. Flatten them out into a flat disc and make a depression in the middle. Fill the depression with generous amount of dal powder. Bring the dough ends over the filling encasing it. Flatten it again and roll into a roti – the thinner the better.
- Place the stuffed roti on a preheated griddle or tawa and cook on medium-high flame until lightly golden on both sides. Brush with oil while cooking. Repeat with the remaining dough and dal filling.
Notes
- Add a pinch of red chili powder or ground pepper to add a kick to the filling.
- Traditionally Dholl puri are made entirely with all purpose flour, so you can use 3 cups of APF and skip whole wheat flour.
How to Serve:
Traditionally dholl puri are served and sold in pairs wrapped in a paper to take away along with soda. They are usually eaten as is or wrapped around a variety of vegetables or pickle vegetables and chutneys. Dholl puri is also often paired with sweet dishes like kheer or halwa.
Here are a few bread based street foods from around the world:
Lets check out what my fellow marathoners have cooked today for BM# 96.
Varada
This street food combo sounds awesome! I would love to try it. Bookmarked.
Vaishali Sabnani
Dholpori has been on my mind since so so long , the procedure to make the stuffing is quite different , and that’s what is going to make the difference .
Lovely street food , and very well made !
Priya Suresh
Have tried an another version of Dholl puri, and you are tempting me again with this incredible puris Pavani.. I want to make some soon now.
Srividhya Gopalakrishnan
You have done extensive research on Southern Hemisphere countries. I am picking only the easy ones. 😉 This stuffed dholl puri is very inviting and love your presentation.
harini
Very inviting version of dal puri. The presentation is very tempting.
Enjoyed all your dishes this week.
Gayathri Kumar
This sounds like sattu paratha and looks absolutely yum. Such an amazing feeling when we see international dishes resembling Indian dish.
Raaj
very nice post
Swati
We make similar kind of channa dal paranthas.The combo looks interesting and delicious too!!
Srivalli Jetti
These Dholl puri look so nicely done Pavani, thanks for all the wonderful research you have done, I loved it when I read about it and cooked it, so much like our own, yet different!
Sandhya Ramakrishnan
I made the Trinidad Dhal Puri for the mega marathon and was amazed at how this they roll it. I was able to roll it pretty thin but not close to what I saw. Looks so delicious and this is one protein filled flatbread.
Suma Gandlur
These are some nutritious and yummy, stuffed flat-breads. I had made them earlier for a BM theme and everyone at home loved them.
Chef Mireille
this is basically the same as Caribbean dhalphourie – so funny how the same foods got transported around the world with Indian migration whether forced as indentured servants or freely moving about.
Ramona
This combo looks amazing – I am always searching for good authentic simple recipes like this. I love dhal and will be making this tomorrow when I have planned a curry day. Cannot wait!
Gloria
I love cooking with lentils. This looks like a fun recipe to try. With all the cooking happening at home right now…this will be welcomed for sure.