Mauritian Dholl Puri Recipe | Street Food

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

Dholl puri is Mauritian protein packed dish – lentil stuffed flatbread served with white bean curry and various other toppings is very popular street food.

Author: Pavani

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Prep Time: 15 mins

Cook Time: 30 mins

Total Time: 45 mins

Course: bread, breads, Main Dish

Cuisine: Mauritian

Servings: 12 Dholl Puri

Ingredients

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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.

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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:

•  Doner Kebab Sandwich
•  Veggie Tostada
•  Bombay Sandwich

Lets check out what my fellow marathoners have cooked today for BM# 96.