Moong Dal Cheela (Lentil Pancakes)

On winter mornings in Delhi and Jaipur, street carts serve hot moong dal cheela stuffed with grated paneer and green chutney. The batter is just soaked yellow moong dal, ginger and chilli – no fermentation, high in protein and ready in minutes.

Video by Hebbars Kitchen on YouTube. Our recipe below is our own home-style version, written in our own words – quantities and steps may differ from the video.

• Serves 4
• Prep 15 min
• Soak 180 min
• Cook 20 min
• Vegan · gluten-free
• Famous in Rajasthan & Delhi

Ingredients

• 200 g yellow moong dal, soaked 3 hours (or 200 g moong flour)
• 2 cm ginger
• 2 green chillies
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• ¼ tsp turmeric
• 1 pinch asafoetida
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1 small onion, 1 tomato, 2 tbsp coriander – finely chopped
• oil for the pan
• To serve: grated paneer (optional), green chutney

Method

1. Drain the dal and grind with ginger, chillies and about 150 ml water to a smooth, pourable batter (or whisk moong flour with water).
2. Stir in cumin, turmeric, asafoetida, salt and the chopped vegetables.
3. Heat a non-stick pan, grease lightly, pour a ladle of batter and spread into a thin circle.
4. Drizzle oil around the edge and cook on medium heat for 2 minutes until golden underneath, then flip and cook 1 minute more.
5. Fill with grated paneer if you like, fold and serve hot with green chutney.

Tip: Make the batter slightly thicker than dosa batter – it spreads more easily without tearing.

Shop the ingredients

Everything you need for this recipe is in stock at Farmah’s – order online or pick it up at Annenstraße 41, Graz.