Sunday, September 28, 2008

100 Pooris ( Deep fried Indian breads )

This cookbook lists 100 simplified pooris (deep fried Indian breads).10 different bases are paired with ten different stuffings to create a hundred different pooris. 

The base :
Though whole-wheat flour (atta) and refined wheat flour ( maida) account for most pooris cooked across India, we have specialty pooris made from a variety of flours, like the unusual pooris made from water chestnut ( water caltrop)  flour the Singare ki Poori.  As many of these flours cannot be kneaded into a dough, they are mixed with wheat flour to make kneading easier. 

The stuffing :
Anything without too much moisture can be used to stuff a poori. Potatoes, paneer and dal make easy stuffing whereas cauliflower or radishes take time to master, because they have more moisture. Though non-veg stuffings are not common, they can be cooked into delicious pooris. 

In case the stuffing makes the poori soggy, and you are unable to roll it, just  knead the stuffing into the dough, roll into a thin disc and deep fry it. 

Combining a variety of stuffing with a variety of bases would give you an endless list of pooris. 

3 comments:

  1. Wow! I didn't know it was possible- 100 different types of pooris! ...But if you knead the stuffing right into the dough, will the pooris rise when deep fried?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Right. Kneading stuffing into the dough might marginally decrease the puffing ability, but you'll hardly notice it. And in anycase, even unpuffed pooris taste delicious !

    ReplyDelete
  3. i like these 1 page cookbooks .. quite innovative .. sooo many types of pooris .. wow

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for taking the time to comment. I'll respond to it soon.