I have more than a dozen gluten-free flours stored in my fridge and pantry, but the bag of besan (gram flour) is the one that needs to be restocked most often. There are many, many ways you can use gram flour in your cooking. Its characteristic nutty flavor gives besan the ability to create tasty, simple dishes that stand on their own with few ingredients. Take this Pithaud recipe for example. It looks simple, right? Well, it is! The delicate golden brown crust and silky smooth interior of pithaud really shines through in this easy dish and is well complemented by simple tomato curry and seasoned sweet green peas. I made this for my friends on Yoga retreat day and they couldn’t stop talking about how good it was.
Pithaud/Pitor/Pitaur/Pataur is a traditional Rajasthani dish made with gram flour, yogurt and spices (it is spelled differently by different people). I have been making and enjoying this dish from more than a decade. It is mighty delicious and worth trying if you love Indian food or not. But, I changed the way I used to serve this ever since I laid my eyes on Chef Ajay Chopra’s recipe in a local magazine. It was presented in an artistic way with more modern look. I borrowed his idea of masala peas, however kept the base gravy the same as I used to make it in the past. The combination of pitaur with tomato curry and masala peas is out of this world delicious for lunch or dinner. Although, you can also devour them as a snack for breakfast or teatime with mint chutney.
To make pitaur, it is important to use a nonstick pan so that the batter does not stick and leaves the sides when it is cooked. It cooks fairly fast, think five minutes for the total. Turn out the dough on a greased tray and spread out with spatula then put a greased plastic paper on top and gently flatten with a rolling pin or with hand, about 1/4 -1/2″ thickness. Uncover and set aside for half an hour or more. It will harden when it cools.
While the pitaur is cooling you can prepare masala peas and blanch tomatoes for curry. When pitaur is completely cooled and look like a block, cut it into squares or circles. If you cut into rounds you can use the scraps for curry in place of potato. Before serving you have to cook the cakes in little oil until golden brown on both sides. Be sure the pan is hot before adding the cakes so the slices have less chance to stick to the bottom of the pan. While the preparation may seem a bit elaborate, this dish is well worth the effort. And if you like, you can prepare the pitaur in advance. It will keep for few days in the fridge. It does fine in the freezer too, just thaw it in the fridge before using.
A wonderful springtime meal of gram flour cakes, tomato curry and seasoned sweet green peas. So simple, yet so delicious!
Ingredients
- 234 g (1 cup) Greek yogurt (2%)
- 100 Besan /gram flour (I prefer roasted)
- 150 ml (+) water
- 1 tsp karahi masala
- 1/2 tsp(-) red chili powder
- Salt to taste less than half tsp
- 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
- 3/4 - 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
- 2 tbsp. desi ghee or oil
- Oil for searing cooked pitaur
- 2 cups thawed green peas
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 3/4 " piece ginger, finely chopped
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1/4 cup (+) water
- 1/2 tsp red chili powder
- 2 green chilies, chopped
- Salt to taste
- Lemon juice (optional)
Instructions
- Grease a small cookie tray.
- Mix flour, yogurt and 1/2 cup water. Whisk. Add more water until it becomes pouring consistency.
- Add in ginger garlic paste, turmeric, red chili powder, kadai masala and salt.
- In a nonstick pan, heat ghee or oil. Carefully add the besan batter and stir it continuously with a spatula to avoid lump formation.
- Cook until it gets thick and starts leaving the sides of the pan, about 5 minutes.
- Immediately turn the soft dough onto greased tray and spread out with spatula (it will be sticky).
- Place a greased plastic wrap over it and flatten into 1/4-1/2" thickness.
- Set aside for 1/2 hour or until it is ready to be cut into roundels or squares.
- Meanwhile, make tomato curry and masala peas.
- Heat olive oil in a pan.
- Add cumin seeds and ginger. Cook briefly.
- Add coriander powder, red chili powder, salt, green peas and water, mix well.
- Cover and cook till peas are tender, about 5-7 minutes.
- Mash lightly with a potato masher.
- Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice.
- Heat another pan on medium heat.
- Cut gram flour block into squares with knife or in circles using a cookie cutter.
- Add oil to coat the pan or brush oil on both sides of cakes.
- Place the cakes in the hot pan in one layer, and leave to cook, without moving them, until the underside is crisp and golden. Carefully, using a thin spatula, turn the cakes over and cook the other side until golden.
- To assemble, spoon tomato curry in plate. Place pitaur/ gram flour cake on top of the curry. Spoon 2 tbsp. masala peas and serve with salad.
This post is part of Meatless Mondays, CookBlogShare.
Angie@Angie's Recipes
Is gram flour same as chickpea flour? Those gluten free cakes look really super!
Balvinder
Yesterday someone asked the same question. Check my chickpea flours page to understand the similarity and the difference.
Blackswan
This makes a lovely lunch, my dear! xoxo
Juliana
Wow, these cakes look so tasty with the sauce with green peas…so many different dishes that i yet have to try.
Have a wonderful week ahead Balvinder 🙂
Claudia
Oh heavens, I have never seen gram flour cooked like this before. I’ll definitely be trying this recipe out!
Have a great week!
Balvinder
Hi Claudia, I do have another recipe on my blog where I cooked besan briefly and then used the cut squares in curry.
You have a great week, too.
Alida @My Little Italian Kitchen
What a great idea! I love gram flour and I always keep a bag in my pantry. I love your recipe and it seems very easy too. Thank you 🙂
Evi @ greenevi
These look so good! I love everything with gram flour and that sauce must be amazing with those gluten-free cakes!
Monica
This reminds me of polenta but looks so much better! Love how you presented and plated/paired it. Totally restaurant quality. Yum!
allie
Beautiful dish Balvinder! I love the peas, such a great pairing with the pithaud! HAve a wonderful week my friend!
Tarnjit Hemer
So so tasty! I was lucky enough to have some at the yoga retreat. Your talent for creating healthy sumptuous dishes is inspiring!
Balvinder
Thank you so much for your kind words, dear friend!
Looking forward to my Tuesday afternoon yoga session with you 😉
marcie
These cakes look so hearty and flavorful, and I love the sound of the masala peas. Delicious!
David @ Spiced
So I’m not familiar with pithaud, but these cakes sound delicious! 🙂 And that chaunke matar sounds like the perfect accompaniment to this one. I’ll have to give this one a shot sometime!
Balvinder
Thank you so much, David! The pitahud combo is absolutely worth trying and I am sure you’ll love this!
Shubha
Looks delicious and yummy:) will try it soon..:)
Easyfoodsmith
I would love to have it any time of the day! My mother-in-law makes something similar but she makes the batter sans yogurt. I am so going to try it for snacking.
Kirsty Hijacked By Twins
Yes please! This dish not only looks delicious but sounds so full of flavour. I know that both the hubby and I would love this dish! Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
Mandy
I love gram flour – it’s one of my favourite ingredients too, although my kids aren’t very keen on the taste. I would love to try these cakes with masala peas.
Swati
Love how you combined matar with traditional pithud .. Rich wholesome combination and sounds so flavorful..