Illustrative stock photos, not this exact recipe. Photo credits are at the bottom of the page.
Ingredients in this recipe
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Fara is a traditional steamed snack of Chhattisgarh. A soft rice-flour dough is rolled around a filling of cooked chana dal, garlic, ginger and green chilies, steamed until tender, and often finished in a pan with a tempering of mustard seeds and curry leaves. It is eaten as a breakfast or evening snack. Chhattisgarhi cooking is often described as simple and rice-centered, with steamed and fried rice-flour snacks and plenty of leafy greens; the state is sometimes called the “rice bowl of India”. Read more in Indian regional cuisines.
Leftover fara taste especially good tossed in a hot pan with the tempering the next day.
Recipe label: Based on traditional technique. Photo: illustrative stock photo, not the finished dish from this exact recipe. Regional recipes vary by family and village.
Photo credits: Photo 1: Mikhail Nilov on Pexels; Photo 2: Mikhail Nilov on Pexels; Photo 3: 高 长华 on Pexels. Free stock photos, used under the Unsplash or Pexels license and shown here as illustrations only.
Fara (Chhattisgarhi Steamed Rice Flour Dumplings)
Description
Chhattisgarhi fara: soft steamed rice flour rolls filled with spiced chana dal and finished with a quick mustard and curry leaf tempering.Ingredients
For the dough
For the filling
For the tempering
Instructions
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Drain the soaked dal and grind coarsely with the garlic, ginger, green chilies, turmeric and salt without adding much water. Steam or cook the paste in a pan for 5 minutes until dry, and cool.
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For the dough, boil the water with the salt and oil. Add the rice flour at once, stir, cover and rest for 5 minutes. Knead while warm into a smooth dough, with oiled hands.
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Take a small ball of dough, flatten into a long oval on oiled hands, put a line of filling along the center and roll up into a small log, sealing the seams.
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Arrange the rolls on a greased steamer plate with space between them. Steam over boiling water for 15 to 20 minutes until firm and glossy.
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Heat the oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds, curry leaves and dried chilies. Add the steamed fara and toss for 2 minutes to coat. Serve hot with chutney.
