KCB 4.5: Puffed Fried Bread (Poori)
Puffed Fried Bread (Poori)
Popular over all of India, pooris are ideal to cook for both small dinner, parties and festivals with hundreds of guests. On a number of occasions, I've cooked 500 or more pooris in a few hours for big feasts. Once you get the rhythm down, it's effortless and rewarding. Pooris are traditionally made with straight wholemeal flour, but you can vary the ingredients. One-half wholemeal or atta, and one-half unbleached plain flour makes lighter pooris. If you're expert at rolling, try using just plain flour for translucent, gossamer-thin pooris.
You can add yeast to your pooris for light, bread-like results, as in Yeasted Puffed Fried-Bread; you can add spices to your poori dough; you can sprinkle sugar on top of pooris for a sweet snack; or you can stuff them with various sweet and savoury fillings, as in Stuffed Puffed-Bread.
The dough for this poori recipe differs from chapati dough in that butter or ghee is rubbed into the flour and less water is added, to form a drier dough. No flour is used on the rolling surface.
Pooris are traditionally eaten hot, straight out of the ghee or oil, but cold pooris are great for picnics or snacks when travelling. Serve pooris with practically any menu at any time.
Pooris are traditionally eaten hot, straight out of the ghee or oil, but cold pooris are great for picnics or snacks when travelling. Serve pooris with practically any menu at any time.
• PREPARATION TIME: 15 minutes
• DOUGH RESTING TIME: 1/2-3 hours
• COOKING TIME: 15 minutes
• YIELD: 16 medium-sized pooris
• DOUGH RESTING TIME: 1/2-3 hours
• COOKING TIME: 15 minutes
• YIELD: 16 medium-sized pooris
• 2 cups (500 ml) sifted chapati flour or half-wholemeal and half-unbleached plain flour
• 1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) salt
• 2 tablespoons (40 ml) melted butter or ghee
• 2/3 cup (165 ml) warm water, or as needed
• ghee or oil for deep-frying
• 1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) salt
• 2 tablespoons (40 ml) melted butter or ghee
• 2/3 cup (165 ml) warm water, or as needed
• ghee or oil for deep-frying
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1. Combine the flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Rub in the butter or ghee until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. Add up to 2/3 cup (65 ml) of water, slowly pouring in just enough to form a medium-soft kneadable dough. Turn the dough onto a clean working surface and knead for 5-8 minutes or until silky smooth. Cover with an overturned bowl and leave for 1/2-3 hours.
2. Knead the dough again for 1 minute. Divide the dough into 16 portions, roll them into smooth balls, and cover them with a damp cloth.
3. Preheat the ghee or oil in a wok or deep pan over low heat. Meanwhile, with a rolling pin roll all your balls of dough into smooth disks about 11 1/2-12 1/2 cm (4 1/2 -inches) wide. Increase the ghee or oil temperature until it reaches about 185°C/365°F. Lift up a rolled poori and slip it into the hot oil, making sure it doesn't fold over. It will sink to the bottom then immediately rise to the surface. Hold it under the surface with a slotted spoon until it puffs up into a balloon. After a few seconds, when it is browned to a light-golden colour, turn it over and cook the other side to an even golden colour. Lift out the poori with the slotted spoon and carefully drain it in a large colander. Repeat for all the pooris. Serve immediately, if possible, or leave in a preheated, slightly warm oven for up to 2 hours.
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