Moong Dal Cheela with Paneer
Savory lentil pancakes with crumbled paneer, a delightful and healthy meal.
⏱️ 45 min🍽️ Serves 1
🔥 320 kcal💪 18g protein🍚 32g carbs🥑 14g fat🌾 7g fibreper serving
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servings
Ingredients
- 🥣1 cup split yellow lentils (moong dal)
- 🍚¼ cup chickpea flour (besan)
- 🫚1 inch ginger, grated
- 🌶️1 green chili, finely chopped
- 💛½ tsp turmeric powder
- 🤎½ tsp cumin powder
- 👃¼ tsp asafoetida (hing)
- 🧀200 g paneer, crumbled
- 🌿¼ cup fresh coriander leaves, chopped
- 🧂 salt, to taste
- 💧 water, as needed
- 🧈2 tbsp oil or ghee, for cooking
Pro tips
- For extra crunch, you can add finely chopped onions or bell peppers to the batter.
- Ensure the batter is not too thin, or the cheelas will break. It should be thick enough to spread but not too pasty.
- Soaking the dal overnight yields a smoother batter and makes the cheelas softer.
- Serve immediately for best taste and texture.
Method
- 1Wash and soak moong dal in enough water for at least 3-4 hours, or overnight. Drain the water completely.
- 2Blend the soaked moong dal with ginger, green chili, and a little water to form a smooth, thick batter. Transfer to a bowl.
- 3Add chickpea flour, turmeric powder, cumin powder, asafoetida, and salt to the batter. Mix well, adding more water if needed to achieve a pourable consistency similar to pancake batter.
- 4Stir in the crumbled paneer and chopped coriander leaves into the batter. Adjust salt if necessary.
- 5Heat a non-stick tawa or griddle over medium heat. Lightly grease with oil or ghee.
- 6Pour a ladleful of batter onto the hot tawa and spread it gently in a circular motion to form a thin pancake (cheela).
- 7Drizzle a little oil or ghee around the edges and cook until golden brown and crispy on one side. Flip and cook the other side until done.
- 8Repeat with the remaining batter. Serve hot with chutney or yogurt.