Bhatura

Bhatura is a fluffy, puffed and deep fried Indian bread that is famously served with golden brown chickpea curry (Punjabi Chole) in India. It is mainly made from flour maida (purpose flour), curd et al. But, getting its dough right is an art and, it is best tried at home. So, here’s how to make it.

There are always some popular dishes that are on our wish-list which we want to relish when we travel.

Well, Chola Bhatura is one of those popular combinations from North India, that is so delicious that the smell can only make you hungry.

I absolutely love to eat a tasty plate of this dish, whenever I travel to North India, especially Delhi.

You will even find many street side shops in Delhi, selling the oh-so-popular combination. 

With every place you visit to eat this combo, it is possible that the taste of Chola will be different, but what remains the same, are these beautifully puffed Bhaturas. 

Hot hot Bhature along with spicy tangy Chole and Green Chutney, my mouth is watering thinking about it.

Sometimes, they even add the Sweet Tamarind Chutney, which makes these Chole yummier and when had with Bhaturas, it’s just heaven. 

This delicious combination of Chole Bhature, which is also know by the name of Chana Bhatura is also a street food in North India and you will find many street stalls selling this, especially in Winters.

This combination is also very popular among the North Indian restaurants and Chaat shops too.

So next time you make a Chickpea curry, you know what to serve with it, right? 

Some more Indian Bread recipes, that can be made for special occasions – Bakarkhani Roti, Garlic Naan, Punjabi Missi Roti, Bedmi Puri, Palak Puri, Laccha Paratha and Tandoori Roti. 

What is Bhatura?

It is a fluffy and puffed deep fried Indian bread that is extremely popular in North India and is served along with Punjabi Chole or Chana Masala.

It is made with all purpose flour and is deep fried in oil till it becomes nice and fluffy.

Along with all purpose flour, I have used everyday ingredients such assign sooji, sugar, salt, baking soda, baking powder, vegetable oil and yogurt.

Serving Suggestions

Traditionally, it is served along with Punjabi Chole Curry, but you can serve it with any chickpea curry of your choice.

Also if you are planning to make these delicious Bhatura for a Brunch on weekends, then I recommend you serve these piping hot with spicy Punjabi Chole, Aloo Ki Sabzi, Boondi Raita, Green Chutney, Pickle and thinly sliced Onions.

Ingredient

Bhatura is always made with all purpose flour, and not whole wheat flour.

If you are making it with whole wheat flour, then it is called Poori.

To make my Bhature a little crunchier, I also add Sooji but make sure that you use fine sooji to make these, otherwise you will not get that perfect texture.

These are made with a dough which is fermented and for this recipe, I have used curd as the fermenting agent.

Also added a little sugar, as it helps in fastening the fermentation process.

Here, I have made this recipe without yeast, but you can also try making Bhatura with yeast.

I also make Bhature using bread. I have given the recipe below. Do check it out.

How to make the dough?

Making a perfect Bhatura is an art, therefore see that you have used right quantities to make this North Indian delicacy.

Just add all the ingredients in a bowl and knead it till all the ingredients come together and you get a super soft dough.

It should be softer than you regular Roti/Phulka dough.

While kneading, the dough tends to get a little sticky, but if you keep kneading it for good 8 to 10 minutes, the dough will start getting soft and will not stick to your hands.

You can also use some oil on your hands, so that the dough doesn’t stick to your hands and it also gives a nice soft texture to the dough.

Once done, cover the dough with a cloth and keep it aside for minimum 3 hours or overnight, for the best results.

Once it is fermented properly, take some dough and roll it into rounds or oval.

Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan and heat it properly, otherwise the bread won’t fluff up.

Once the oil is hot, just deep fry them, until it fluffs up and becomes golden brown. 

How to make the Instant version?

If you are short on time and can’t ferment the dough, you can make this recipe with Eno.

For this recipe, you need all purpose flour, sooji, baking powder, eno fruit salt, salt, sugar, yogurt, water and oil.

Just add all the ingredients in a bowl, knead the dough, rest it for 30 minutes and make the Bhature like your usual way.

Bread Bhatura Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 slice White Bread
• 1 cup Maida
• ¼ cup Fine Sooji
• 1 tsp Sugar
• ¼ tsp Salt
• ½ tsp Baking powder
• ¼ tsp Baking soda
• 1 cup Sour Yogurt
• 1 tsp Vegetable Oil
• Oil for deep frying

Method

• Cut bread slices into small pieces.
• Add them in a blender and blend to make a smooth powder.
• Add bread powder, maida, sooji, sugar, salt baking powder, baking soda, yogurt and oil in a bowl.
• Add water and knead to make a very soft dough.
• Cover the dough and keep aside for 1 hour.
• Knead the dough for 6-8 minutes.
• Use this dough to make Bhatura.

Pro Tips by Neha

Add oil to its dough and knead well. If possible then use vegetable oil because it will give a great texture to it.

Once all the ingredients are mixed together, make sure you knead the dough for 6-8 minutes. This will bring the break the gluten and make the dough elastic.

Make sure to knead the dough to a very soft consistency. That is the tick to restaurant style fluffy bhatura.

Heat oil properly before you start frying. Bhatura fried in less hot oil will not fluff and will become soggy.

Turns out to be an easy recipe, no? Try it out in your kitchen, fellas and let me know your experience.

You can enjoy it with piping hot, masala loaded Chole, Aloo Sabzi, pickle and salad.

See you with the recipe of authentic Chole super soon!

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Step by Step Recipe

Mix maida, sooji, sugar, salt, baking soda and baking powder in a bowl.

Add oil and curd and mix well.

Add water and mix to make a very soft dough.

Cover the dough and keep aside for 2-3 hours or for best result overnight.

Knead the dough very well for 6-8 minutes until it is soft and smooth.

Divide the dough into 8-10 equal balls.

Take one dough ball and roll to make a round or oval . The edges of the bhatura should be a little thicker than the centre.

Heat oil for frying in a pan. Slide it in the hot oil and fry from both the sides until golden brown.

Keep pressing the bhatura with a perforated ladle.

Once done, remove it on a tissue lined plate.