Photo: Gannu03 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Maharashtra · Dinner

Puran Poli with Katachi Amti

Maharashtra's most celebrated festival meal — sweet stuffed flatbread (puran poli) eaten alongside the legendary katachi amti, a thin, flavour-packed curry made from the cooking water of chana dal. This combination is the mandatory dinner on Holi, Ganesh Chaturthi, and Gudi Padwa.

🧺 Ingredients

• 1 cup (200 g) chana dal (split Bengal gram), washed and soaked 2 hours
• 1 cup (180 g) jaggery powder (or grated jaggery — gudacha gul)
• ½ tsp cardamom powder
• ½ tsp nutmeg powder (a pinch — optional)
• 1 tsp ghee
• 1.5 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour (maida) OR half-half maida + wheat flour
• ¼ tsp turmeric (gives the traditional pale yellow colour)
• Pinch of salt
• 1 tbsp oil
• Warm water as needed (approx. ½ cup)
• Ghee for rolling and toasting (generous — 3–4 tbsp minimum)
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• 8 curry leaves
• 2 dry red chillies
• ½ tsp asafoetida (hing)
• ½ tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp red chilli powder
• 1 tsp goda masala
• 1 tsp tamarind paste
• 2 tsp jaggery powder
• Rest the dough for 30 minutes minimum — it makes the dough extensible enough to roll thin over the filling

👩‍🍳 How to make Puran Poli with Katachi Amti

1. Make puran (Heat: medium): Place cooked dal in a thick-bottomed pan over medium heat. Add jaggery. Cook on medium, stirring constantly, for 15–18 minutes. The mixture will first become watery as the jaggery melts, then thicken as moisture evaporates. Keep stirring — it burns on the bottom easily. When the mixture leaves the sides of the pan and holds together when you press a spoonful in your palm (like a firm but soft dough), turn off heat. Add cardamom and nutmeg. Add 1 tsp ghee. Allow to cool completely. Once cool, the puran will be firmer and easier to handle.
2. Make poli dough (No heat): Combine flour, turmeric, salt and oil. Gradually add warm water and knead into a very soft, supple, extensible dough — softer than roti dough, more like a slack bread dough. It should stretch without tearing. Cover and rest 30 minutes.
3. Stuff and roll (No heat): Divide puran into 12 equal balls. Divide dough into 12 equal balls. Flatten a dough ball into a 7 cm disc. Place a puran ball in the centre. Bring dough edges together, seal completely, and roll into a flat circle 20–22 cm in diameter using a rolling pin. Roll on a lightly floured surface — apply steady, gentle pressure to avoid puran breaking through the dough.
4. Temper and cook (Heat: medium): Heat oil in a pot. Add mustard seeds — crackle. Add cumin seeds, curry leaves, dry red chillies, hing. Add turmeric and chilli powder — stir 20 seconds. Pour in the reserved dal cooking water. Add goda masala, tamarind paste, jaggery powder and salt. Bring to a boil on medium-high heat, then simmer on medium for 10 minutes. The amti will be thin, brothy, sweet-sour-spicy, and a warm golden-amber colour.

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