Well does this recipe even need an introduction??? I guess not as everyone knows this is something we GUJJUS (GUJARATIS) can eat in our sleep. METHI (GREEN FENUGREEK) THEPLA is one of most commonly made recipe in all GUJJU households including mine.
Savoring it as a breakfast or snack in the afternoon with hot cup of tea, or packed along with some ACHAR (PICKLE) in long journeys , these were also frequent in my lunch box at school while growing up. Me and my husband are both ardent lovers of these and they are made frequently in my home and my son has carried after our gujju taste buds as he loves eating this with dahi(curd). I am so glad he picks up theplas before pizzas as it makes my job easier to cook the same food for all of us and moreover he gets his dose of INDIAN HOMEMADE FOOD which calms my Indian mom's soul.
So for people who might not know INDIAN cuisine these METHI THEPLAS can be described as flat breads made with fresh fenugreek leaves, wheat flour and lots of spices fresh and dry to enhance the flavor to make it into a mouth watering delight. These THEPLAS can also be made in several other ways like for example you can add FRESH SPINACH instead of METHI and make it SPINACH THEPLAS or avoid the greens all together and just add dry spices and make it into MASALA THEPLAS and try even more variations according to your taste. Not only this alot of people also add BESAN (GRAM FLOUR), BAJRI (MILLET FLOUR) which gives this recipe a different twist.
This particular recipe has been made in my home since I was a child, its a perfect Gujarati dish and I have carefully measured all the ingredients which will give you that perfect sweet & sour taste combined which Gujarati cuisine offers. It's the most basic recipe and almost each INDIAN Kitchen would have these staples and if not then the ingredients are easily available at all Indian Grocery Stores. I would recommend to use the FRESH METHI LEAVES as they are the heart and soul for these theplas and nothing else can bring more authenticity to this recipe as them. I have also tried to take as many pictures for this to show you all each step so it's easier for you to relate to it and try it on your own. So without a further ado here is list of all the ingredients and a step by step recipe for my METHI THEPLA. SLIDE at the very bottom for all the pictures. ENJOY !!!!
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PREP TIME: 30 MINS
COOK TIME: 30- 45 MINS
SERVES- About 15 Theplas
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4 cups Whole Wheat Flour
2 Bunches Fresh Methi leaves (fenugreek leaves)
1 Tablespoon Red Chili Powder
1 Tablespoon Coriander Cumin Powder
1 Teaspoon Turmeric Powder
Salt to Taste
1 Teaspoon Ajwain (carrom seeds)
2 Tablespoon Sesame Seeds
2 Tablespoon Ginger Garlic Green chilies paste (see pics)
(2 1 inch piece ginger, 5 cloves garlic, 10-12 small green chilies grind into fine paste)
2 Tablespoon Sugar
1.5 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
2 Tablespoon Oil
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup yogurt (add less if you want hard dough to roll)
NOTE: I add yogurt to this recipe which gives it a nice flavor but if you are not a fan of yogurt than you can skip it and add in about 1 cup and little more water to bind the dough to the hard or soft consistency you like. Just remember to add the water little by little as you keep kneading. Don't add all the water at once.
STEP 1: First would be cleaning your methi leaves, methi leaves tend to have a lot of sand and dirt so carefully pick out all the leaves from 2 bunches of methi , don't pick the stems only the leaves and then place them into a bowl and soak it in water for about 5-6 minutes. Discard the stems.
STEP 2: Carefully take out all the methi leaves from the top and place them in a strainer or a bowl. You'll see all the dirt and sand have subsided in water, throw this water out. Carefully wash your methi leaves in a strainer 2-3 times and roughly chop them a couple times and set aside.
STEP 3: Take a big mixing bowl and add in your whole wheat flour, red chili powder, coriander cumin powder, salt, turmeric powder, ajwain & sesame seeds, ginger garlic green chili paste, yogurt, sugar, lemon juice, oil and methi leaves.
STEP 4: (fun step) Now using your hand mix everything well till everything is nicely incorporated together and the dough starts to come along. keep kneading and slowly add water little by little till all the dough comes along and you get a nice firm dough.REMEMBER you have added yogurt so no need to add more water just keep kneading and your dough will become tighter and will come together. If you feel its still dry then add oil and then knead again do not add more water or else your dough will become really soft and you wont be able to roll it smoothly. Now add about 1-2 tablespoons oil once the dough is formed and then knead it for about 2-3 minutes and cover and set aside for 15 mins.
STEP 5: After 15 mins open the cover from the bowl and just knead it again for about a minute and then Make about golf ball sized portions by slowly rolling it with your two hands and then press it to make it flat like a small patty. Repeat the process tiill all the dough is used or the amount of theplas you want to make. You can choose to keep the thickness of theplas to your liking, bigger sized portions will result into bigger theplas and smaller portions will make smaller theplas.
STEP 6: Take some whole wheat flour in a deep dish or bowl and keep on side of your rolling surface, then take one thepla patty and cover it with whole wheat flour on both sides and then begin to roll to your desired size on your rolling surface.
STEP 7: Take a flat pan and let it heat on medium heat. Once heated place the rolled thepla and let it cook till you see bubbles coming up and then flip and let it cook till you see light brown spots at the bottom just like you make rotis. Then add some oil on top side and then flip with the help of a spatula and gently pressing on all sides cook till you see light brown spots on the theplas on both sides and then carefully slide it out of the pan with spatula. You can prep one dish with a paper napkin or parchment paper and keep the thepla on them and repeat the process till you are done with all the theplas.
ENJOY it with ACHAR(PICKLE) or some Dahi (yogurt) and then thank me later !!! SLIDE BELOW FOR PICS. BON APPETIT !!!!!
