Dhokla....

Introduction: I must say that staying in the UK has made me quiet an enterprising cook and I am trying out things which I would never have bothered to make in India. In fact my mother has never made dhokla and she was impressed when I told her that I made some and it came out pretty well. Now for the rest of the story...

Ever since leaving India I have been craving for various Indian snacks like dhokla, pokoras, vadas, puchkas, bhel puri, chats, jhal muri. The list goes on and on.  Food that you buy in India dirt cheap and consume without much of a thought, seem priceless here so far away from home.
Recently read in a friend's face book status that she had made dhokla. When she got to know about my craving she promised me some. She sent it through her husband, who was to hand it over to mine. To cut a long story short, lets just say that husbands make bad couriers and that box never reached me. In the ensuing confusion the box of dhoklas went back home to that friend and eventually to her husband's tummy!
So I had no option than to pick up this ready to make dhokla mix and try it at home. At the first trial it was a little hard but still speedily consumed by husband and me. In second go the dhokla came out all soft and fluffy, just the way it should be. After eating dhokla continously for three days dhokla craving has temporarily sated. On to  vadas and dosas now. Another friend has promised to make us dosas, so chasing him currently.

P.S. For the uninitiated dhokla is a salty snack from the western Indian state of Gujarat. It is made of gram flour and curd and steamed in the quintisential Indian pressure cooker. It looks like a yellow coloured cake. It is cut into small sizes and served with mustard seeds, coconut and green chillies and of course mint  and tamarind chutney.