Chana Daal Khaman

I know I am just going on and on with my list of favorite comfort foods. But there are so many. It's like 365 comfort dishes for 365 days.

This one is out and out Gujarati dish. In Ahmedabad where I use to live they call it Vateli Daal na Khaman. The shop which use to sell this Khaman was always busy.
I don't know why other people apart from gujarati confuse Khaman-Dhokla. They always say Khaman Dhokla together. Khaman is different then Dhokla, they are two indigenous Gujarati dishes. So it is always either Khaman or Dhokla, you cannot say both together. If you make both then you can say I made khaman and Dhokla.

For this dish:

1 cup Chana daal

1/2 cup yogurt

salt to taste

2 tsp lemon juice

1/2 tsp soda

1 tsp mustard seeds

3 tbsp oil

3 green chilies

1/4 tsp hing

grated fresh or dry coconut to garnish

chopped cilantro to garnish

Soak the chana daal for 4 hours. Then drain and grind it with little water to a fine paste in a processor or blender. Don't add too much water as you will be adding yogurt to it. Now add yogurt to it and let it ferment overnight.

Next day add salt and 1 tsp of lemon juice to the batter, save the other tsp of lemon juice for the tempering. Add the baking soda and give it a good stir. (you can add 1 tsp of Eno and omit the lemon juice and baking soda part). Adjust the salt and sour taste and pour the batter in a greased thali (about 3 inches deep) and steam it for 15-20 minutes. Once the khaman is done, let it cool.

Heat oil in a small pan and add mustard seeds once they pop add hing and then the sliced green chilies. Add the remaining lemon juice to the tempering and pour the tempering over the khaman. Let it sit for about 5-10 minutes. Then cut into pieces and garnish it with chopped coriander and grated coconut.

Is it tea time now? This is so good with tea.