Ondhwo/Handvo with quinoa, bulgur and chickpea dall

What name do you call this dish? Ondhwo/ Ondhwa/handvo/handvoh?

Ondhwa or handvo (handvoh)  is a spicy Lentil Cake is made with a mixture of lentil and rice flour. Most Indian shops sell this mixture as “Ondhwa mix”. This dish was very popular among Gujaratis who lived in East Africa and I have posted several versions of it over the years.   Here is the recipe for the traditional recipe for handwa  and the instant version.   It’s usually served as a snack with tea and chutney.   This recipe makes it a very healthy and rich in protein dish almost a meal on its own as it has all the several lentils in the flour mix, plus the quinea, bulgur and chick pea dall and a variety of  the vegetables and yoghurt.   It’s one of those dishes which can be served hot or cold at any time.

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 2 cups of Ondhwa flour mix
• ½ cup presoaked and par cooked chana dall (chick pea dall)
• ½ cup quinoa and bulgur mixture
• 1 cup yoghurt preferably sour (if not, you can always add lemon to the yoghurt).
• 1 small potatoes
• 1 medium onion
• 1 Carrot
• 1 or 2 fresh green chillies chopped finely
• 1 teaspoon crushed ginger
• 1 teaspoon crushed garlic
• ½ cup cooking oil
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 2 cloves
• 1 stick of cinnamon
• 3 or 4 tablespoons sesame seeds
• 1 teaspoon soda bicarbonate

Method:

Overnight Preparation:

1. Mix the Ondhwa flour, plus the quinoa and bulgur mixture and chana dall  with sour yoghurt to form a firm mixture.  Add some water to this if you don’t have enough yogurt.  Cover it and keep it overnight in a warm place.

2. The next day: Grate the potatoes, onions, and carrots and add them to the Ondhwa mixture. Add in the ginger, garlic and green chillies. Add the salt and turmeric. Mix it all together.

3. Heat 4 tablespoons of oil in a saucepan. Add the mustard seeds, cloves and cinnamon to the oil. Add a tablespoon of sesame seeds to the oil. Once the mustard seeds stop popping, add the onions and cook until they soften. Once the onions are soft, pour this mixture over the ondhwa mixture and stir well.

4. Mix the soda bicarbonate with a ¼ cup of warm water and add to the mixture. The mixture should start to rise.

5. Transfer the mixture into a very well greased baking tray. Sprinkle the remaining sesame on top of the mixture. Bake at 170 degrees for 30 minutes and 150 degrees for 10 minutes. The top should look fairly dark when the Ondhwa is cooked.

6.  Once this ondhwo/handwo is cooked, cut into slices and serve it hot with green chutney or tamarind and dates chutney.   The cold handwo makes a great lunchtime snack with a cold glass of coke.

Do you have any quick snack recipes to share?

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