Bengali cuisine plays an important role in shaping up the food culture of India. The varied usage of flavours and the huge spread of the food items have taken Bengali food to the global platform of gastronomy. From rice to fish and to mishti – there are quite a number of dishes that characterise this cuisine – and one such popular dish is luchi. For the unversed, luchi can be stated as the Bengali version of puri. However, one of the most striking differences between the two is the texture. Luchi is soft and whitish in colour; whereas, puri is fried till it gets a brownish tint on the body.
Slightly flaky from outside and soft from inside, luchi makes a popular breakfast item among Bengalis, when accompanied by sada aloo torkari (white potato curry) and begun bhaja (fried egg-plant). It even makes a great pair with kosha mangsho (Bengali-style mutton curry) or aloor dom (dum aloo) for a lavish lunch/dinner. Other than Bengal, luchi is also popular in states like Assam, Bihar, Odisha and Tripura.
How To Make Luchi | Luchi Recipe:
Luch is made out of dough kneaded with maida, ghee, salt and water. Some people also add nigella seeds (kalonji) and a pinch of sugar to the dough. The dough is then divided into small balls and flattened using rolling pins, just like puris, and deep-fried. It is said that a perfect luchi is not more than 5 inches in diameter.
Watch Full Recipe Video For Luchi:
Also Read: Experimenting with Cholar Dal in a Bengali Kitchen
Traditionally, luchi is fried in ghee to get the rich aroma; but over the years people have replaced it with vegetable oil.
Although preparing luchi is quite an easy job, several people struggle to make it soft. The secret to the luchi’s softness lies in the dough.
Here are a few tips to knead a perfect dough for luchi:
- Make sure the water for kneading the dough is lukewarm (not boiling). On that note, if you want to make any crispy maida-based food, never use warm water.
- The oil/ghee you use to knead the dough must be properly measured. Softness of the dough also depends much on the measurement of this ingredient (excess oil/ghee with make the luchi crispy and hard).
- Mix maida and ghee well before adding water; do not add all the water at one go.
- Knead the dough firmly to make it moist.
- The dough should be soft (but not sticky).
- Make sure you rest the dough for atleast 30 minutes before frying luchis. Cover the mixing bowl with a lid.
We also bring you a written recipe of luchi for your convenience. Click here for the recipe.
Prepare it at home and enjoy a lavish meal. Happy cooking!
About Somdatta SahaExplorer- this is what Somdatta likes to call herself. Be it in terms of food, people or places, all she craves for is to know the unknown. A simple aglio olio pasta or daal-chawal and a good movie can make her day.