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Litti Chokha Recipe

Bring Bihar to your plate! Make traditional Litti Chokha at home with crispy whole wheat littis, spicy potato-eggplant chokha and chutney.

Ingredients
  

Ingredients for Aloo Baingan Chokha:

  • 1 bharta brinjal/baingan
  • 10-15 cloves of garlic/lehsun
  • 2 medium-sized potatoes/aloo
  • 4 medium-sized tomatoes/tamatar
  • 2-3 tbsp coriander leaves
  • ¼ cup chopped onion
  • 1 tbsp chopped green chilli
  • 1 tbsp chopped garlic
  • ½ tbsp chopped ginger
  • Salt to taste
  • 1.5 tbsp mustard oil

Ingredients For Litti Chokha Chutney:

  • Mustard oil as required
  • 4-6 green chillies
  • 1 pod of garlic
  • 1- inch ginger
  • 2 cups chopped coriander leaves
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • Salt to taste

Ingredients For Litti Dough:

  • 2 cups whole wheat flour
  • Salt to taste
  • Water as required
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • Additional oil for applying on the dough

Ingredients For Litti Stuffing:

  • 1 cup chana sattu roasted black chickpea flour
  • ½ tsp carom seeds ajwain
  • ½ tsp nigella seeds kalonji
  • Freshly crushed black peppercorns kali mirch, to taste
  • Salt to taste
  • 2 tbsp chopped green chilli
  • 1 tbsp chopped garlic
  • 1 tbsp chopped ginger
  • 2-3 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
  • ½ cup chopped onion
  • 1 tbsp mango pickle
  • 1 tbsp mustard oil

Other Ingredients:

  • Ghee for dipping the litti
  • Onion as required

Instructions
 

Instructions for Aloo Baingan Chokha:

  • Using a pakad or tong, create holes in the brinjal and insert cloves of garlic.
  • Place the brinjal, tomatoes, and potatoes on burning hot cow dung cakes or an open flame. Roast until they're soft and cooked through.
  • Remove the roasted tomatoes and brinjal from the heat. Place them in a bowl, cover, and let cool slightly. The steam will help loosen the skin, making peeling easier.
  • Peel the cooled tomatoes and brinjal, then roughly mash them together.
  • Remove the potatoes (they take a little more time to cook than the other veggies) from the heat and let cool. Peel and add to the mashed brinjal mixture. Mash everything together using your hands or a masher until well combined.
  • Stir in chopped coriander leaves, onion, green chilli, garlic, ginger, salt, and mustard oil. Mix well to combine.
  • Your delicious Chokha is now ready!

Instructions For Litti Chokha Chutney:

  • Apply a few drops of mustard oil to the green chillies. Place the chillies and garlic on burning hot cow dung cakes or an open flame. Roast until the skin is burnt and softened from the inside.
  • Let the roasted chillies and garlic cool completely. Rinse the chillies with water and peel the skin off the garlic cloves.
  • Transfer the roasted garlic to a sil batta (mortar and pestle). Grind the garlic until it's well-smashed.
  • Add the roasted green chillies and ginger. Smash them using the batta and grind everything together until you get a smooth paste.
  • Add the chopped coriander leaves. Continue grinding until you get a smooth and consistent chutney.
  • Add lemon juice and salt. Mix everything well.
  • Sil Batte Wali Bhune Lehsun Mirch Ki Chutney is now ready!

Instructions For Litti Dough:

  • In a large mixing bowl, combine whole wheat flour and salt.
  • Gradually add water to the flour mixture and knead until a firm dough forms.
  • Apply 1 tbsp of oil to the dough and knead again until the dough becomes smooth and pliable.
  • Apply a little oil on top of the dough, cover it with a damp cloth, and let it rest for 10-15 minutes.

Oven Cooking Tip:

  • If you plan to bake the litti in the oven, add 1 tsp of baking soda to the flour mixture for better results.

Instructions For Litti Stuffing:

  • In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients.
  • Mix the ingredients thoroughly until you get a uniform stuffing mixture.
  • The mixture should be crumbly but moist enough to hold together when pressed.

Instructions For Assembling Litti:

  • Divide the dough into small or medium-sized balls.
  • Flatten each dough ball into a shallow cup using your palms.
  • Place a generous spoonful of the sattu mixture in the center of each dough cup.
  • Gather the edges to seal the dough around the filling. Shape into smooth balls.
  • Place the prepared litti under a cotton towel or napkin to prevent drying out.
  • Make sure the cow dung cakes are hot but not burning. Break any large pieces into smaller ones and flatten them.

Traditional Cooking Method:

  • Place the litti in a single layer over the hot cow dung cakes. Keep turning them until they become dry on the outside.
  • Once the littis are dry on the outside, cover them with the burnt cow dung cakes. Cook until they're cooked through and through.

Oven Cooking Method:

  • Preheat your oven to 200°C (392°F).
  • Place the litti in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes.
  • Flip the littis every 10-15 minutes to ensure even cooking.
  • Continue baking until the litti are fully cooked, with a crispy crust and golden brown spots.
  • Note: Keep an eye on the litti after 25 minutes, as the cooking time may vary depending on your oven.

Serving:

  • Remove the litti from the heat and place them on a cloth. Gently dust off any cow dung cake residue.
  • Dip each litti in ghee and let it soak for 5 minutes.
  • Drain the litti and serve with chokha, chutney, and onion.