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Handvo (Savory Vegetable Semolina Bread)
![Handvo (Savory Vegetable Semolina Bread)](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2021/04/21/dining/16doughrex2/merlin_185501910_67fc0278-7353-43c3-998f-8bad989be2a7-articleLarge.jpg?width=1280&quality=75&auto=webp)
- Total Time
- 1½ hours
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- ¼cup vegetable oil
- ¼cup roasted unsalted peanuts, chopped
- 1teaspoon cumin seeds
- 30 to 40fresh curry leaves (from 3 to 4 stems), chopped (see Tips)
- 2medium carrots, coarsely grated (198 grams; 1½ cups loosely packed)
- 1cup/130 grams semolina flour
- 1cup/64 grams chopped fresh fenugreek leaves and stems or ¼ cup dried fenugreek (see Tips)
- ½cup/29 grams chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- ½cup/113 grams plain whole-milk yogurt, at room temperature
- 2tablespoons chickpea or lentil flour (optional)
- 1tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger
- 1½teaspoons fine sea salt
- 1teaspoon baking powder
- 1teaspoon red chile powder
- ½teaspoon ground turmeric
- ½teaspoon baking soda
- 2tablespoons sesame seeds
- 2tablespoons raw pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
- ½cup plain whole-milk yogurt, at room temperature
- 1tablespoon granulated sugar
- ½teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1teaspoon black mustard seeds
- 10 to 12fresh curry leaves (from 1 stem), chopped
- Pinch of red chile powder
For the Handvo
For the Yogurt Sauce
Preparation
- Step 1
Arrange an oven rack in the lowest position and heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Step 2
Make the handvo: In a large (10-inch) cast-iron or nonstick oven-safe skillet, heat the vegetable oil over medium-high. When the oil begins to shimmer but is not yet smoking, add the peanuts and fry, stirring continuously, until they begin to take on color and toast, a minute or two. Immediately add the cumin seeds, stirring just until they begin to pop and sizzle, about 10 seconds, then immediately stir in the curry leaves and turn off the heat. (Be careful as the curry leaves will spatter.) Scrape into a large bowl. Reserve the skillet, but don’t clean it.
- Step 3
To the bowl, add the carrots, semolina, fenugreek, cilantro, yogurt, chickpea flour (if using), ginger, salt, baking powder, chile powder, turmeric and baking soda. Stir until well mixed. Run the hot water tap until the water is very hot (120 degrees) and measure out 1 cup. (Or heat 1 cup water to about 120 degrees in a small pot or kettle.) Add to the semolina-carrot mixture and stir until everything is evenly mixed. Immediately pour it into the skillet you used to toast the spices in the oil. Sprinkle the sesame seeds and the pumpkin seeds, if using, over the top.
- Step 4
Bake until the sides pull back a little from the edges and the center is set, 40 to 45 minutes. It is better to overbake rather than underbake to achieve a crisp crust. Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Step 5
Meanwhile, make the yogurt sauce: In a small bowl, stir together the yogurt, sugar and salt. Set this aside and, in a small skillet, heat the oil over medium-high to high. When the oil begins to shimmer but is not yet smoking, add the garlic. Stirring constantly, cook it just until the edges turn golden brown, about 1 minute, then immediately add the mustard seeds and chopped curry leaves, and remove the pan from the heat. Carefully pour the oil into the seasoned yogurt, leaving a few teaspoons of the spices and herbs in the pan, and fold the oil and yogurt together. Sprinkle the reserved spices and herbs and the chile powder over the top.
- Step 6
If the edges of the handvo are stuck to the skillet, use a spatula to release the sides. Flip the handvo out of the pan or, to serve it with the seeds on top, gently slide it onto a serving plate using a large spatula. Cut into slices or squares and serve warm or at room temperature with the yogurt sauce.
- If you can’t find curry leaves, you can use the leaves of 1 fresh rosemary sprig instead.
- If you can’t find fenugreek leaves, you can use ¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds and add them to the oil with the cumin seeds; or leave it out.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
An instant and somewhat healthy (no protein) adaptation of handvo with 1 key spice missing (asafoetida). While the omission does not render it wrong, asafoetida is an integral component of nearly all Gujarati cuisine and its flavor adds to the yumminess! The original batter of handvo is a dry mix of coarsely ground rice and daal (3:1 ratio) soaked (mildly fermented) for a few hours in yoghurt before proceeding with preferred veggie and spice additions. Often, no veggies are added (less healthy)
I've seen semolina flour sold in different grinds (coarse/medium/fine) - is there one that's preferable in this handvo recipe?
I like to use fine sooji for handvo
This is delicious! When I lived in India I enjoyed this snack prepared with a fermented batter of rice and dal. This NYT version manages to recreate a similar textured bread as well as the golden crust, which is the best part. I will be making this again soon!
finally tried this after wanting to for a while. just want to confirm with others - anyone else who knows this dish - that the "batter" is actually very dry and crumbly and has to be patted firmly into the pan. The recipe says "immediately pour it into the skillet" but no way mine would "pour." I wondered if I had not added enough moisture although I followed the recipe exactly. Likewise, after baking it was still crumbly when trying to slice. The flavor was very nice.
Excellent - had to resort to almonds, roughly broken up in a mortar, as I did not have peanuts. Used fenugreek seeds as suggested in the Tip section. In the oven for 55 min. I would would cut back on the salt in the yogurt dressing - a little too much to my taste.
Would coconut yoghurt work instead of regular yoghurt?
This had great flavour on its own and the yogurt sauce really put it over the top. Mine took 60 minutes in the oven. I used frozen methi and thawed it before mixing it in.
Excellent recipe! Easy and great flavors. This will be fun to experiment with different ingredients. Hot chili’s or shredded coconut? I will use the spiced yogurt with other recipes too.
I didn’t have semolina but was dying to try this so I used an equal weight of whole-wheat flour. Non-traditional perhaps, but it turned out delicious.
I've seen semolina flour sold in different grinds (coarse/medium/fine) - is there one that's preferable in this handvo recipe?
An instant and somewhat healthy (no protein) adaptation of handvo with 1 key spice missing (asafoetida). While the omission does not render it wrong, asafoetida is an integral component of nearly all Gujarati cuisine and its flavor adds to the yumminess! The original batter of handvo is a dry mix of coarsely ground rice and daal (3:1 ratio) soaked (mildly fermented) for a few hours in yoghurt before proceeding with preferred veggie and spice additions. Often, no veggies are added (less healthy)
One word: amazing
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