Gulgule – Ram Ladoo

I have lived in New Delhi for about 2 and a half years and whenever I think about that city it always reminds me of the awesome food, bargain shopping and loads of traffic and pollution..

It’s true that for a hard core Mumbaikar it’s very diffcult to accept a city like New Delhi, there is always a cold war between Mumbaiites and Delhiites.. But I guess I did okay, I think the family, food and shopping got me going.. lol.. Yes being a hard core foodie that was a city to be in.. A city where people live to eat and not vice a versa.. People eat food, speak food and eat more lol lol.. I am a big time Foodie but not the one who just loves to eat eat and eat, but type of foodie who wants to try new dishes / cuisines. People in Delhi eat everything that’s sinful; I call it sinful as it’s really full of calories but at the same time irresistibly tasty… Dishes like Chaat, Papdi, Tikki, Bhature Chole, Kulche Chole, Momo’s, Gulgule, Golgappe, Dahi bhalle, kaanji vade, Shawrma.. omg and the list is endless and many of these top my taste bud list too..

Gulgule is something which was a must have for me whenever I visited central market and I only visited market 4 to 5 times a week.. hehehe. Many people even call it as Ram Ladoo – I have no clue why, if you know why do share with me too ;).. I used to love the combination of the soft and hot gulgule along with cold mulli (radish) and little spicy chutney.. so so good, refreshing and no matter the gulgule is fried but still tasted light and fluffy.. I guess the reason being very few ingredients are used to make the gulgule and they are not fried for very long.. or may be this is an excuse but this dish tastes heavenly.. So if you have not eaten this before and plan to visit Delhi this must be in your must have list.. And if you are not planning to visit Delhi soon, then I am here to your rescue with this simple, easy and delicious recipe.. If all steps are followed well I promise you a bowl full of heaven.. Do try this simple, easy dish and do let me know your valuable feedback..

This dish has more of preparation time, than the actual cooking time.. Make sure to wash the lentils well and soak them for 3 to 5 hours. Drain the lentils and grind them along with hing and green chilli.

It is very important to make the batter into very fine paste. If it’s going to be grainy or little coarse the gulgule won’t be soft, fluffy and light.

Once the batter is ready transfer it to a mixing bowl and add rest of the ingredients like salt, cumin powder, red chilli powder, grated ginger and mix well.. Mix it in one direction repeatedly; this helps to create air.

Meanwhile heat the oil for frying.. May sure the oil is very hot and you can test by dropping a small amount of batter, if the batter immediately comes up the oil is ready. Lower the heat to medium low for frying.. This will help the gulgule to cook through properly rather than just cooking the outer covering..

Mix Eno / Baking soda and mix again and start frying..

The gulgule should be small in size and make sure not too fry them too much or they will get heavy and hard. So just fry them till they are light golden in colour and remove them on kitchen towel to absorb excess oil..

Test one of the gulgule for spice and salt and even to see if they are cooking properly.. If you find the colour has been achieved but they are still uncooked from inside then lower the heat more. And if everything looks perfect fry the rest of the batter. Try to keep the gulgule covered once fried to keep them warm, as cold won’t taste good.. But if by any reason they go cold just microwave them for 20 to 30 seconds and they should be warm.

Once the gulgule are ready put 5 to 6 in a bowl and top it up with little mint chutney,

then mulli / radish

and again mint chutney on it.

If you like you can even add tamarind chutney as I did on it.. Trust me this twist tastes awesome especially if your mint chutney is spicy.. And serve this appetiser warm; this dish is sure to impress your guest and if you guys are far away from home like me, then surely will make you feel nostalgic..

Thanks for stopping by.. Bon Appetite!!