Besan chilla (Chickpea flour pancakes) - These savory pancakes are a great way to boost your nutritional intake, and start your day on the right note. These healthy and tasty pancakes are easy to whip up and are ready in just 20 minutes.
If you're looking for quick and easy breakfast options, pancakes are always a great choice. And when they come with the hashtag "healthy", pancakes turn out to be one of the best brekkie ideas ever.
Honestly, I'm totally in love with this besan chilla (also called besan cheela) recipe. Besan is basically chickpea flour, which I think, is a super healthy kind of flour. And chilla literally translates to pancake. In short, chickpea flour pancake. Seriously, this is the best way to make healthy and delicious pancakes. Enjoying healthy pancakes for breakfast sounds so awesome, right? You know, the best part of these kind of recipes is you can eat as much as you like without feeling guilty at all.
Because of its yellow color, these pancakes are also called vegetarian omelet. Such a cool name for a delicious dish! Whether you call this besan chilla or vegetarian omelet or chickpea flour pancake, this is a must addition to your recipe repertoire. You won't believe how amazing this besan chilla tastes!
Basically, the recipe starts with combining besan (chickpea flour or gram flour) with water to make a smooth batter. Start with a small amount of water, and add more to make lump-free batter with pouring consistency. The consistency of the batter should be similar to that of regular pancake batter. When you add water little by little, it's easier to make the batter totally lump-free.
Now we have the basic batter. Next up, all the ingredients that you need to add to the batter. First, grated or finely chopped veggies. Choose any of your favorite veggies, or add a mixture of different vegetables. Tomatoes, carrot, cabbage, spinach, bell peppers (capsicum) and cauliflower are a few options. Remember to grate them or chop them very finely. Otherwise, you may find it really difficult to spread the batter on the tawa or pan.
Again, once you add all the veggies, the batter may get thicker. If so, add a little water to slightly loosen it.
Once the batter is ready, you can make besan chilla just like you make regular flour pancake. If you have a non-stick pan or tawa, use it. It's important that you add a little oil to the hot tawa just before and after you spread the batter. This way, the pancake won't stick to the pan, and the flipping part will turn out to be super easy. Also, make sure tawa is not overheated which will make spreading the besan chilla batter thin and even impossible.
Alright, pancakes are done! Whenever you're thinking healthy, don't forget to make these chickpea pancakes. These are so good for you, seriously!
Besan Chilla | Besan Cheela | Chickpea Pancakes (With Video)
Ingredients
- 1 cup besan or chickpea flour or gram flour
- ¼ cup grated carrot or your favorite vegetable
- 2 tablespoon chopped coriander cilantro leaves
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- A small pinch of carom seeds or ajwain optional
- 2 small red or green chilies
- ¾ cup water
- Salt to taste
- Oil
Instructions
- Place besan or chickpea flour in a large bowl. Add a little water to make thick paste. Add more water little by little to make lump free smooth batter. Ideally, the batter should have a pouring consistency, but it should not be runny. Stir vegetables, coriander (cilantro) leaves, red chilies, grated ginger, and carom seeds (if using) into the batter. Season with salt.
- Heat a tawa or griddle or frying pan over medium heat. Moisten a paper towel with oil, and rub the tawa lightly with the paper towel. Pour batter onto the tawa, using approximately ¼ cup for each pancake. Using the back of a spoon, spread the batter into a thin, round circle. Pour a little oil around the pancake, and cook for 3-4 minutes. When browned, flip over to cook the other side. When done, remove from heat. Continue with more oil, and remaining batter. (I made 5 medium-sized pancakes).
- Serve hot.
Video
Notes
-Carom seeds are optional in this recipe
-If you want to make spicier chillas, add red chili powder
-Chop up your favorite veggies, and add to the batter
-If the batter gets thicker after you add the veggies, add a little bit more water
Nutrition
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Jyo says
Healthy and wealthy cheelas.... Really awesome....
Anu - My Ginger Garlic Kitchen says
Love chillas like anything and yours look perfect, Rose. Lovely share. PS: Sent you an email on Friday, just wanted to know if you get it or not. 🙂
puja says
I love besan chilla, especially when it is served along with a hot cup of chai.