Lilva (Tuver) or Moong Dal Kachoris - Baked or Fried, your choice!!

Lilva kachoris are a famous gujarati snack savoured by people throughout the country. The small golden balls filled with Tuvar (Lilva) mixture are very tasty and can serve as perfect appetizers or a snack for a pot-luck party. You can even use moong dal for the filling to create a variation of the recipe. Both the versions promise to be instant hits! One of my aunts used to make them so good I could easily gobble 8-10 kachoris and yet feel the urge to grab more!! So try this authentic gujarati "Lilva ni Kachori", and I've showed you how to bake them rather than deep fry which makes it tasty and healthy at the same time!

Ingredients

For the kachori
3 cups all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour(the latter is healthier but a little compromise on taste )
2 tbsp semolina (fine rava)
1 cup warm melted ghee (clarified butter)
salt - to taste
hot water - to knead the dough
oil for frying kachoris

For the filling
2 cups Lilva (Green Tuver)- only the pods (they are like peas, but smaller)
(you can also use the frozen Tuvar available in indian stores, just thaw it before use.)
2 tspn cumin seeds (jeera)
1 tspn carom seeds (ajwain)
1/2 tspn asafoetida (hing)
1 tspn turmeric powder (haldi)
1 tspn red chilli powder
2 tbsp green chilli-ginger paste
2 tspn sugar
salt and lemon juice - to taste

Method
For the kachori, mix the salt, semolina and flour together and add the warm ghee to it. Mix well so that the entire flour is oiled and forms crumbles. Now knead the dough (not too thin or soft, just pliable enough) using warm water into a firm dough. The warm water and rava will help make the crust more crispier. Cover with a wet cloth and leave aside for 10-15 mins.

Take the tuvar seeds/pods and crush them with 2 tbsp water in the blender to form a semi-smooth paste. Now take a saucepan, add 2 tbsp oil to it, then add the cumin, carrom seeds, and asafoetida. When seeds splutter, add the tuvar/lilva to this. Season with green chilli-ginger paste, salt, lemon juice, sugar and the spices. Remove from flame once the mixture is well-cooked and keep aside.

Now divide the dough into small portions, and roll into a small circle. put a large spoonful of the filling into the center, then fold the dough over the filling to form a ball and seal the edges with a peak at the top (as shown in the pic) You can grease your palms a little and roll the ball between them to form an even ball if that's easier. Repeat for all the kachoris.

Deep Fry: Now heat oil in a wok and deep fry 3-4 kachoris at a time over medium-to high heat till they are golden brown in color. Serve hot with Green Chutney or Tamarind chutney.

Baked: Alternately, you can preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Then place the kachoris on a large oven tray. Space them at least half inch apart and apply light margarine to them with a brush. Now bake them for 10-15 mins, then turn them over so the other areas can receive heat as well, and bake again for 10 mins, or till the surface becomes light brown in color.

Of course, the fried version is much tastier than the baked one, but if healthy is more important to you than tasty, you know what to choose!

Tip: For making Moong dal kachoris, Use 2 cups split yellow gram (yelow moong dal) instead of Lilva. Soak it in water for at least 2 hours before preparing the filling. Then use the method above for making the filling with the slight variation that add some water to the dal, and cover it and let it cook before you add all the spices to it. You do not need to blend the dal mixture. Just use the prepared mix as a filling for the kachoris.

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