Deep grey-gold pearl millet crackers with ajwain and cumin, brushed with ghee and baked until they smell like a hot tawa.
Ingredients
From the TrooFoodz pantry
- Sprouted Bajra Flour 1½ cups
Fresh
- Ghee, melted 3 tbsp
- Ajwain (carom seeds) 1 tsp
- Cumin seeds 1 tsp
- Kashmiri chilli powder ½ tsp
- Salt 1 tsp
- Warm water about ½ cup
Method
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Crush the seeds
Rub the ajwain and cumin between your palms before adding them. Breaking the seed coat releases far more aroma than leaving them whole.
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Rub in the ghee
Work two tablespoons of the melted ghee into the Sprouted Bajra Flour with the salt, spices and chilli until the mix resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
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Hydrate slowly
Add warm water a little at a time until a firm dough forms. Bajra drinks water unevenly, so go slowly or it turns sticky in one go.
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Rest the dough
Cover and rest fifteen minutes. This softens the bran and stops the edges shredding when you roll.
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Roll between sheets
Roll thin between two sheets of baking paper — bajra has no gluten and no strength of its own, so it needs the support.
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Cut and brush
Cut into diamonds, prick with a fork and brush with the remaining ghee for colour and a shorter bite.
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Bake until dry
Bake at 180°C for eighteen to twenty minutes until firm and dry. Cool on a rack before storing in an airtight jar.
Why this works
Bajra's faint natural bitterness needs a fat and a warm spice to sit against, which is why ghee and ajwain work better here than olive oil and herbs. Resting the dough hydrates the bran and heads off the ragged edges bajra is prone to. Baking rather than frying keeps the pearl millet flavour forward instead of masking it in oil.
Make it your own
- Sprouted Bajra Flour → Sprouted Ragi Flour Darker and maltier, without the bitter edge.
- Ghee → Cold-pressed sesame oil Keeps it vegan; nuttier and slightly sharper.
- Ajwain → Fennel seeds, lightly crushed Sweeter and gentler than carom.
