Thin savoury pancakes flecked with green chilli and coriander, lacy at the rim and soft in the middle. Ready before the tea has brewed.

Ingredients

From the TrooFoodz pantry

• Sprouted Jowar Flour 1½ cups

Fresh

• Onion, finely chopped 1
• Green chillies, finely chopped 2
• Ginger, grated 1 tsp
• Coriander leaves, chopped 3 tbsp
• Ajwain (carom seeds) ½ tsp
• Turmeric powder ¼ tsp
• Red chilli powder ½ tsp
• Mustard oil 3 tbsp
• Salt to taste

Method

1. Make a slack batter

   Whisk Sprouted Jowar Flour with water a little at a time into a smooth, thin batter — thinner than pancake batter, closer to cream.

2. Season through

   Stir in onion, chilli, ginger, coriander, ajwain, turmeric, chilli powder and salt so the flavour is in the batter, not on top.

3. Rest ten minutes

   Let it stand so the flour fully hydrates. Jowar thickens as it sits, so check and loosen before the first chilla.

4. Heat properly

   Get the tawa hot enough that a flick of water skitters. Rub it with oil and wipe off the excess.

5. Pour and spread

   Ladle batter into the centre and nudge it outward with the back of the ladle in a spiral. Do not scrape — jowar has no gluten and will tear.

6. Crisp the edges

   Drizzle oil around the rim and cook two minutes until the edges lift and colour, then flip and give it a minute.

Why this works

Without gluten, the batter has to be thin enough to flow into place rather than be pushed, which is why the consistency matters more than the spreading technique. Ajwain and mustard oil both cut through the mild sweetness of jowar. A properly preheated tawa sets the underside immediately so the chilla releases in one piece.

Make it your own

• Sprouted Jowar Flour → Sprouted Little Millet Flour Softer chilla, slightly sweeter, less crisp at the edge.
• Mustard oil → Groundnut oil Milder and less pungent; loses the northern bite.
• Onion → Grated bottle gourd, squeezed dry Softer texture and a gentler flavour.