Dhokla Recipe | Khaman Dhokla

Dhokla or Khaman Dhokla is a soft, spongy, instant steamed dish made using gram or chickpea flour (besan) and a few spices. This savory cake is a popular recipe from Gujarat, India that can be served for breakfast, snack, main course, or side dish for lunch or dinner - almost for any meal. 

Check out traditional Indian breakfast recipes and best evening snacks recipes.

Jump to:

• Recipe card
• Ingredients
• Step-by-step instructions
• Pro Tips
• 3 ways to steam dhokla
• Store and Reheat
• Dhokla in a microwave oven
• Recipe FAQs
• More Gujarati recipes
• User Reviews

Recipe card

What is Dhokla?

Dhokla is a savory steamed cake made of fermented batter that is mainly a mixture of rice and lentils. 

What is Khaman Dhokla or Besan Dhokla ?

Khaman Dhokla is another version of the savory cake called dhokla made only using besan or gram flour along with a leavening agent.

What is the difference between dhokla and khaman dhokla?

To make dhokla first soak rice and chana dal. Then you grind it to form a batter and ferment it overnight. The next morning you steam it in a pan or idli stand. The fermentation makes it rise during steaming, just like South Indian idlis. Finally, you temper it before serving.

Gujarati Khaman Dhokla, in short, is an instant dhokla where you don't have to worry about soaking, grinding, or fermenting. Here, the batter is made with besan and leavening agents like baking soda or fruit salt (Eno). It is then steamed and tempered the same way as dhokla. Khaman is softer, spongy, and fluffy than dhokla.

Ingredients

Besan: available as chickpea flour or gram flour in any Asian and Indian store. This is gluten free flour. 

Fruit salt, also called Eno in India, is added, which helps dhokla rise and makes it fluffy. 

Other ingredients: green chile, salt, sugar, ginger, lemon juice and turmeric powder are added. 

Tempering: Basic Indian spices like mustard seeds, curry leaves, green chilies, hing, sugar, and salt are added. 

Check out the recipe card for the full list of the ingredients.

Make your steamer or pot to steam the dhokla ready.

• Depending on the steamer or cooker you are going to use, add water to it.
• Place steel ring or rack, cover the steamer, and bring it to a rolling boil.
• We are steaming dhokla for around 20 minutes, so make sure you add enough water to the steamer.
• Grease the bottom and sides of the cake pan or any steel pan of your choice (whichever fits in your steamer) with oil, or use parchment paper if desired.

Step-by-step instructions

Make Khaman Dhokla Batter

• Add 1 cup water, sugar, salt, lemon juice, oil, ginger, and green chili in a bowl, and mix until sugar dissolves. Keep this aside.
• Add besan, sooji, and turmeric powder in another bowl and mix (sieve the flour if needed).
• Pour the spiced water from above into the flour mixture and mix to form a lump-free batter. The batter may be thick at this point. Add water in 1 tablespoon increments as needed. The batter should be thick yet free-flowing consistency. I have added another ½ cup of water. Quality and brand of flour and texture matter here. So adjust the water accordingly.
• Now beat the batter very well for 1 minute so that everything is well mixed and the batter is lump-free.
• The batter should coat the back of the spoon well but not too runny or too thick. (If it's too thick, adjust with water, if it becomes watery, add gram flour and adjust)
• Once the steamer is ready, when the water is hot or boiling, add eno and 2 tablespoon of water to the dhokla batter. ENO activates and bubbles up. Once eno is added, the batter should not rest.
• At this point, quickly mix everything well so that eno is incorporated with the batter. Make sure you whisk the batter and even the sides of the bowl so that the batter is mixed evenly. If you miss this step, you may get dense dhokla in some parts.
• Pour this batter into the prepared greased pan and smoothen the top.

Steaming the dhokla

• Place the pan in the steamer and cover it. I have used a pressure cooker without a whistle. The point here is we want the steam to escape so that the moisture doesn't accumulate on top of the dhokla. So, we are looking for a steamer with a vent.
• Steam this for 20 minutes on medium flame. The time may vary depending on the intensity of the flame and the thickness of the dhokla. The knife inserted at the center should come out clean when cooked through.
• Switch off the flame and leave this undisturbed for another 5 minutes.

Prepare tempering for dhokla

• Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add hing, curry leaves, and green chilies, and saute till curry leaves become crisp.
• Add sugar, salt, and mix.
• Finally, add 1 cup of water and bring it to a rolling boil. Switch off the flame. Make sure the sugar is dissolved completely. Keep this aside.

Arrange the dhokla

• Remove the dhokla pan from the steamer and let it cool completely. After it cools down, run a knife around the inner edges of the pan to loosen the sides.
• Keep a plate over the pan and invert the dhokla to the plate.
• Cut the dhokla into squares or any shape desired.
• Now pour ½ of the tempering water and give it some time. All the water will be absorbed by dhokla. Then, pour the remaining tempering water.
• Garnish it with freshly grated coconut and coriander leaves. Serve with the chutney of your choice, and enjoy.

Pro Tips

• If fruit salt (Eno) is unavailable, you can use ½ teaspoon of baking soda. Make sure the fruit salt you use is unflavored.
• Do not add too much Eno or baking soda. This leaves a bitter after taste and spoils the entire dish and effort.
• The consistency of the batter is the key to making soft and spongy dhokla. A thicker batter will make your dhokla dense, and a thinner batter will make it flat and messy. The batter should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon but also flow freely.
• The amount of water to flour ratio varies with the brand of flour used, its texture (fine or coarse), and weather conditions. So, after forming a thick batter, add water in 1 tablespoon increments to get the batter to the right consistency.
• To make dhokla gluten-free, skip semolina and asafoetida.
• If you are looking for smaller dhokla pieces, then reduce the quantity given above for all ingredients by half.

3 ways to steam dhokla

Dhokla in a pressure cooker

• Place a steel ring or trivet in your pressure cooker, and add around 2 to 3 cups of water. Cover with a lid and bring it to a rolling boil.
• Now carefully place the pan with dhokla batter and steam for 20 minutes on medium flame or until a toothpick or knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Make sure you steam without the whistle (weight).

Instant pot dhokla

• Pour 2 to 3 cups of water into the steel insert of your instant pot (IP). Place trivet or ring.
• Use saute mode, let the water get heated up, and start boiling.
• Place the pan with khaman dhokla batter.
• Close the instant pot lid. Set the steam mode on. Steam for 13 to 15 minutes in venting mode. The timer does not work on venting mode, and the instant pot will not beep here, so set an external timer.
• After the cooking time is done, let this sit for 5 minutes before removing it from the IP. Insert a toothpick, and it should come out clean at this point. If not, steam for another 2 to 3 minutes.

Dhokla in a pan or pot

• Place steel ring or rack or trivet in a large pan that has enough space to fit your greased pan containing the batter.
• Depending on the size of the pan or pot, add around 2 to 3 cups of water. Cover with a lid that has a vent that will allow the steam to pass through. If the steam is not allowed to escape in a controlled manner, water may accumulate on the top surface.
• Steam on medium heat for 20 minutes or until a toothpick or knife inserted at the center comes out clean. The time to cook may vary slightly depending on the pan's size and depth, the flame's intensity, etc.

Store and Reheat

If you are planning to serve the next day or have leftovers, keep it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. In this case, I would say skip adding coconut and coriander leaves. Add only before you are ready to serve.

You can reheat dhokla by steaming it the same way you did it earlier but only till heated through. Or reheat in the microwave or oven by sprinkling water and heating until warm. Alternatively, use an instant pot to steam for 1 or 2 minutes.

Dhokla in a microwave oven

• Once the batter is prepared, transfer the batter to a microwave-safe bowl. Place this in the microwave and set the timer for 5 minutes on high power.
• To check if the dhokla has cooked, a toothpick inserted at the center should come out clean. Else cook for 1 more minute in the microwave.

For tempering in the microwave

• Heat oil in a small microwave-safe bowl on high for 1 minute.
• Add mustard seeds, hing, curry leaves, and green chilies, mix well, and microwave on high power for 2 minutes.
• Add sugar, salt, and ½ cup water, and again microwave on high power for 2 minutes or till water boils.
• Add this tempering over cut pieces.

Rava Dhokla

You can make rava dhokla or sooji dhokla using the same recipe. Just substitute besan with suji or semolina in the recipe. The amount of water required here will be slightly different. The consistency of the batter should be slightly thicker than your traditional idli batter. Once the batter is done, rest it for 30 minutes. Just before you are ready to steam, add Eno, and the rest of the steps remain the same.

Recipe FAQs

More Gujarati recipes

Note: We originally posted this instant besan khaman dhokla recipe in May 2021. It has now been modified in April 2024 with Expert Chef Tips, FAQs, Storage Instructions, etc.

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