Tikha Gathia

Eating is a necessity, but cooking is an art. 

I finally took out the mystery out of making tikha gathia this Diwali season.  Have always enjoyed snacking on these all my life, but had never learned how to make it, until this past weekend. Mom taught me this recipe.  If you haven't made this before, I suggest you make it under someone's supervision, as this involves frying in hot oil and hence need to be cautious. 

Recipe:

Besan (Chickpea flour) - 4 cups

Asofoteida (hing) - 1/2 teaspoon

Red chilli powder - 2 teaspoons (It's called 'tikha' aka hot & spicy for a reason)

Turmeric powder - 1/2 - 1 teaspoon

Salt - to taste

Oil - 2 tablespoons

Oil - for deep frying

• Heat oil for frying.
• While the oil is being heated, knead a stiff dough (not too stiff, but not soft either) with besan, salt, asofoteida, red chilli powder, turmeric powder, and oil, using water.  Divide dough in 2-3 parts.
• Oil the gathia/sev maker.  This is how it looks.   
• Fill the sev maker with one of the dough batches, close it.  When the oil is hot, hold the sev maker over hot oil and move the handle in circular motion, while also moving the whole machine in a circle.  Okay the first time, its ok not to perfect the art - I haven't either.  But I believe it gets better with practice - we shall see :) 
• Let the gathia turn light to golden brown in oil, while not letting it burn. The structure will become firmer as it heats.  Flip it on the other side, once cooked on the first side.  Once you feel like it's done, remove from oil on to a plate lined with paper napkin or a container lined with a colander flipped upside down.  This is to drain the excess oil, if any.  
• While the batch is still hot, it might feel a little softer. Let it cool for a few minutes to see if you got the crunchy crispy texture and taste.  If so, it's perfect.  If not, can put it back in oil to cook a bit more. Repeat the same steps with the remaining dough.  

Snack on the crunchy, crispy, besan goodness for days!