Teatime snack - Methi Muthia
This was actually going to be my entry for Stephanie's blog party, but I missed the bus. I just realized the party is long over and the guests have all gone home! Never mind, we can still have the snacks can't we?
I came across this recipe in a cookbook in the library and wrote it down to try later. Muthias are usually steamed or fried but the recipe called for baking them instead; which of course piqued my curiosity immediately.
The word snack in the Indian context often means deep fried foods that aren't too friendly on the waistline. So a baked Indian snack sounded interesting. The second factor in its favor was the use of dried fenugreek, rather than the commonly used fresh leaves. This was again convenient because I don't always have fresh fenugreek handy.
After all that anticipation thank goodness the muthias didn't disappoint. They took very little time to prepare, weren't heavy because they were made with a combination of whole wheat and chickpea flours and went perfectly with cilantro chutney and hot cups of tea.
(adapted from 'Indian in minutes' by Monisha Bharadwaj)
(makes 6)
1 1/2 tbsp dried fenugreek (kasoori methi)
5 tbsp whole wheat flour
5 tbsp chickpea flour
1-2 tsp ginger-green chilli paste
1 1 /2 tsp cumin, crushed coarsely
1/ 4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garam masala
a pinch of asafoetida (hing)
1-2 tbsp oil
salt to taste
cooking spray
Preheat oven to 400°F. Combine all ingredients (except cooking spray) in a mixing bowl and knead into a soft dough using a little water.
Take walnut size balls of dough and shape into circles (traditional muthia are barrel shaped). I made them a little on the thicker side.
Place on a greased baking dish and bake for 10-12 minutes or until the muthias brown on top and become crisp. Turn over and brown on other side if preferred.
Serve hot with cilantro chutney and lemon wedges.
In case of leftovers, use in Gujarati style vegetable curries like this one.
Trivia of the day - Qasoor in Pakistan is said to have the finest fenugreek in the world. So dried fenugreek is called "kasoori" (qasoori) methi in tribute.
Tags: fenugreek kasoori methi baked indian snacks
I came across this recipe in a cookbook in the library and wrote it down to try later. Muthias are usually steamed or fried but the recipe called for baking them instead; which of course piqued my curiosity immediately.
The word snack in the Indian context often means deep fried foods that aren't too friendly on the waistline. So a baked Indian snack sounded interesting. The second factor in its favor was the use of dried fenugreek, rather than the commonly used fresh leaves. This was again convenient because I don't always have fresh fenugreek handy.
After all that anticipation thank goodness the muthias didn't disappoint. They took very little time to prepare, weren't heavy because they were made with a combination of whole wheat and chickpea flours and went perfectly with cilantro chutney and hot cups of tea.
(adapted from 'Indian in minutes' by Monisha Bharadwaj)
(makes 6)
1 1/2 tbsp dried fenugreek (kasoori methi)
5 tbsp whole wheat flour
5 tbsp chickpea flour
1-2 tsp ginger-green chilli paste
1 1 /2 tsp cumin, crushed coarsely
1/ 4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garam masala
a pinch of asafoetida (hing)
1-2 tbsp oil
salt to taste
cooking spray
Preheat oven to 400°F. Combine all ingredients (except cooking spray) in a mixing bowl and knead into a soft dough using a little water.
Take walnut size balls of dough and shape into circles (traditional muthia are barrel shaped). I made them a little on the thicker side.
Place on a greased baking dish and bake for 10-12 minutes or until the muthias brown on top and become crisp. Turn over and brown on other side if preferred.
Serve hot with cilantro chutney and lemon wedges.
In case of leftovers, use in Gujarati style vegetable curries like this one.
Trivia of the day - Qasoor in Pakistan is said to have the finest fenugreek in the world. So dried fenugreek is called "kasoori" (qasoori) methi in tribute.
Tags: fenugreek kasoori methi baked indian snacks
Posted By Ashwini | Permalink |
47 Comments:
Awesome picture!!
Hi Ashwini! The new look is awesome!! :o)
This reminds me of the Punjabi mathris - quite similar. I'll surely try them soon, and baking it is perfect for using less oil. This would be a great contribution to the FMR Picnic event this month! :o)
WOw AShwini...
I love the outlook for your blog...green is such a nice pleasant color...
i love the oven kind of recipe for this snack..so healthy ...i would love to give a try....
Neat recipe Ashwini!! Your new template looks great!! Never tried methi muthia before.. will give it a try.
Looks delicious !
I have tried making muthias with fresh methi leaves and a little bit of fresh cream in the mixture.
Kasoori methi has a unique flavour, Iam sure they taste better than the fresh leaves. Thanx for the recipe. Beaituful pictures as always :)
Wow! we make muthias so very differently... rather i make them so differently...
the fried ones i mean... we dont patt them into a patty like that... but make small cylinders using the fist. So that the muthia has the fingers impressios on it...
That's why its called a Muthiya...
Mutthi meaning a fist... and you tie the food with the fist! :)
Nabeela - thanks
Meena - thanks for letting me know about FMR. Have sent you my entry
BDSN - thanks. It was the less oil part that actually attracted me to the recipe
Priya - thanks. The kasoori methi gives the muthias a nice bitter taste that I liked.
Krishna - let me know if you try it. glad you liked my new look
Lavanya - so thats why the dish is named so :-) I guess I have followed a 'handful' recipe with a 'fistful' one! The recipe probably said round shapes to "sell" them as crisps. Can you make the traditional style and post on your blog so I will know those as well? :-)
Well ashwini those are fried fellows...
But i do believe the steamed ones are a great choice... they're very similar to Priya's http://sugarsandsspice.wordpress.com/2006/05/19/alu-wadipan-wadi/
We usually make them in big chunks, cut them to size like the pan wadis and then simply toss them in a pan with some oil, mustard seeds, curry leaves, red dry chillies. Its one of the yummiest and healthiest foods.
If you wish you could replace the methi with leftover rice, or grated bottlegrourd or zuchchini or carrots or spinach. :)
Will make it and post it on me blog soon surely :)
Hi Ashwini,
Baked Methi Muthia looks great!!!
Ashwini,
1. A great recipe. A lovely photograph.
2. Dried methi is convenient. Don't get fresh leaves here.
3. Great info on 'Qasoori Methi' there. Didn't know this bit. Food-blogging is certainly making me wiser. :)
4. I love baking Indian snacks, so this one is a must-try.
Ooh, baked muthia - I'm going to try this, especially as it only wants kasoori methi! Yay!
That looks yummy :). I will surely give it a try.
Ashwini,
It has all I ever want in a dish.
1)Its veggie.
2)Its quick.
3)Its healthy.
4)Its easy.
This is awesome. I will try it after getting home :) Thanks for sharing.
Lavanya - thanks for clarifying. Will check your blog for the recipe.
MT, Shammi, Shilpa - let me know how you like them
Vaishali - thanks! I loved the taste - like savoury bitter nankhatai :-) I don't get methi everytime too. And when I do get it I just want to eat the vegetable; I dont want to add it to something else :-)
Mythili - yep this is all of those! let me know how you like them
HI Ashwini,
I tried your falloda it came very well.
Hey ,I didnt see blogs for 2 days .so,i missed my first chance of commenting.
your methi muthia yummy and really nice picture and iam going to do it.Healthy coz you did in oven i like the recipe, Ashwini.
vineela
Hi,
Blog is looking very nice in light color.
Vineela
Vineela - glad you liked falooda and thanks for the compliment on my new template.
Neelu - yep. muthias last for a long time. And this recipe uses only 1 tbsp oil. I havent tried using fresh/ frozen methi myself but no reason why it shouldnt work. As far as I know the fresh leaves are used in the steamed version. I have given a link to Tarla Dalal's recipe in the post
Methi Muthia, didn't the assonance tickle you Ashwini?:)and with the perspective that Perspective gave this should be a fistful of taste
Neelu - I got them in an Indian store. I have seen it in most desi stores here. You might have to ask them though. Sometimes they have it but are stored somewhere deep inside as they are not that commonly bought. The next best bet is Asian stores (Chinese stores) which have them in dessert aisle/ Thai sections.
Reshma - you always bring a smile to my face girl! It is funny isnt it?
Looks delicious, wish i could grab one:)
ashwini, loved the new look of your blog. Methi muthia is new to me, sounds yummy.
Great info on kassori methi! Thanks!
Hey, Ashwini your new blog layout looks great ! Methi Muthia seems to be a nutritious snack ,would luv to try someday soon.
new look of your website is so pretty.
such a healthy baked snack and what a wonderful picture of onion tomato and muthiya...
Neelu glad you got them finally! I didn't make the muthias too thick bcoz I wasn't sure if they would cook well from the inside. Frankly I think making them slightly thin works well. Else they would be too heavy. To give you a comparison, say the thickness of papdi or puri in sev-batata-puri...hope this helps :-)
Lovely new look to your blog ! The muthias sounds great. I know they are added in undhio. yum.
nice picture and a nice post Ashwini, will surely give it a try.
Sonali, Lakshmi - thanks
Neelu - hmmm. I don't think it was a flop show if they tasted like mini khakras. Mine were crisp on the outside and slightly soft inside and I thought I should have made them even thinner :-)
They should taste a bit bitter and have a nice flavor of cumin. They taste better paired with chutney. Hope this helps
Healthy and simple recipe! Awesome picture, Ashwini.s
Love the new look of your blog!!!
The dish is awesome... duely impressed.. what I am more impressed is the template... any tips on that.. I want something similar :-)
I tried baking these muthias tonite.. TASTES GREAT !!! And SUPER EASY .. i wish i had chilli-ginger paste, only that took couple of mins, else this will only take 4 to 5 mins minus baking time. The best part is no deep frying.
Thank you for the recipe dear !!
Hi,
Thanks for this recipe. Its soo quick,simple and healthy. I tried it twice. The first time I made it too thin and over baked(20 mins)! The output was tasty pieces of flat rock!When I tried them again, I made them thicker and baked it for 15 minutes but turned them on their back so as to brown both sides.I also added a tiny bit of oil while kneading the dough. And they turned out crunchy but still easy on the teeth.Your recipe is a definite winner.
Sailu - thanks
Tony, I have sent you a mail with the info
Hey Priya am so glad you liked the muthia...isnt it good to have baked Indian snacks in your kitty?
You can substitute red chilli powder next time if you prefer ;-)
Priyanka - glad you liked the muthia and thanks for writing in. I agree making them too thin doesnt work...I had the same experience :-)
Hey Lavannya, small world!!
thank you for the great recipe. A suggestion! if you want the muthiya to be soft knead the dough in milk or curd.
vandana
Vandana glad you liked muthia and thanks for the valuable tip.
Wonderful pictures. Want to try this over the weekend.
Is chickpea flour the same as besan?
Thanks
Meg
Hi Meg yes chickpea flour is besan. Let me know how they turn out
Hi Ashwini,
Can we bake this in a microwave?
i tried this one and came out very nice. thanks for the recipe.
So simple, yet so delicious. Great Recipe!
Methi muthia snack with pepper and other spices!! yummm...it will be ideal for a tea party with friends. A spicy Methi muthia to go with spicy gossips. thank you for shearing your post.
Hi,
I tried making this,n it was just delicious!!!! thanks a lot... and the best part for me was that it was done real quick. :)
Was looking for the baked version of the mathris. It seems simple as well. Am going to try it soon
This looks so delicious! :)
All the ingredients in it look great-- and good idea to make this with asafoetida!
I've been looking around online for these so I can make some snakes myself. :)
Really like your blog
thanks!!
Greetings
It is my first time here. I just wanted to say hi!
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