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Besan chilla on black plate with red sauce.
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5 from 21 votes

Besan Chilla Recipe

Besan Chilla, a savory, delicious and eggless Indian omelet, is loaded with healthy protein from chickpea flour and tons of nutrition from veggies. It makes the perfect breakfast, brunch or lunch.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Course: Snack/Breakfast
Cuisine: Indian
Diet: Vegan, Vegetarian
Servings: 6 chilla
Calories: 157kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 1 cup chickpea flour (besan or gram flour or garbanzo bean flour)
  • ¼ cup rice flour
  • 1 medium onion (finely diced)
  • 1-2 green chili peppers (like serrano or jalapeno. Use less and deseed if very sensitive to heat).
  • 1 teaspoon ajwain (carom seeds, crushed between your palms to release their aroma. You can substitute with cumin seeds).
  • ½ teaspoon turmeric
  • ½ to 1 teaspoon cayenne
  • 1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste
  • 1 cup baby spinach (finely chopped)
  • 2 tablespoons cilantro (finely chopped)
  • Salt to taste
  • 2 tablespoons avocado oil or any neutral oil (or cooking spray)

Instructions

  • Place all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix. Set aside for about 15 minutes. This will give the vegetables time to express their liquids, giving you a better idea of how much water you need to make the batter.
  • Pour in ½ cup water, mix, then add a little more, mix again. Don't add all of the water at once. I needed 1 ½ cups water total.
  • Heat a cast iron griddle or non-stick griddle. Coat the surface with oil or cooking spray. Pour some batter into the center. I used a ½ cup measure filled close to but not all the way to the brim for each pancake. You can use the bottom of the cup to spread the batter slightly, if needed, and thin out the chilla.
  • Cook this chilla until the underside is golden-brown and the top is beginning to dry. Flip over and cook a couple more minutes.
  • Serve hot.

Notes

Helpful tips
  • You can make a chilla oil-free, but using a little bit of fat to coat the non-stick griddle or skillet helps create crispy edges. For best results use a cast-iron skillet. For even crispier edges, you can drizzle a bit of oil along the edges of the chilla as it cooks, like you would with a dosa.
  • Some cooks add a pinch of baking soda to the recipe, to make the chilla lighter and crispier. If you want to add baking soda, add no more than ⅛th of a teaspoon or a generous pinch to the batter right before you cook the chilla. Be sure to mix it in!
  • The reason you need to sift in the chickpea flour is to avoid any lumps that could be hard to get rid of once you start adding water to the batter. Don't skip this step! Also add water slowly to avoid any clumping.
  • You can make the chilla as thick or thin as you want by adjusting the quantity of water in the batter, but don't overdo it. When you add besan mixed in water to a hot medium, the starches in the lentils bind with the water and firm up as they are heated. This ensures that your chilla will be flippable, just like an egg omelet. But adding too much water can create a batter that will not bind so don't just pour it in. I needed 1 ½ cups of water for this batter, which makes moderately thin chillas. You can add up to ½ cup more, but probably not more than that.
  • When adding veggies to the chilla, use veggies that cook quickly, like greens, bell peppers, green beans, carrots, beets and cauliflower, and chop them fine. If you use vegetables that express too much liquid, like summer squash, mushrooms and tomatoes, make sure you give enough time for the ingredients to sit around after they are mixed so the veggies express their liquids before you add water.
  • Mint and cilantro are amazing with the rest of the flavors in a besan chilla. Use one or the other or both! Or use another savory herb, like rosemary or sage (use less because these are stronger herbs).
Serving suggestions
Storage instructions
  • Besan chilla tastes best when it's made fresh. But if you have leftover chillas, refrigerate them in an airtight container and reheat on the griddle before serving. It is preferable to store the batter in the fridge and make the chillas right before serving. The batter will keep in the fridge for up to three days.
 
 

Nutrition

Serving: 1chilla | Calories: 157kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 18mg | Potassium: 237mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 556IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 1mg