Puri bread or Poori is a deep-fried puffy Indian bread made with whole wheat flour. It is served with curries but it is also enjoyed with sweet dishes like shrikhand, rice pudding (kheer), halwa, or basundi. It is usually made during special occasions and festivals.
Ingredients
Indian poori is made with the below ingredients
- Whole wheat flour (atta)
- Oil
- Salt
- Water
- Nigella seeds (or carom seeds, optional)
For best results use the whole wheat flour available at Indian grocery stores. I prefer Sujata Gold atta. A soft dough is made with these ingredients. The dough is not leavened i.e., it can be used as soon as it is ready.
Instructions
The dough is made by mixing the above ingredients. Earlier, the dough used to be kneaded by hand until it was soft and smooth.
However, there are other options now to make this tedious task easy, such as a stand mixer, food processor, or bread maker. I used to make the dough in a food processor but the bread maker of late has become my favorite.
Making dough in a food processor
To make the poori dough, fix the dough blade in the food processor bowl and then add all the ingredients to it, except water. Start the food processor on the dough setting or low setting and start adding water slowly through the feeder on the top of the lid.
Continue kneading until a soft dough ball is formed. It just takes about a minute or two to make a nice soft dough.
You can also use the chopping blade instead (use caution though) to make the dough. Also, weighing the flour using a digital food scale helps to get consistent results each time.
Making dough in a bread machine
Making Indian poori dough in a bread machine is equally easy. All you need to do is to place the wet and dry ingredients in the right order as per manufacturer instructions and start the dough cycle.
Again, it is best to weigh the flour with a food scale instead of measuring it by a cup to get consistent results.
Let the dough cycle run for about 5-10 minutes. Since this is unleavened bread and does not use yeast, it is not required to run the full dough cycle.
You can stop the dough cycle once a nice soft dough ball is formed and can be taken out from the container.
Instructions
Making poori involves rolling the dough into small round discs and deep frying it in oil or clarified butter (ghee).
Rolling pooris round in shape can be a bit challenging especially if you are new to it. But you need not worry, a tortilla press (puri press) is very useful in rolling perfect puri for frying. In fact, you can roll/press all the pooris at once and then deep fry it.
Take about 25-28 grams of dough and roll it into a smooth ball between your palms through circular motion and applying little pressure.
Then either with a tortilla press (poori press) or a rolling pin, make about 1.5 mm thick discs about 4 inches in diameter. Make sure to use oil to grease the tortilla press or rolling board with oil as needed to prevent the dough from sticking.
In a deep frying pan, heat about an inch deep oil on a medium-high flame. Once the oil is hot (400 °F), you can start frying the puri. You can use a food thermometer or simply drop a small piece of dough into the hot oil, if it rises immediately, the oil is ready for frying.
Drop a rolled puri in the hot oil, it should be immersed in oil (this ensures it puffs up completely), you can use a frying spatula to ensure it is immersed in oil. It will then puff up in a few seconds.
Now turn the puri and deep fry the other side until golden brown. You can press the puri gently with a frying spatula to ensure it is evenly cooked from all sides. Place the puri on kitchen towels to get rid of any excess oil.
Serving suggestions
Puri bread can be served for Indian breakfast, brunch, or with meals. It is served with Indian curries like palak paneer and matar paneer, lentils, beans, or even desserts like shrikhand (Greek yogurt dessert), kheer, halwa, and basundi.
You can also serve it with Indian chutneys like grape chutney, tomato chutney, or mango chutney.
Storage
You can store puri dough in the refrigerator for 2-3 days in an air-tight container like a pyrex container. When you are ready to make puris again, get the dough back to room temperature by heating it in the microwave for 15-20 seconds.
Puris can be refrigerated for the next day. Wrap them in a kitchen towel or in aluminum foil and store them in an air-tight container.
Leftover poori can be reheated the next day in the microwave. Evenly spread the pooris in a microwave-safe plate and heat them for about 10-15 seconds in the microwave. If needed heat for a few more seconds.
FAQ
Which oil is best for Puri?
Poori can be fried in oil or ghee (clarified butter). To make it vegan, you can fry it in oil. Depending on preference, refined oil, coconut oil, or mustard oil can be used for frying puri.
How to make soft puri?
To make soft Indian poori, the dough must be soft and very well kneaded. If kneading by hand, you must knead for at least 5-10 minutes and ensure the dough is not sticking to the palm.
Why my puri does not puff?
If the dough is soft and well kneaded and still the puris are not puffing, it is most likely that the oil is not hot enough. You can use a food thermometer to check that the oil is 400°F before frying. You can also drop a small piece of dough into the hot oil, if it rises immediately, the oil is ready for frying.
Why do puris become hard?
Puris can become hard if the dough is not soft or not well kneaded. Puris can also become hard if they are fried in oil at low temperatures as it takes longer to fry making them hard.
Don't forget to check out these Indian bread recipes
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📖 Recipe
Poori (Puri) - Indian Puffy Bread
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cup Whole wheat flour (atta) 300 grams sifted
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Nigella seeds optional
- 1 tablespoon Oil
- 1 cup Water
Oil for rolling
- 2 tablespoon Oil used while rolling
For frying puri
- Oil for frying at least an inch deep
Instructions
Making dough in a food processor
- Add all dry ingredients in the food processor and lock the lid
- Start the food processor on dough setting and gradually add water.
- Continue kneading until a soft dough ball is formed.
Making dough in a bread machine
- Add all wet and dry ingredients to the container in the order recommended by your Bread Machine manufacturer
- Select "Dough' cycle.
- Once a well kneaded soft dough ball is formed, in about 5-10 minutes, turn off the cycle.
Rolling puri using poori press or tortilla press
- Make small balls of about 25-28 grams each or about an inch in diameter
- With the help of a tortilla press or a rolling pin, make a disc of about 4 inches in diameter.
Frying puri
- Heat oil in a frying pan to about 400 °F on medium high flame
- Immerse the rolled poori in the oil and press lightly with a frying spatula until it puffs up
- Reverse the side and cook on other side until golden brown
- Remove the fried poori on a plate layered with kitchen towel that will absorb extra oil
Michelle says
Is nigella seeds similar to sesame seeds?
CulinaryShades says
Hi Michelle,
Nigella seeds are onion seeds and very different from sesame seeds.
Regards
Alpa