Gluten-Free Spinach-Onion Dosa (Pancake)


Spinach Dosas also famous as "Chana na Pudla" in Gujarat, is a healthy meal option. So this weekend, when I had an urge to make something gluten-free, more as a challenge and a change than anything else, I decided to make some savoury gluten-free pancakes with gram flour; we actually call them "dosa" or "puda" in local dialect. Its a great way to toss up your favourite veggies into the flour mixture and cook up something special without much effort or planning. I opted for spinach and sauteed onions as my main ingredients, while a blend of spices add to the flavor and fluff! These spinach dosas are a great way to eat something healthy yet tasty, and you can enjoy these with any dipping sauce of your choice!

I really wanted to send something to Srivalli for her Dosa Mela, but instead of using regular dosa-flour or all-purpose flour, I decided to go gluten-free by opting for the gram flour (besan). It not only adds a unique flavor, but also a nice color and texture to the pancakes. You can choose to add your favorite veggies like grated carrots, bell-peppers, peas or even shredded cheese!

Ingredients
Yields 3-4 pancake-sized dosas

2-1/2 cups gram flour (chickpea-flour or besan)
1 cup spinach leaves - washed and chopped
1 small onion - finely chopped
4 tbsp fresh coriander - chopped
1 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp salt
1 pinch of asafoetida(optional)
2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
1 tsp fruit salt(baking soda)
1 tsp red chilli powder
2-3 cups water (or less, to make the batter)
oil - for saute

Note: It is believed that hing(asafoetida) is generaly ground with wheat-flour, so in that case it would be better for people to omit it from this recipe to make it a strictly gluten-free recipe.

Method
Saute the onions in 1 tbsp of oil till they are lightly brown in color. Don't burn them too much, just make them soft and glazed.

Wash and chop the spinach and cilantro leaves. Add these to the gram flour. Add the ginger-garlic paste and all the spices except fruit salt, then slowly add water, half cup at a time and stir to form a loose batter. Make sure you do not have any lumps in the batter. Form a thick pancake-like batter; but it will be a little thick as gram flour has more consistency than all-purpose flour.

Now add the sauteed onions and fruit salt(soda) to the batter.

Take a non-stick pancake-pan, drop one ladleful of batter into the pan and swirl to form a circular dosa or pancake. This batter is a little thick, so it may not spread as readily as pancake; so just tilt the pan to let the batter spread around. You can even spread and shape it using your wooden spoon or spatula.

Now drizzle a teeny bit of oil on the sides, then cover the pan with a lid and let it cook on medium flame, for about 3-4 mins. Then flip it on the other side and cook again. it will not rise as much as a pancake, but you should see goledn brown spots on both sides. Flip it again till both sides are evenly cooked.

Repeat for the remaining batter and make dosas out of them.

Serve these gluten-free spinach and onion dosas with your favorite dipping sauce. We enjoyed it with corn-cilantro pesto along with a second round of Indian Chai! Serve them hot as they are best enjoyed crisp and fresh right off the stove! For more inspiration, check out these delicious Spinach Recipes

More Savoury Recipes:
Achari Paneer Tikka Wraps
Savoury Muffins with Sun-dried Tomato and Cheese
Fluffy Spanish Tortilla Omelettes


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35 comments :

jayasree said...

Dosa with besan. Nice idea to add veggies to the besan batter. I think it must have tasted like shallow fried bhajji...Loved the color of dosa.

Anonymous said...

that looks genuinely beautiful! what a lovely idea for a gluten-free recipe! I love it!

-amy

Anonymous said...

I am really hungry to taste it..

Finla said...

Never had a dosa like this, but indeed it is awonderful idea to make dos with these indridients.

kamala said...

This is new to me.adding vegies is a healthy .great

Trupti said...

hey manasi, this dosa looks delicious.

AnuZi said...

What a cool recipe and it includes on of my favs: Spinach!! Yummmm.

Miri said...

Sounds yummy and interesting difference to the usual tomato and onion puda! (which is for some reason also called tomato omelet in many restaurants in Mumbai!)

Miri

Uma said...

adding spinach to besan makes the dosa healthy. thanks for a delicious recipe, Mansi!

Vanamala Hebbar said...

Oh new to me :) nice recipe

Mansi said...

thanks everyone! really glad you'll liked it! I'd recommend trying shredded carrots and peas too, i think it'll taste great!:) besan does add a nice twist to the classic recipe:) and its healthy too!

Madhavi said...

Wonderful recipe mansi, looks very tempting and heathy too!!!

Unknown said...

That was a nice dosa recipe mansi..

Kalai said...

Awesome idea, Mansi! Love the addition of spinach, too. Can't wait for that pesto recipe! :)

Deepa Kuber said...

thats a good idea .. pancakes look tempting.

Swati Raman Garg said...

aaah a cheela with spinach... just wondering how good it wud go with dhaniya pudine ki chutney... will try it tomorrow...

Vani said...

Nice recipe there, Mansi! Love the addition of spinach for extra nutrition.

Namratha said...

Very nice recipe Mansi, am gonna try it very soon. Have never used Besan in dosas before.

Mansi said...

thanks ppl! besan sure is a neat alternative to go gluten-free...pls do try it with other suggested variations and lemme know how it goes!:)

Anonymous said...

Actually most Hing is ground with Wheat Flour so if you add it to the dosai - they will no longer be gluten free.

Shah cooks said...

very healthy breakfast.is this the same as "besan ke cheelen"..maybe i spelled it wrong.

Mansi said...

kavita - thanks for that tip about asafoetida possibly being ground with wheat flour...I was not aware of that, and have never even heard it!..I shall add that update in my post:)

Red Chillies said...

Very nice recipe using besan. I need to try this as it looks delish!

Johanna GGG said...

these look great - I made my first ever dosa this week and it was interesting but I am so pleased to see options that don't include a day and half of soaking lentils and rice! It is on my to do list!

Anonymous said...

Looks wonderful!

Richa said...

love that puda, good one Mansi :)

Vaishali said...

Mansi, I love your gluten-free dosa- and the addition of spinach makes this a very healthy meal too. Nice picture.

ranji said...

wow!!such a healthy dosa..looks really yummy...

Rosie said...

This sounds lovely and with veggies so healthy :D

Rosie x

Sunshinemom said...

I love besan and spinach and love this kind of chilla too! Beautiful photo and good recipe!

Anonymous said...

Mansi - Hing is the only one that puts it on the label. Unfortunately other spices could be ground with flour too - makes them go further - who knows what the spice company is really doing they have no legal obligation to tell us - it's all about the $ - kavita

test it comm said...

Cheesy spinach dosas sound really good!

Anonymous said...

I just made them - they are fabulous!! THank you Kavita

Unknown said...

The ingredients sounds perfect for a nice breakfast.I was mouthwatering and hard to resist.

thepassionatecook said...

very nice... i love the taste of gram flour, only discovered this when i did an indian cookery course at my house - and made doughnuts with it. amazing. i will try these pancakes, they sound very appetising! thanks for participating in WTSIM!