Dal Pakwan

Filling, satisfying, comforting, and delicious popular Sindhi dish – Dal Pakwan. You can have this dish for any meal. Not just for breakfast or brunch but even for lunch or Dinner.

Dal Pakwan is an indulgent Indian delicacy that is hard to resist and addictively good. Let’s learn to make this Sindhi recipe with Step by step process and video.

Jump to:

• About this Recipe
• Why do I love this recipe?
• Ingredients required
• Step-by-step process
• Notes, pro tips, and quick FAQs
• More street-food recipes
• Dal Pakwan
• Video

About this Recipe

Dal Pakwan is one of the most famous Sindhi breakfast recipes. It is hard to resist and addictively good.

Making dal pakwan is a bit time-consuming, but the recipe is straightforward.

There are two components of this recipe.

1. Pakwan –

Pakwan is a deep-fried, crisp flatbread usually prepared with all-purpose flour or maida, salt, oil, cumin seeds, and carom seeds.

I used semolina along with all-purpose flour to make the dough. You can use only all-purpose flour with the semolina to make the dough.

These Pakwan can also be relished as a tea-time snack.

You can use it in making papdi chaat too.

2. Dal

Pakwan is served with a very flavorful chana dal. To make this dal, you will need minimal ingredients and spices.

The split Bengal gram is soaked in water for 30 minutes and cooked till soft yet holds shape. Then, it is subtly spiced with a few spices like red chili powder, Turmeric powder, and garam masala powder.

We don’t need onion and garlic to make this dal. So it’s Jain-friendly too.

To temper this dal, I have used Ghee. It elevates the flavor of the daal tremendously. If you are vegan, you can use oil instead of Ghee. It tastes equally good when cooked in oil too.

I serve dal pakwan with Sweet Chutney, Green Chutney, Garlic chutney, Sev, and chopped onions. If you don’t want to serve it with sweet chutney, add a little sugar and lemon juice while making the dal.

This is usually a heavy breakfast, almost a brunch. But at home, we also have it as lunch or Dinner.

Why do I love this recipe?

• Simple, comforting, and tastes fantastic.
• Uses basic pantry ingredients.
• High in protein and is quite filling.
• It can be made ahead of time.
• It is also perfect for any parties and gatherings.

Ingredients required

• All-purpose flour(Maida) and Sooji (semolina): Traditionally, only Maida is used to make pakwan. But I have also added Sooji(Semolina). It gives a crispy texture. So you can skip the semolina and make the pakwan with only maida. Or, to make it healthier, use whole wheat flour.
• Cumin seeds: We will need cumin seeds for pakwan and tempering the dal.
• Oil: To give the moin in pakwan.
• Chana dal: Chana dal is a split and skinned horse gram. It is gluten-free, low GI, and rich in fiber and protein. You can easily find it in Indian grocery stores and online.
• Ghee: You can use Ghee or oil. Ghee tastes best and is a healthy fat, so I prefer to use that.
• Carom seeds: Since this dish is heavy on the stomach, Ajwain (carom seeds) are added to the dough as they aid digestion and will not give you a bloated feeling.
• Spices:  Turmeric powder, red chili powder, garam masala, and salt.
• For serving: Sweet chutney, green chutney, garlic chutney, onion, and sev.

See the recipe card for quantities.

Step-by-step process

For Pakwan

• Take all-purpose flour(maida) and Sooji in a big mixing bowl. Now add salt, cumin seeds, Ajwain, and oil. Mix them very well.
• Add water and knead the semi-smooth dough. Cover it and keep it aside for 30 minutes.

• Apply some oil to your hands and knead it again. Divide the dough into 14 equal parts.
• Take one ball; roll it into a 6 to 7-inch thin disc. The pakwan should be thin like roti(Not very thin). Prick with a fork.

Tip – Keep the remaining dough balls covered. Otherwise, it will dry out.

• Heat oil in a pan for frying. Fry Pakwan on medium heat until light golden brown from both sides. Take it out on a paper towel.
• Do the same process with all the remaining balls. Pakwan is ready. Keep it aside.

For Dal

• Wash the dal and soak it for 30 minutes. Once soaked, drain the water.
• Take the dal in a pressure cooker and add 4 cups of water. Cover the pressure cooker and pressure cook it for 4 to 5 whistles. The dal should be cooked yet separated.
• Let the pressure cooker cools down. Open it carefully.
• Now heat the Ghee in a pot. Add cumin seeds and let it splutter.
• Add cooked chana dal, 2 cups of water, chili powder, turmeric powder, garam masala, and salt.
• Let it come to a boil and cook it for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Adjust the consistency according to your liking.

Let’s Serve (My way of serving Dal Pakwan. You can serve as you like).

• Take Pakwan on a plate. Add dal, sweet chutney, coriander, garlic chutney, sprinkle onion, and sev.
• Another way of serving is to take a dal into a bowl, add three chutneys, sprinkle sev and onion, and serve it with Pakwan.
• Dal Pakwan is ready. Eat it immediately. Enjoy.

Notes, pro tips, and quick FAQs

• The chana dal should not be too mushy. Each grain should be separate yet cooked.
• If you don’t have any diet restrictions, I suggest that you make the tempering for the dal in Ghee for the most exquisite flavor.
• You can even add some tomatoes to the dal.
• The best way to enjoy this dish is to have it hot.
• You could make the pakwan with whole wheat flour to make it healthier.
• You must prick the pakwan with a fork before frying so that it will not puff up like a puri and remain flat and crisp.
• If you want, you can make it vegan by replacing Ghee with the vegetable oil of your choice.
• This Chana dal recipe can be made in an instant pot. Check the recipe card for the Instant pot version.
• The addition of sev as garnish is not authentic, but we love it, so I have added that.

More street-food recipes

• Pani Puri
• Dabeli
• Vada Pav
• Pav Bhaji
• Toast sandwich

Warm regards,

Dhwani.