Indian Pudla, Savory Crêpes with Moroccan Cubes

Yields: 4

Recipe, photo, and food styling by Pooravi Gohil

“Pudlas are savory chickpea flour crêpes from the western state of India, Gujarat where I was born. They are a staple part of Gujarati kitchens often used as a quick breakfast or a snack. My mom used pudlas as a vehicle to add in all sorts of seasonal vegetables and turn them into a delicious snack or dinner.

Here I have used these simple, gluten-free, easy to make pudlas as a wrap and filled them with plant protein rich Hodo Foods Chermoula Moroccan Tofu Cubes turning them into a lunch or a dinner option.” - Pooravi Gohil

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Ingredients

Pudla base Ingredients

• 1 cup besan/chickpea flour

• 1 cup vegetables of choice - shredded or puréed. In this version, I have used a purée of steamed beetroot and yellow onions.

• 1 inch ginger & 4 cloves garlic - finely chopped or made into a paste

• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder

• 1/2 tbsp za’atar (optional) or any other spices of your choice

• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)

• Salt to taste

• 3/4-1 cup water

• Oil to cook

Pudla Filling

• 1 (8oz) package Hodo Chermoula Moroccan Tofu Cubes - heated up Locate Product

• Palmful Baby greens - hand tossed

• Kohlrabi - shredded

• Few sprigs cilantro - chopped

• Few tsps Harissa - per taste

• 1/2 lemon

Instructions

PUDLA

1. Add chickpea flour along with all the vegetables to a large bowl and mix well. 

2. Add the remaining ingredients - spices/herbs/salt etc. except water and oil. 

3. Start by adding ¼ cup of water and mix well. The vegetables may release some water depending on which vegetables you used. 

4. Add more water in batches, as needed, to get the batter to pourable consistency. 

5. IF you have time, let the batter rest for 20-30 minutes. This is optional and not necessary. You can make pudlas right away without letting the batter rest as well. 

6. Heat a cast iron pan or a non-stick griddle and oil it lightly. Do a water sprinkle test - drop a few drops of water and if it sizzles immediately then your pan is hot and ready. 

7. Pour ½ cup of the batter at the center of the pan and spread it outwards in concentric circles to evenly spread it on the pan. 

8. Drizzle a few drops of oil around the edges of the crêpe and let it cook on low-medium flame for 2-3 minutes. Once the batter begins to look dry on top and the edges on the underside start looking crispy brown, lift and flip. Let it cook another 1-2 minutes on the other side. 

9. These are your base pudlas, which can be served as is for breakfast with your favorite chutney, dip or even coconut yogurt. Or you can turn these crêpes into a nourishing wrap for a full meal like I did in this instance.

Filling

1. Heat up the Hodo Chermoula Moroccan Tofu Cubes in a pan till they get a bit of light golden browning. 

2. Spread Harissa (to your heat level preference) on your pudla, top it with heaps of baby leafy greens, add some shredded kohlrabi for the crunch. 

3. Top it all with the Moroccan Cubes.

4. Garnish with fresh cilantro & a generous squeeze of lemon juice