Oat & Vegetable Pudla – Pancakes

Pudla, also known as chilla are a traditional Indian savoury pancake that are very satisfying to eat and are usually just made out of chickpea flour. I have made these with oats and packed them with vegetables to make them more nutritious. They are a healthy choice for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner. Not only are they simple and versatile, they are a great way of getting younger children to eat more vegetables too.

Prep Time: 10-15 minutes                    Cook Time: 20-25 minutes

Makes 8-10 large pancakes & 30 mini ones.

Ingredients

• 2 cups of ground oats
• 1 cup gram (chickpea) flour
• ¼ cup semolina
• Salt to taste
• ¼ tsp turmeric
• 2 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp carom seeds (ajwain)
• 2 tsp ginger paste
• 1 clove garlic (optional)
• 3-4 green chillies
• 1 tsp sugar
• ½ courgette
• 1 carrot
• 1 large scallion or medium onion
• Large handful of spinach
• Handful of fresh coriander
• 3 tsp yoghurt (optional)
• 3-4 cups of water (or as needed)
• Pinch of bicarbonate soda
• 1 tbsp. oil and oil spray for cooking

Instructions

Put the all the vegetables, garlic, green chilli and coriander into a food chopper and blitz until finely chopped.

Grind the oats into a course powder.

Place the vegetables mixture and the ground oats into a large mixing bowl.

Add the rest of the ingredients to the bowl except water, oil and bicarbonate soda and mix well.

If you would like to make it vegan, leave out the yoghurt.

Then slowly add water to make a lovely medium consistency batter.

Stir in the oil and bicarbonate of soda.

Now, heat a non-stick frying pan over medium heat.

Spray a little oil onto it, then pour a ladleful of the batter and spread out evenly into a round.

Cook it until golden brown, then flip over and cook the other side the same way.

Serve pudla with chutney of choice, raita or with tomato ketchup (for children).

P.S I usually have two frying pans on the go to decrease the cooking time. You can also grate the carrots and courgettes if you prefer.