Methi Ghavan | Fenugreek Rice Flour Crepes

A savory crepes fan!

A crepe is basically a really thin pancake that can be made sweet to savory. Indian style crepes have been one of our family's favorite breakfasts!

In fact, they are a big deal in Indian cuisine and nearly every part of India has its own crepe recipe! While there are many sweet and savory crepes recipes, I am a fan of savory crepes! 

Like Dosa is the South Indian crepe, Methi Ghavan is a Maharashtrian crepe. It's an easy breakfast or snack traditionally made with fresh fenugreek leaves.

While the traditional dosa takes a while to prepare, crepes like these are instant.

It's such a versatile crepe/pancake recipe with no eggs or milk that always comes at hand when you want to prepare a simple snack guaranteed to be loved by your family or guests.

Why make this

• The batter requires no soaking or fermentation
• A quick and easy snack
• Vegan and Gluten-free pancake/crepe recipe
• Can be made in 20 minutes

What is methi?

These crepes have a very special ingredient in them - Methi (in Hindi) or fenugreek leaves.

The leaves have an earthy, grassy, have a slightly sweet aroma, and are a tad bitter to the taste.

This medicinal herb has many health benefits. It helps digestion, is antioxidant, antibacterial, and anti-fungal. 

You can add them to stuffed bread, batters, or even in dishes like these -

• Spinach Peas & Fenugreek Curry
• Methi Matar Malai (Vegan)
• Cauliflower Fenugreek Stir-Fry
• Fenugreek Lentil Stew

Ingredients needed

As you can see in the image above, we need just 6 basic ingredients apart from oil and salt to make these delicious Indian style gluten-free crepes!

• Flour - Since we are making gluten-free crepes, rice flour
  is the key ingredient here. You can also use rice flour to make gluten-free roti with it. 
• Fenugreek leaves or methi - This nutritious green leafy vegetable can be found in any Indian grocery store in the fresh produce and/or the frozen section. You can also use Kasoori methi instead. 
• Green chilies or jalapenos
• Ginger paste or minced ginger
• Ground turmeric
• Cumin seeds

If you wish to serve this dry peanut chutney, then you will need peanuts, garlic, and dried red chilies. 

Here's how to make it

This vegan rice crepe recipe is supremely simple and requires just about 10 minutes to prep.

1. In a mixing bowl
   , add rice flour
   and salt.
2. Then add ginger paste
   , minced green chilies, cumin seeds
   , and ground turmeric.
3. Chop fenugreek leaves and add them to the bowl next. 
4. Add oil and water and mix it to make a smooth batter. The pouring consistency of the batter should be like for crepes. Not very thick and not very thin. 
5. Heat your skillet before greasing and grease it really well. Then pour a ladle of batter over the hot pan.
   • The batter will start cooking the moment it's in the pan so you have only a few seconds to swirl it all around to cover the bottom. You will not be able to spread it much like a pancake though.
   • Drizzle oil around it and cover it with a lid. Leave to cook until the edges start to crisp up and turn brown. Then loosen with a spatula and flip. And cook until spottily brown on the other side. 
   • Repeat these steps with the remaining batter. Make as many as you need. 
6. To prepare the peanut chutney to serve with Methi Ghavan, heat a pan and dry roast peanuts, garlic, and dried red chilies. Roast till the peanuts turn light brown and it releases an aroma.
   • Transfer it to a plate and once it cools down completely, grind it to a coarse powder. Add salt and mix. Dry peanut chutney is ready. 

Serving suggestions

Methi Ghavan is one such gluten-free pancake recipe that's delicious to taste. Eat them while they are still crisp and warm.

It tastes best with this dry peanut chutney powder but you can serve them with green chutney or ketchup.

The fenugreek leaves or methi gives it a slightly bitter taste but it is totally worth it.  These vegan rice crepes can be served for breakfast, snack, or as a light meal.

You can also pack them in lunchboxes. Now the next time you have someone at home tell you that they are hungry or you want to keep some snacks ready for the kids once back from school, you have this recipe to the rescue.

With literally no prep work required, this pancake recipe with no eggs or milk is a quick fix to satisfy the hunger pangs, plus it's hearty and very appetizing. 

Top tips, recommendations, and suggestions

There is no need to sieve the flour. You can also add jowar flour or sorghum millet flour along with rice flour to make it more nutritious.

Use a 50:50 ratio of rice flour and jowar flour if doing so. You can also swap rice flour with other gluten-free alternatives like buckwheat or oat flour.

While this gluten-free pancake recipe is made with fenugreek leaves, traditionally, you can substitute it with any greens like spinach, kale, or just cilantro or parsley.

The consistency of the batter should not be too thin or too thick. It should have a flowing consistency.

Make sure the pan is not too hot when you pour the batter over it or the crepe will cook unevenly. Also, be patient while cooking them. Do not be in a hurry to flip them over. Else they will break.

They need to brown lightly and come off the pan easily, then flip it to the other side. Making crepes takes a little bit of practice, but you'll be a pro after knocking out 2 or 3 crepes. 

While making these gluten-free pancakes, you can cook it in ghee if you are not vegan. It tastes really good when cooked in ghee.

You can make the batter ahead of time and store it in the fridge. It stays good for a week. This way, you can make these crepes as and when needed. 

This batter can also be frozen. You can store the batter in the freezer for up to a month. 

Serving peanut chutney with these gluten-free crepes is optional but do try it! It really goes well with these vegan rice crepes.

You can store this chutney in an airtight container for more than 6 months and use it as an accompaniment with any dish. 

More Crepe recipes

All these are pancake recipes with no eggs. 

• Lentils & Spinach Crepes
• Instant Carrot & Oats Dosa/Crepes
• Potato Dosa

Recipe 📖

Methi Ghavan

Priya Lakshminarayan

Methi Ghavan is an Indian gluten-free crepes recipe! This vegan rice crepe/gluten-free pancake recipe is made with no eggs or milk but rice flour and Fenugreek leaves! This is one instant snack that can literally be made in 20 minutes! 

5 from 14 votes

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Course Breakfast, Snack

Cuisine Indian, Maharashtrian

Servings 6 people

Calories 261.83 kcal

Equipment

• skillet

Ingredients  

1x2x3x

To prepare Methi Ghavan

• ▢ 1 cup rice flour
• ▢ ¼ cup fenugreek/methi leaves chopped
• ▢ 3 green chilies minced
• ▢ 1 tablespoon ginger paste
• ▢ 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• ▢ 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
• ▢ salt
• ▢ oil for cooking

To prepare the peanut chutney

• ▢ 1 cup unsalted peanuts
• ▢ 5 cloves garlic
• ▢ 2 dried red chilies
• ▢ salt

Instructions 

To prepare Methi Ghavan

• In a mixing bowl, add rice flour and salt.
• Then add ginger paste, minced green chilies, cumin seeds, and ground turmeric.
• Chop fenugreek leaves and add it to the bowl next.
• Add oil and water and mix it to make a smooth batter. The pouring consistency of the batter should be like for crepes. Not very thick and not very thin.
• Heat your skillet before greasing and grease it really well. Then pour a ladle of batter over the hot pan. The batter will start cooking the moment it's in the pan so you have only a few seconds to swirl it all around to cover the bottom. You will not be able to spread it much like a pancake though.
• Drizzle oil around it and cover it with a lid. Leave to cook until the edges start to crisp up and turn brown. Then loosen with a spatula and flip. And cook until spottily brown on the other side.
• Repeat these steps with the remaining batter. Make as many as you need.

To prepare the peanut chutney

• Heat a pan and dry roast peanuts, garlic, and dried red chilies. Roast till the peanuts turn light brown and it releases an aroma.
• Transfer it to a plate and once it cools down completely, grind it to a coarse powder. Add salt and mix. Dry peanut chutney is ready.

Notes

There is no need to sieve the flour. You can also add jowar flour or sorghum millet flour along with rice flour to make it more nutritious. Use a 50:50 ratio of rice flour and jowar flour if doing so. You can also swap rice flour with other gluten-free alternatives like buckwheat or oat flour.

While this gluten-free pancake recipe is made with fenugreek leaves, traditionally, you can substitute it any greens like spinach, kale, or just cilantro or parsley. The consistency of the batter should not be too thin or too thick. It should have a flowing consistency.

Make sure the pan is not too hot when you pour the batter over it or the crepe will cook unevenly. Also, be patient while cooking them. Do not be in a hurry to flip them over. Else they will break. They need to brown lightly and come off the pan easily, then flip it to the other side. Making crepes takes a little bit of practice, but you’ll be a pro after knocking out 2 or 3 crepes. 

While making these gluten-free pancakes, you can cook it in ghee if you are not vegan. It tastes really good when cooked in ghee. You can make the batter ahead of time and store it in the fridge. It stays good for a week. This way, you can make these crepes as and when needed. This batter can also be frozen. You can store the batter in the freezer for up to a month. 

Serving peanut chutney with these gluten-free crepes is optional but do try it! It really goes well with these vegan rice crepes. 

Nutrition

Calories: 261.83kcal | Carbohydrates: 30.32g | Protein: 8.13g | Fat: 12.84g | Saturated Fat: 1.81g | Sodium: 79.61mg | Potassium: 217.54mg | Fiber: 3.71g | Sugar: 1.93g | Vitamin A: 56.85IU | Vitamin C: 3.48mg | Calcium: 29.64mg | Iron: 1.7mg

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