Try this Sweet Potato Masala Puri/poori recipe for your next party. This vegan fried flatbread from India is a delicious take on aloo puri but with sweet potatoes. Simple and easy to make!
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Indian fried flatbread
Puri is a puffed Indian fried flatbread that's prepared with a dough similar to chapati. BTW, do you know why the puri puffs up? Water is added while making the dough.
So, due to the high temperature when frying, the water in the puri turns into steam/vapor. That in turn lifts up the sheet of Gluten and that's why they puff!
These puffed-up puris are served on happy, festive occasions all over India. The larger puris are called bhatura and are popularly served with chana masala. As a kid, Chole Bhature was the only thing I ordered whenever we went to any restaurant!
Chana Masala 🎥
This is one of the few Indian flatbreads that's deep-fried. The other (non-fried) popular flatbreads from India are roti, chapati, naan, paratha, bhakri, and kulcha. In Indian cuisine, it is very common to include some kind of flatbread with every meal. The fried ones are reserved mostly for special occasions. Actually, in many places around India, puri is also served for breakfast. Halwa Puri is a very popular combination that many love.
Inspired by Aloo Puri
It was many years later that I discovered something called aloo puri. The unique puri dough is prepared with potatoes and spices. In the traditional aloo puri/poori recipe, the potatoes are not added as stuffing but mixed into the dough. I loved this idea and had to try it but with a twist. Instead of potatoes, I chose to go with sweet potatoes. Yes, this flatbread from India is made with sweet potatoes and that makes it very unique.
Love sweet potatoes
Sweet Potato is a power food. It has antioxidants, anti-inflammatory nutrients, and blood sugar-regulating nutrients. It's very easy to cook it and I know of many who just love to eat roasted sweet potatoes with salt for a meal. It supposedly tastes great. I wanted to find more ways to incorporate sweet potatoes into our diet and hence this idea. Here are some more recipes with sweet potatoes. Masala Dosa with Sweet Potato Filling and Sweet Potato Puranpoli are two more recipes that you can make with sweet potatoes.
Why make this
- Great way to introduce or sneak in sweet potato into the diet
- Vegan flatbread recipe from India
- Simple and easy to make
- Very flavorful to taste
- Is ideal for special occasions and the holidays
Ingredients needed 🧾
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Sweet Potatoes - If getting them raw, select firm sweet potatoes with smooth skin and no bruises or cracks. You can also use mashed potatoes that you get in grocery stores.
Whole wheat flour - Use good quality fresh wheat flour. Sieve and use. Can also use plain flour or maida.
Spices and herbs - kasoori methi give these masala pooris an aromatic flavor and carom seeds help with digestion. Cilantro gives it a refreshing flavor.
Spice powders - turmeric, asafoetida, chilly powder, and garam masala are what make this poori recipe masaledar. All these spices give the puri a very nice flavor.
Lemon juice helps balance the flavors. Apart from these ingredients, you will need oil for frying. Use a flavorless oil that has a high smoke point like any vegetable oil.
How to make it 🔪
The first step is to cook the sweet potato. Prick it all over and then place it in a microwave-safe bowl. There is no need to add water. Microwave it for 10 minutes. Remove the skin and mash it with a fork. You can also grate it. Just ensure that there are no lumps. Keep it aside for now.
- To a food processor or mixing bowl, add whole wheat flour along with salt.
- Crush kasoori methi between your palms and add it to the processor along with ajwain (carom seeds).
- Next, add all the spice mixes like asafoetida, chilly powder, turmeric powder, garam masala, and lemon juice.
- Then add the greens like cilantro.
- Now add the cooked and mashed sweet potato and oil.
- If kneading with a hand, add water gradually and knead it to a semi-soft dough. Or you can save time and effort by kneading the dough in a food processor.
Place the dough in the same mixing bowl, cover it with a moist cloth, and let it rest for 15-20 minutes. Heat oil in a frying pan. Keep the flame low to medium.
- Divide the dough into lemon-sized portions and shape into balls.
- Roll them to make a circle of 4-5 inches in diameter. Dust some flour as needed. Using any cutter, give it a round shape.
- Make as many puris as you need and spread them on a plate.
- When the oil is hot, add the cut discs in batches and fry them till they puff up and attain a golden hue. Fry all the puris the same way on medium flame. Place them on a paper towel to drain off any excess oil.
Serving suggestions 🍽
Serve these fried sweet potato puri bread while they are still hot with any side dish like chana masala or potato curry that's the same as the stuffing in Masala Dosa or Aloo Matar. Puri with Aam Ras (Mango Juice) is also an extremely popular food combo that many swear by. I personally don't like them together but love them individually. In fact, you can serve sweet potato masala puri with any curry and dal. You can also serve it with some pickle, curd, or Bombay chutney.
Since it's fried, you can serve puri on all special occasions like the holidays, family gatherings, brunches, parties, potlucks, or weekend get-togethers. Some even have it for breakfast! This Sweet Potato Masala Puri (fried flatbread from India) tastes delicious. The sweet-spicy flavor of this puri makes it one of a kind and is sure to turn heads when served. For those who love Aloo puri, you will not be able to differentiate between the two! The sweet potato puri recipe is also equally good! Do try this poori recipe!
Top recipe tips 💭
Instead of mashing the sweet potatoes, you can also grate them finely. Just ensure there are no lumps else the pooris will not puff. The amount of water needed to make the dough is just an estimate. If you don't have ajwain or carom seeds, skip it or add cumin seeds. You can also add sesame seeds while making the dough. Skip adding spices you don't have.
To prevent the puri from becoming too oily, try this trick: add a pinch of salt to the oil before frying, it should work. Whole wheat is not gluten-free. To make gluten-free sweet potato flatbread, use gluten-free chapati flour. Also, skip adding asafoetida or use GF asafoetida.
Recipe FAQs 📖
If the puris do not puff up, then it could mean a couple of things. Either the dough has not been kneaded well, the puris have not been rolled out evenly or the oil is not hot enough. Knead the dough a bit more. Oil your hands when kneading. Ensure you roll out the puri evenly.
The thickness of the poori is important in this recipe. It should be even all through. A too-thin or thick poori might not puff up and will also soak up too much oil when deep-frying.
Always check if the oil is hot before adding the puri by dipping a mustard-sized ball into the oil. If it rises up immediately, it means it's hot. If it sinks to the bottom means it's not yet hot.
To make the poori more crispy, add two tablespoons of very fine rava or semolina to the recipe when making the dough. Do not add more else the puri will become too crispy.
The puri dough can be made ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator. It stays good for a week in the fridge. You can also freeze the dough.
When you want to make the puris, leave it at room temperature for 5 - 10 minutes. It will soften the dough a bit before making poori. However, fry puris fresh.
If you have any leftover dough or if you don't want to fry them, you can also roll them out as flatbreads and cook it on a skillet like you would cook a paratha.
You can place 2-3 in an air-fryer and bake them for 2 mins at 180 degrees. Alternatively, you can also microwave them for 2 mins. You can always fry them again but that will make them very oily.
If you want to make plain puri, make it only with flour, salt, water, and oil. No need to add the other ingredients.
Similarly, you can also make palak puri, beetroot puri, carrot puri, pumpkin puri. Let your imagination go wild!
Substitute sweet potato in this recipe with regular potato and make yourself some Masala Aloo Puri/Poori. Even finely chopped palak/spinach can be added.
More flatbread recipes
Recipe 📖
Poori Recipe | Puri Bread with Sweet Potato
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 sweet potato
- 1.5 cups wheat flour
- 1 tablespoon kasoori methi
- 1 teaspoon ajwain
- ¼ teaspoon asafoetida
- 1 tablespoon chilly powder
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ¼ cup cilantro
- Salt
- 1 tablespoon oil
- ½ cup water add more as needed
- oil for frying
Instructions
- The first step is to cook the sweet potato. Prick it all over and then place it in a microwave-safe bowl. There is no need to add water. Microwave it for 10 minutes.
- Remove the skin and mash it with a fork. You can also grate it. Just ensure that there are no lumps. Keep it aside for now.
- To a food processor or mixing bowl, add whole wheat flour along with salt. Crush kasoori methi between your palms and add it to the processor along with ajwain (carom seeds).
- Next add all the spice mixes like asafoetida, chilly powder, turmeric powder, garam masala, and lemon juice. Then add the greens like cilantro.
- Now add the cooked and mashed sweet potato and oil. If kneading with hand, add water gradually and knead it to a semi soft dough. Or you can save time and effort by kneading the dough in a food processor.
- Place the dough in the same mixing bowl, cover it with a moist cloth and let it rest for 15-20 minutes. Heat oil in a frying pan. Keep the flame low to medium.
- Divide the dough into marble sized portions and shape into balls. Roll them to make a circle of 4-5 inches diameter. Dust some flour as needed.
- Using any cutter, give it a round shape. Make as many puris as you need and spread them on a plate.
- When the oil is hot, add the cut discs in batches and fry them till they puff up and attain a golden hue.
- Fry all the puris the same way on medium flame. Place them on a paper towel to drain off any excess oil.
- Serve them while they are still hot with any side dish.
Geeta says
Delicious pooris. My Mom's family is from Trichy too!
Grand fat
her was a doctor there and worked for the British hospital there.