Dal baati churma

Dal baati churma is a Rajasthani meal made of hard baked wheat dumplings called baati, served with a thick spiced lentil dal and churma, a sweet made from crushed baati mixed with ghee and jaggery or sugar.

What it really is

The baati are round balls of wheat flour dough, often with semolina and ghee, formed from a stiff dough with no leavening or only a little. They are baked slowly, traditionally in the embers of a fire or in a covered clay oven, until the outside is a dark brown crust and the inside is firm and dry. They are often soaked in ghee after baking.

The churma is made by breaking the baked baati into coarse crumbs, then mixing them with ghee, jaggery or sugar, and sometimes cardamom and nuts. The dal is usually a blend of toor dal and other lentils, cooked with onion, tomato, and spices, and finished with a tempering of ghee and whole spices. Dal baati is distinct from ordinary roti or chapati, which are thin and cooked on a griddle, and from litti, which is a stuffed baked wheat ball from Bihar.

How it's served

• Baati are broken by hand and dipped into the dal, usually with extra ghee poured over both
• Churma is eaten alongside the dal and baati as a sweet course or with the savoury dishes
• The meal is typically served on a thali with raw onion, green chilli, and pickles
• Dal baati churma is a festive and family meal in Rajasthan and is often served at celebrations

How to write it on the menu

• Name the three components: baati (baked wheat dumplings), dal (spiced lentils), and churma (sweet crumbled baati with ghee and jaggery)
• Flag MILK for ghee, and WHEAT for the baati and churma
• State whether the dal is made with toor dal and whether the churma uses jaggery or sugar
• Specify if the baati are made with semolina and if nuts are added to the churma