My besan chilla is a savory, protein-packed north Indian style crepe made with chickpea flour, vegetables and herbs.
Table of Contents
What is besan chilla?
Besan chilla (also called besan cheela or puda or pudla) is a north Indian pancake made with finely ground chickpea flour or besan. It bears a skin-deep resemblance to an omelet, although it tastes nothing like one and is delicious in its own right. India's large community of lacto-vegetarians doesn't consume eggs and you can often find besan chilla in restaurants listed on the menu as a "vegetarian omelette" or "vegetable omelette".
The reason a chilla is so delicious is the perfect alchemy between chickpea flour, onions and cilantro. These ingredients are made for each other and they create a wonderful harmony for the tastebuds - an experience that's not unlike eating a vegetable pakora, which has many of the same ingredients.
Another very good reason to eat besan chilla is that it is extremely nutritious: it is low in fat, the chickpea flour has heart-healthy protein and other nutrients, and it typically contains other healthy ingredients like onions, green chili peppers, vegetables like tomatoes or bell peppers as well as spices like turmeric and cayenne. The recipe is soy-free, nut-free and gluten-free and it takes minutes to make. In fact, it's perfect for beginners. This is hands-down one of my favorite Indian breakfasts and I make this easy besan chilla or sprouted moong chilla every week.
I make this at least once a week for my six-year-old son. It's the only way that I can get any veggies into him. Thanks for an awesome recipe. Five stars! - Preeti
Recipe card
Besan Chilla Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup chickpea flour (besan or gram flour or garbanzo bean flour)
- ¼ cup rice flour
- 1 medium onion (finely diced)
- 1-2 green chili peppers (like serrano or jalapeno. Use less and deseed if very sensitive to heat).
- 1 teaspoon ajwain (carom seeds, crushed between your palms to release their aroma. You can substitute with cumin seeds).
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ to 1 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste
- 1 cup baby spinach (finely chopped)
- 2 tablespoons cilantro (finely chopped)
- Salt to taste
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil or any neutral oil (or cooking spray)
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix. Set aside for about 15 minutes. This will give the vegetables time to express their liquids, giving you a better idea of how much water you need to make the batter.
- Pour in ½ cup water, mix, then add a little more, mix again. Don't add all of the water at once. I needed 1 ½ cups water total.
- Heat a cast iron griddle or non-stick griddle. Coat the surface with oil or cooking spray. Pour some batter into the center. I used a ½ cup measure filled close to but not all the way to the brim for each pancake. You can use the bottom of the cup to spread the batter slightly, if needed, and thin out the chilla.
- Cook this chilla until the underside is golden-brown and the top is beginning to dry. Flip over and cook a couple more minutes.
- Serve hot.
Notes
Nutrition Information
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How to make besan chilla
Sift the besan and rice flour into a bowl. Add the finely chopped green chilli peppers, onions, ginger-garlic paste, ajwain, cayenne and turmeric powder to the bowl.
Add cilantro and chopped spinach. Add salt to taste.
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Mix all of the ingredients and set them aside for 15 minutes so the veggies express their juices into the batter.
Pour in ½ cup water, mix, then add a little more, mix again. Don't add all of the water at once. I needed 1 ½ cups water total.
Heat a cast iron griddle or non-stick griddle over medium heat. Coat the surface with oil or cooking spray. Pour the batter into the center (I used a ½ cup measure filled close to but not all the way to the brim). Use the bottom of the cup (make sure it's heat-safe, otherwise use a spoon or ladle) to thin out the chilla if needed.
Cook until the underside is golden-brown and the top is beginning to dry. Flip over and cook a couple more minutes.
My top tips for making besan chilla
- Use besan, not garbanzo bean flour, for this recipe. Besan is very finely ground and is made by milling brown chickpeas, whereas the flour labeled here in the U.S. as "garbanzo bean flour" is coarser and made from the larger beige chickpeas. They are very different.
- You can make a chilla oil-free, but using a little bit of fat to coat the non-stick griddle or skillet helps create crispy edges. For best results use a cast-iron skillet. For even crispier edges, you can drizzle a bit of oil along the edges of the chilla as it cooks, like you would with a dosa.
- Some cooks add a pinch of baking soda to the recipe, to make the chilla lighter and crispier. If you want to add baking soda, add no more than ⅛th of a teaspoon or a generous pinch to the batter right before you cook the chilla. Be sure to mix it in!
- The reason you need to sift in the chickpea flour is to avoid any lumps that could be hard to get rid of once you start adding water to the batter. Don't skip this step! Also add water slowly to avoid any clumping.
- You can make the chilla as thick or thin as you want by adjusting the quantity of water in the batter, but don't overdo it. When you add besan mixed in water to a hot medium, the starches in the lentils bind with the water and firm up as they are heated. This ensures that your chilla will be flippable. But adding too much water can create a batter that will not bind so don't just pour it in. I needed 1 ½ cups of water for this batter, which makes moderately thin chillas. You can add up to ½ cup more, but probably not more than that. The batter should be of pourable consistency and thinner than a regular pancake batter.
- When adding veggies to the chilla, use veggies that cook quickly, like finely chopped greens, bell peppers, green beans, carrots, beets, cabbage and cauliflower. If you use vegetables that express too much liquid, like summer squash, mushrooms and tomatoes, make sure you give enough time for the ingredients to sit around after they are mixed so the veggies express their liquids before you add water.
- Mint and cilantro are amazing with the rest of the flavors in a besan chilla. Use one or the other or both! Or use another savory herb, like rosemary or sage (use less because these are stronger herbs).
Besan chilla FAQs
Rice flour makes the chilla extra crispy around the edges. You can skip it if you don't want to use it.
Because the chilla is low in calories, high in fiber and protein, and quite satisfying, it is a great food to include in a weight-loss diet. You can further reduce the calories by cooking the chilla with cooking spray instead of oil.
There are 13 net carbs in each chilla, so it can be part of a sensible low-carb diet. You can cut down the carbs to 11 grams by skipping the rice flour.
Besan chilla goes very nicely with a zesty Indian chutney, like mint chutney or onion chutney. You can also serve it with a spicy Indian pickle, like lime pickle or carrot pickle, or with vegan yogurt. Kids love it with tomato ketchup!
Joe says
These are mildly addictive. I will cut the cayenne back a little and either super chop the onions or soften them a little before coking the pancakes. They are really delicious and quite good.
Vaishali Honawar says
So happy you loved them!
Rose_Anne says
Thank you very much for the detailed instructions as well as comments about oil / no oil and alternative seasonings. Can't wait to try it!
Katie S. Irani says
I love veg food, the chilla recipe looks simple and great in taste. thank you. will make it soon and bless you
Vaishali says
Thanks, Katie!
Preeti says
I make this at least once a week for my six-year-old son. It's the only way that I can get any veggies into him. Thanks for an awesome recipe. Five stars!
Vaishali says
So lovely to hear, Preeti.
Gina says
can i replace the flour with almond flour????
Vaishali Honawar says
I don't think almond flour will hold together the way chickpea flour does.