I was in college when I went to see one of my friends on Eid, and she served us these Dahi Bhary or Dahi Bhaly. One bite of this delicious goodness, and I was hooked. I instantly asked for the recipe and tried making them. I’m not ashamed to admit I failed a few times, but finally got the hang of it and make perfect dahi bharras. You can make them sweet or savory according to your liking.
Let me share all the tips and tricks with you so you can make these dahi bharras perfectly.
What goes into the dahi bhary
Mash Dal/lentil
Add Dal/lentil to a pan and rinse it several times with room temperature water, then add more water and let it soak for a minimum of 1 hour or leave it overnight.
Make a paste
Now add soaked mash Dal to a blender, with only 1-2 tbsp of water or enough water for the blender to work. Make a paste and transfer it to a bowl.
Season the dahi bhara paste
Add salt, cumin seeds, and baking powder right before frying. You can also add red chili flakes or ajwain. Feel free to season it according to your taste buds.
Fry dahi bharas
In a pan, add oil for deep frying. Once the oil is hot enough, with the help of a spoon or your hands, drop a small amount of batter and fry over medium heat until light golden in color. Don’t crowd the pan.
Try not to move them around much; once cooked on one side, then move to the other side to cook. It may be that in the beginning they don’t look round, but as they fry they hold their shape and automatically turn round. Once golden brown take the bharas out on a paper towel.
Soak in water
In a bowl add warm water and and soak bharas for 4-5 minutes, then gently squeeze to remove all the excess water. Use gentle pressure.
Layer on a serving dish
Make a single layer on the serving dish.
Make yogurt
Mix yogurt, milk and sugar to make a runny sweet yogurt and pour all over the bharas. Now add genoruos layer of tamarind chutney. Sprinkle chaat masala and serve cold.
How to serve dahi bhary
To serve dahi bhaly, you have the option to make sweet or savory, but I mostly make meethi bhary. Soak the bhary in water, then squeeze out all the water and line them in a serving tray. Pour sweet yogurt, then add green and tamarind sauces and some chaat masala. You can make this dish a day in advance, but sprinkle the chaat masala and sauces right before serving.
How to store left over dahi bhary
Any leftover dahi bhary can be stored in an airtight container in a refrigerator for 1 day. If you keep them longer after assembly, they’ll become mushy and won’t taste good. Fried bhary can be stored in a plastic bag for up to a week in a refrigerator or for up to a couple of months in the freezer. Simply thaw those and then proceed normally. You can also make some other freezer friendly items for iftar such as chicken and cheese donuts, crispy chicken and cheese croquettes, and use as needed for iftar.
More Recipes
Dahi Bhary (Dahi Bhaly)
Ingredients
- 1 cup Mash dal soaked for at least 1 hour
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
- 1/3 tsp Baking powder
- 1/2 tsp Red chili flakes optional
- 2 cups Oil for frying
- 1.5 cup Yogurt
- 1/2 cup Milk
- 1/4 cup Sugar You can also use honey or a sweetener, or make savoury and skip sugar(see notes)
- 4 tbsp Imli chutney
- 4 tbsp Green chutney
- 1 tsp Chat masala to sprinkle
Instructions
- Add mash dal to a bowl and wash with cold water then add more water and let it soak for at least one hour.
- Add lentil/dal to a food processor and blend it. Add a little bit of water if needed.
- Once blended, add salt, baking powder, cumin seeds, and red chili flakes. Mix everything. Only add baking powder when ready to fry.
- Heat 2 cups of oil and drop a spoonful of batter into the oil. In the beginning, bharas are not round, but they will automatically round into bharas after a while. Fry on medium heat until nice and golden, about 5 minutes.
- Once the color is brown, take them out on the paper towel-lined plate.
- You can freeze them after frying or go ahead and serve them right away.
- To serve, add bharas into a bowl full of warm water, soak for 4-5 minutes, and then squeeze all of the excess water using your palms with gentle pressure. Spread bharas on a serving plate.
- Mix yogurt, sugar (if making sweet), and milk. Keep the yogurt mixture a little runny and pour it over bharas. Bharas will soak up most of the yogurt; that's why it's suggested to have a runny consistency of yogurt mixture.
- Garnish with Imli and green chutney, and sprinkle some chat masala.
- Keep it in the fridge to cool down or enjoy it right away.