Chaklis have always been one of my most favourite snacks! I really loved them as a child and my ammamma (paternal grandmother) once fondly recalled me putting the chaklis made by her over my thumb, wearing them as an ornament and trying to eat them.
Chaklis were also something that I craved during my pregnancy and were a definite part of the parcels that arrived at my doorstep! In my opinion, my grand aunt makes the best chaklis that I have ever tasted and my mother duly requested her to make them for me during that special time of my life.
If I had my way, I would be eating as many chaklis as I could and would! But, we do have our limitations and mine comes in the form of my allergy. Since I’m highly prone to allergic colds, I have to watch what I eat and am forced to stay away from deep fried goodness and a lovely fruit like banana!
Diwali is incomplete for me without two of my favourite indulgences. Kaju kathli (cashew burfi or fudge) and chaklis! So, this Diwali knowing well that I would indulge in kaju kathlis and all the other delicious sweets, I wanted to have my cake and eat it too and not fall sick in the middle of the festivities with a sore throat and sneezing arising out of deep fried snacks. I also wanted to introduce this favourite of mine to my little one!
So, I made a batch of baked chaklis, just before we proceeded to Bangalore for the celebrations with much hope and excitement. The chaklis did turn out well, crispy and nicely spiced, but the next time around, I would bake them with my maternal grandmother’s recipe and see how that works! If only, I had known this secret during my pregnancy, then I could have indulged as much as I wanted!
We had a great Diwali in Bangalore and since it was Hari’s first Diwali there, my mother-in-law went out of her way to make it special for her grandson by decking up the entire house and garden with beautiful flowers and lights, cooking family favourites et al.
In my childhood, go puja or worship of the mother cow was always an integral part of Diwali or deepavali. My grandmother performed an elaborate puja for all the cows in the backyard in our hometown, Siddapur. I was surprised, excited and happy when cowherd folks from the nearby villages took cows from one door to another in the modern city of Bangalore. When they came to our house, I rushed to the gate with an arathi plate and food for the cow. And in the evening, during lakshmi pooja, folk musicians went from house to house, playing traditional Indian music. We revelled in the heavenly festive music and Hari was thrilled by the entire experience.
Living in Mumbai, I really miss many unique attributes of living in the South where I grew up. Small things and big things! The lush green lawn beneath my feet when I do my suryanamaskars in the morning, the flowers in the garden and the birds flying up in the sky making unique patterns of their own, all this makes me nostalgic. But these chaklis are a solace! They transcend time and place and I can relish them wherever I am!
Baked Chakli/ Gluten-free Rice Flour Spirals With Sesame Seeds Recipe
Ingredients:
240 gm (1 1/2 cups) rice flour
65 gm (1/2 cup) split roasted gram (dalia or phutana), powdered in a blender
1/8 tsp baking soda
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp hing or asafetida
40 gm (1/4 cup) sesame seeds
2 tbsp oil, heated until hot but not smoking
175 ml (3/4 cup) water
Method:
In a large mixing bowl, assemble the flours and the other spices, the rice flour, roasted gram powder, baking soda, red chilli powder, salt, asafetida and mix well with a spoon or with your hands. Stir in the sesame seeds and mix again.
Now pour the hot oil into the flour mixture, mix with a spoon and work with your fingers until the oil is mixed into the flour. Pour in the water and make a smooth dough. Do not over mix.
Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper. Put the dough into a chakli press and make swirls. Alternately put the dough into a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle and pipe swirls.
Bake in a preheated oven at 160 degrees centigrade/320 F for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.
Note: The cooking time varies for different ovens. Mine took 25 minutes but keep your eyes open once 15 minutes are up! If you find them getting over browned then take the tray out and allow to cool.
Store in an air tight container.
Makes 32 chaklis
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Anu..just cant believe that those r baked chakli…looks perfect!! will keep this in my mind 2 try next time..:)
Seriously i want to try them since a long, cant wait to make some soon..
OMG !these look so perfect!! I am sure I want to try these out soon!
Hi Anushruti,
Tried these today, they are so good ! Thanks for the wonderful low-fat recipe 🙂
You will love this healthy alternative to the traditionally deep fried snack!
DJ: That was super quick! You are most welcome and thank you for the feedback!
Deep fried sinful indulgence turned to be so super yum and healthy. Excellent recipe.
This is amazing! I will just have to try it. I am not really into deepfried snacks but my husband loves chaklis… I would feel so much better about him snacking on them if they are baked instead of fried 🙂
Truly have your cake and eat them too! Chaklis and baked ones to go..nothing can get better than this treat, Anu. And what wonderful Diwali deco at your home.
Chakli (Murukku) is one of my favorites! Baking them is so ingenious! Never thought of that possibility… clearly a neat idea Anushruti.. Will give it a try next time 🙂
The chaklis look perfect. They dont look like they were baked. Thanks for the recipe.
those chaklis look beautiful and anyone can be forgiven for thinking they were fried not baked…. what is the name of those beautiful bell shaped pinkand white flowers? they look so gorgeous
Anuuuuuu Lovely recipe …… a must try ..and I am sure I will make them again and again…
Whats the dal that u use ? can I use Besan ? or is that different?
wow, without oil, this one is really great. i'm goin to give a definite try.
Lovely murukku. Looks so crispy.
This snack is completely new to me and it looks sensational. Beautiful photos too!
Chaklis are my favorite! Reminds me of my grandmother 🙂
Lovely pictures as usual. Hari looks so cute in the pink kurta!
I m loving it!!! More over its baked !! Your images doesnt throw any iota that chakli's are baked…
I can go on and on with this savory!!
Hi,
I made this today and the taste was good but it was breaking up. I couldnt do a proper round like yours. Pl let me know what I could have missed.
Thanks,
Deepa
Deepa: It actually depends on the rice flour as some varieties have less binding properties. You can mix in a little besan and a little more oil the next time. This might help. I will post another recipe for baked chakli on divinetaste.
I tried these today and they were just not right. Not sure how but the murukku were dry and tasted raw inspite of baking them for 45 mins .
Mamta: If you are looking for the same texture of deep fried murukku then this is not the recipe to try. This is a little on the drier side but tastes quite good. I'm not sure why your chaklis tasted raw though. You might want to add little more oil to the dough if you want to try it again.
Anu… these turned out great….tasted perfect… my 3 year old daughter just loved it… did you add turmeric to the flour ? there's no mention in the recipe, but Mine didnt turn these golden yellow… they were slightly on off white side…
I had the same problem as Mamta, with the chakli tasting raw. Tried adding more oil to the dough, but it didn't help. Wonder why.
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simply awesome…. added ajwain to one batch…. dissapeared in no time…. mostly into my mouth… lol…. made flat puris with the un-chaklified bits…. super crisp… cant wait to make it for my parents for diwali
Dear anu, baked these chaklis today had to bake them for 30 mins turned light brown perfect swirls but when u lift them it kind of breaks into big pieces but on the whole a novel concept .
Madhu: The texture of these chaklis depends greatly on the quality of the flour used. Maybe your batch of flour needed a little more binding agent?
Chakkali are my all time favourite…That too baked !! wanna give a try…But sesame seeds are there.Is it ok to eat if we are pregnant?
swethaa: You can avoid it if you wish. Or add very little. A little sesame seeds should do no harm.
[…] 11. Muruku […]
[…] Using olive oil is totally optional. You can try it with any vegetable oil. I referred this site for baking temp. The baked murukku was more crispy than the fried one, so it makes a guilt free […]
[…] is totally optional. You can try it with any vegetable oil. I referred this site for baking temp. The baked murukku was more crispy than the fried one, so it makes a guilt free […]
Did you ever post your aunt's or grandma's recipe of this?
Tried the baked chaklis it's awesome. My daughter loved it
Indus- Not as yet. 🙂
Rekha- Great to know that!
Hi Anushruti,
I tried baking this today.. It came out crispy. But this has a raw smell and taste.. Is there any reason ? Do I need to roast dalia powder and rice flour before making ?
Deepa- every oven is different so maybe your need to roast for a 3 to 4 minutes more.
Hi Anushruti,
A good recipe for the taste, however my murukku/chakli was breaking when I was pressing. I tried to make it enough moist (as per one of the suggestion), but did not work. Similarly, the colour was whitish yellow. How did you get the yellow colour in photo without haldi. Appreciate your help.
The texture of the dough depends on the quality of the rice flour used. The colour is because of the intensity of the red chilli powder.