Pappuchekkalu - Rice and Lentil Crisps

Happy New Year Everyone!! It's a new year filled with new dishes and experiences. We're starting it off with one of our favorite snacks, Pappuchekkalu. We enjoy eating these savory lentil crisps on their own or with a hot beverage like tea. 

Although they are fried, Pappuchekkalu are gluten free and made with healthy ingredients. With so many benefits, they are hard to resist. Let's get to it then...  

To make the dough, you need

• 4-1/2 cups Rice flour
• 2-1/2 cups Urad dal flour (White lentil flour)
• 1-1/2 cups Soy flour
• 1/2 cup Moong dal, soaked and drained (also known as Mung bean)
• 1 cup peanuts, soaked, drained and coarsely crushed
• 3 Tbsp chili powder
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds
• 6 Tbsp Vegetable oil
• 8 cups water
• 2 to 2-1/2 Tbsp Salt

You also need the following for frying

• 3 to 4 cups Vegetable Oil

Here's what you need to do

Sieve together all the flours in a large bowl and set aside. In a 6 quart pan, combine water, moong dal, peanuts, chili powder, and sesame seeds. Bring it to a boil. Then, turn the heat down to simmer and stir in the flour mixture until the water is absorbed. Turn off the heat and set aside to cool down.

When the mixture has cooled down, mix it well to form into uniform dough. Take portions of the dough (size of walnut) and place it in between a small piece of wax paper (or greased plastic sheet) and press it flat into a circle. Watch the demo below for clarification.

Next, prepare the flat patties or chekkalu in batches and keep them covered so they do not dry out. Heat oil in a skillet or frying pan. Drop a tiny ball of dough (size of pea) to test the temperature. Please Note: When the tiny ball of dough bubbles and rises to the oil surface, the oil is ready for frying.

Now slowly add the patties into the oil and fry them until they turn golden brown; you need to flip them over one or two times to get that color (as shown above).  Transfer all the crackers or pappuchekkalu from the frying pan with a wire skimmer and allow the oil to continue to drain by holding it into a bowl. 

Later, put the crisps on a paper towel or tray to cool down. Store them in an air tight container so you can enjoy for 2 to 3 weeks. 

I love snacking on these between my breaks at work; I pack myself a few in a ziplock bag and take it with me.

If you have any questions about this recipe, please let us know. We love hearing from you. If you liked this recipe, check out other snack recipes on our blog: Picante Peanut Poppers, Crunchy Crackling Cashews, Corn Flakes Mixture (Chivda), and Karapappalu.