Kanda gadda bakshalu is an authentic sweet potato stuffed flatbread savored on Maha Shivaratri in the Telangana region. These Bakshalu have an utterly creamy, healthy and divine sweet potato stuffing, and my kid absolutely loved it. Sweet potatoes are a great source of fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Additionally, they support Healthy Vision, enhance Brain Function and Boost Your Immune System.
Sweet potatoes have a dense fiber composition, and it satiates the hunger for longer periods. Hence, in Indian subcontinent we widely use it as fasting food. On Maha Shivaratri, majority of devotees observe a special fast consisting largely of fruits along with plenty of water and milk which keeps them hydrated. And sweet potatoes are fast friendly, filling and healthy. So these Bakshalu makes a great recipe to make on this coming Maha Shivaratri.
Significance of Maha Shivaratri
The festival of ‘Maha Shivaratri’ which literally translates to ‘the greatest night of Shiva’ is one of the most revered Hindu festivals across the Indian subcontinent. The Temples across the nation witness an outpour of devotees who gather around the Shiva Linga with their abundant offerings to appease Lord Shiva. Prayers and vigils go on throughout the night of Maha shivaratri. But what makes the festival special is its characteristic fasting or the Maha Shivaratri Vratam. The vratam marks a very high significance for every Shiva devotee, with some opting to even go on fasting through the day without a single drop of water. But majority of the devotees observe a special fast consisting largely of fruits along with plenty of water and milk which keeps them hydrated.
What are Bakshalu?
Bakshalu are a traditional delicacy, that we make on festivals or special occasions as an offering to the deity. These bakshalu are stuffed flatbreads, which can be made sweet or savory. In the Telangana region, Bakshalu are a traditional dessert or sweet and it has various stuffings. And stuffings like chana dal, moong dal, sesame seeds, sweet potato, Kova, etc. are used.
Now call this bakshalu poli or Holige, obbattu, bobbatlu, burelu, polelu, vedmi, boli this one dish has many names and avatars across diverse India.
In certain regions of Telangana, people call these Kanda gadda bakshalu as Mouram gadda polelu or mouram gadda bakshalu. This Kanda gadda bakshalu are specially prepared for the Maha Shivaratri festival for the kids, as they are fasting friendly and filling too.
Ingredients needed for Kanda gadda bakshalu
- Kanda gadda – Sweet potatoes, they are also known by Mouram gadda, Ratnapuri gadda in the Telangana region.
- Jaggery / Sugar – As sweet potatoes alone are sweet enough, we will be using minimal amount of sweetener.
- Cardamom – this is completely optional
- Whole wheat flour – You can also use Maida / All purpose flour instead.
- Oil
- Ghee
How to prepare this Kanda gadda bakshalu?
Like every other flatbread, this bakshalu can be either made with Maida/all-purpose flour or Whole wheat flour. And I like to use whole wheat personally as it’s more healthy and that’s what I have grown up eating. So if you prefer using All purpose flour or maida please feel free to use it according to your convenience.
Stuffing – First step steam the sweet potatoes, later mash them with jaggery / sugar, and keep them aside.
Now the kind of sweet potatoes we get in India are quite fibrous and stays firm when boiled or steamed. They doesn’t require any further cooking after steaming them. You can just steam/boil them, peel the skin, mash them with jaggery powder/sugar.
And as I’m staying in the US, the sweet potatoes, which I get here are quite soft, when I steam/boil them they turn very mushy. Hence, I cook the mashed sweet potatoes slightly until they turn firm.
Dough – This bakshalu can be made with two kinds of dough, One is the wet dough that has been soaked in oil for hours and the other is a semi-hard dough that we regularly use to make roti. If you are using slightly firm sweet potatoes that we get in India, I would recommend you to use the firm dough. And if you are using the American variety of sweet potatoes then go for the wet dough.
Is this recipe VEGAN ?
You can skip the ghee part while roasting the Bakshalu or stuffed flatbread to make it vegan-friendly. If you have Gluten-intolerance, please substitute the whole wheat flour with gluten free flour to make these Bakshalu.
Serving suggestion
These Kanda gadda bakshalu/polelu are traditionally served with warm milk. But a simple drizzle of ghee on warm Bakshalu is good enough for savoring.
Checkout more traditional festive foods and more Telangana delicacies.
KANDA GADDA BAKSHALU
Equipment
- Griddle
- Steamer
Ingredients
Stuffing
- 3 Sweet potatoes
- ⅓ cup Jaggery powder
- ¼ tsp Cardamom powder
Dough
- 1½ cup Whole wheat flour
- 2 tbsp Oil
- ½ cup Water *more as needed to make pliable dough
Instructions
Stuffing
- Heat a steamer, add water in the pan and place the sweet potatoes cut into discs on the steamer rack.
- Cover the pan and let the sweet potatoes steam until they are soft and mushy. It may take around 15 min. Turn off the heat and let them cool down to room temperature.
- Later peel the skin of sweet potatoes, mash them and add cardamom powder, jaggery powder/sugar as per your taste preference.
- If the stuffing is too wet, then cook the mashed sweet potatoes on medium flame until it turns firm.
- Later divide the stuffing into 10 equal portions, roll them into a ball and keep aside.
Dough
- In a mixing bowl, add whole wheat flour/APF , tsp of oil and water. Bring everything together and knead until it is soft and pliable.
- Add 2 tbsp oil and keep it covered for 2 hours. Let it remain soaked in oil. The more it rests in oil the more softer the bakshalu will be.
Let's prepare some KANDA GADDA BAKSHALU now !!
- Take a silicon sheet/ziploc bag/banana leaf, grease the surface. Take handful of dough and place it.
- Grease your fingers with oil and flatten the dough with your fingers to form a small circle.
- Place a small ball of sweet potato stuffing in the center and seal it on all sides forming a small ball.
- Now flatten the ball with the stuffing inside to form a thin Baksham.
Roasting the KANDA GADDA BAKSHALU
- Grease the tawa slightly with ghee and heat it. Now invert the silicon mat/ziploc bag/banana leaf with the Baksham over the tawa. After a few seconds, gently remove the silicon mat/ziploc bag/banana leaf.
- Now cook the Baksham both the sides until golden brown on medium heat.Once cooked, apply ghee all over the surface and remove from heat. Now Kanda gadda baksham is ready to be served. Enjoy it warm.
Serving suggestions
- Serve hot Kanda Gadda bakshalu with some warm milk or drizzled with ghee.
Notes
- If you are using the American variety of sweet potatoes, they tend to turn mushy or sticky when steamed/boiled. So cook the stuffing on medium flame until it turns slightly firm.
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