Wheat dough balls stuffed with spiced sattu baked over coal or in an oven, dunked in ghee and served with smoked vegetable chokha — the definitive Bihar meal.
Ingredients
For litti:
2 cups whole wheat flour (atta)
1/2 tsp ajwain (carom seeds)
1/2 tsp salt
Water — stiff dough
For sattu filling:
1 cup sattu (roasted gram flour)
1 tbsp mustard oil
1 tsp ajwain
2 green chillies — very finely chopped
1 tsp ginger — grated
1/4 tsp kalonji (nigella seeds)
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp fresh coriander
Salt
2 to 3 tbsp water
Generou ghee for dunking
For aloo chokha: 4 boiled potatoes, 1 raw onion, 1 tbsp mustard oil, salt, lemon
For baingan chokha: 2 large brinjals flame-roasted, 1 raw onion, 1 tbsp mustard oil
Method
Make litti dough: combine atta, ajwain and salt.
Knead with minimal water into a very stiff dough. Rest 20 minutes.
Make sattu filling: combine sattu with mustard oil, ajwain, green chillies, ginger, kalonji, lemon juice, coriander and 2 to 3 tbsp water.
Mix into a moist crumbly paste. Season with salt.
Divide dough into 8 balls. Flatten each. Place 2 tbsp sattu filling in centre.
Seal completely. Shape into smooth rounds.
Bake at 200°C for 30 to 35 minutes turning once until golden-brown and hollow-sounding.
Immediately dunk in generous ghee.
Make chokha: mash boiled potatoes with raw onion, mustard oil, salt and lemon.
Separately peel flame-roasted brinjal and mash with raw onion and mustard oil.