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Kashmiri bakery kulcha
Poppy seed or sesame tea biscuits
Kulche: crumbly Srinagar tea biscuits, salted with poppy seeds or sweet with sesame
Before dawn the kandurwaan, Srinagar's neighbourhood baker, lights his clay oven, and by breakfast his shelf holds stacks of kulcha: small, thick, very crumbly rounds, some salted and crusted with poppy seeds, some sweet and dotted with sesame. They are nothing like the soft Punjabi bread of the same name. Kashmiris eat them with noon chai, the pink salted tea, breaking a kulcha into the cup or alternating bites and sips; they are also handed out at weddings and taken as gifts when visiting. This eggless home version makes both kinds from one ghee-rich dough. Do not overwork it: kneading develops gluten and you lose the sandy crumble that makes kulcha special. Chef's tip: bake them pale and low; a real Kashmiri kulcha is barely golden on top and crisp only on the base, so take them out while they still look a little underdone.
- Total time
- 55 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 16
Ingredients
For the dough
- 10 ½ oz plain flour
- 1 oz fine semolina
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 4 oz gheesoft
- 2 ⅛ oz plain yogurt
- ¼ cup milkas needed
For the salted half
- ¾ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp white poppy seeds
For the sweet half
- 1 ¾ oz icing sugar
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
- 2 tbsp sesame seeds
To finish
- 2 tbsp milkfor brushing
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Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Mix 10 ½ oz plain flour, 1 oz fine semolina and 1 tsp baking powder in a bowl. Rub in 4 oz ghee with your fingertips until it looks like damp sand.
5 minStep 2: Divide the mixture between two bowls. Stir ¾ tsp salt into one and 1 ¾ oz icing sugar and ¼ tsp ground cardamom into the other.
Step 3: Add half of 2 ⅛ oz plain yogurt and half of ¼ cup milk to each bowl and press each into a soft dough with your hand, adding a splash more milk only if it will not hold together. Do not knead. Rest both, covered, for 10 minutes.
10 minStep 4: Heat the oven to 350°F (300°F fan) and line two trays with baking paper.
Step 5: Shape each dough into 8 balls and flatten them into thick rounds about 7 cm across and 1.5 cm thick. Make a dimple in the centre of each with your thumb.
Step 6: Brush the tops with 2 tbsp milk. Press the salted rounds into 2 tbsp white poppy seeds and the sweet rounds into 2 tbsp sesame seeds, so the tops are well coated, and set them on the trays.
Step 7: Bake for 22–25 minutes, until the bases are golden and the tops are only just tinged with colour. They will feel soft when hot.
24 minStep 8: Cool completely on the trays; they firm up and become crumbly as they cool. Keep airtight for up to a week and serve with noon chai or any hot tea.
20 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 175 kcal
- Protein
- 3 g
- Carbs
- 19 g
- Fat
- 10 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does kashmiri bakery kulcha take?
- About 55 minutes in total: 30 minutes to prepare and 25 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 16 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of baking powder?
- ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda + ½ tsp cream of tartar per 1 tsp.
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