Khaman Dhokla (Savory Gram Flour Cake)

 This khaman dhokla recipe makes a wonderfully soft and fluffy, lightly sweet and savory cake that’s perfect to enjoy anytime of the day. It’s easy to prepare steamed on the stovetop or even in the Instant Pot with my step-by-step photos and instructions.

45 degree angle shot of khaman dhokla squares on a white plate garnished with cilantro, curry leaves and the fried curry leaves and spices mixture

 Khaman

Khaman, also known as khaman dhokla in other Indian states, is a popular delicacy from the Gujarati cuisine.It is light, spongy and includes a hint of great savory flavor from a simple combination of gram flour (besan), spices, and herbs. Gram flour is ground skinned black chickpeas.

Khaman is a healthy savory-sweet snack that happens to be vegan. Plus, it can be gluten-free too, if you skip semolina and asafoetida in the batter.

Khaman is also known as yellow dhokla as it has a yellow color or besan dhokla. It is also known as instant khaman.I prepare khaman dhokla with the steaming method either in an Instant pot or in a pan.

They’re perfect to enjoy for a hearty and satisfying breakfast or an afternoon or evening snack.

What is the difference between dhokla and khaman dhokla?

Khaman is popularly referred to as khaman dhokla but in actuality, a dhokla is made differently than khaman.

Dhokla is made with ground, fermented batter of rice and lentils like chana dal or urad dal. You can check my recipe for an authentic Dhokla made with rice and chana dal.

While khaman is made instantly with gram flour. Khaman batter is not fermented unlike a dhokla batter.

In the taste department, fermentation gives dhokla a really complex flavorsome taste, but a khaman also tastes equally great.

The color of dhokla can range from cream to light yellow or yellow but a khaman always has a bright yellow color.

Eno (Fruit Salt)

eno bottle

As a leavening agent, we use in this khaman recipe is fruit salt. Eno is a popular Indian brand of fruit salt that is used to relieve acidity and heartburn.

Fruit salt is composed of citric acid, sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), and sodium carbonate.

Sodium bicarbonate and sodium carbonate are effervescent ingredients that bubble and release carbon dioxide when added to water.

Baking Soda or Eno

To make khaman, you can also use baking soda. But baking soda gives its soapy aroma if used in excess, so be careful not to add too much.

Eno gives you a perfect fluffy and soft khaman while the one made with baking soda is not that fluffy or spongy.

I personally prefer to use eno in khaman as it gives the best results. I do not favor baking soda, as firstly we cannot stand the soapy aroma and secondly the texture is not that airy or spongy in comparison to the khaman made with eno.

Use eno that is fresh and within its shelf period. If your eno is not fresh or active, the texture of khaman will be flat and dense. And please do not use flavored eno – the regular eno without any flavor works the best.

Both eno and baking soda react with turmeric powder and gives a red tinge or red spots in khaman dhokla. So add little turmeric powder or skip it completely.

top view of the round steamed khman dhokla topped and garnished with the tempered spices, coriander leaves, and fresh grated coconut

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