The Story Of Khakhras
Among Indian cuisine’s range of spicy crackers, the khakhra stands out, and for good reason. Possibly one of the most versatile snacks out there, the more creative the cook, the more varieties that can be made with this super-thin, crispy bread. We’re all familiar with the usual ones like methi, masala, jeera, garlic, pudina, etc, but, there are so many more varieties on the market, enough to boggle your mind.
The new ones on the block include flavors borrowed from all over the world, like pizza, schezwan, manchurian, etc. For those with a sweet tooth, there are chocolate-flavored khakhras too! Before we go deep into this overwhelming list, let us start from the basics, as all good stories do.
The Origin
Khakhras are primarily from the Gujarati cuisine, though they are equally popular in Rajasthani cuisine as well. The invention of this snack is not very clear, but some believe that it has its roots in Jain households. It is said that since Jains do not eat stale food, they devised a way of sucking the moisture out of leftover rotis and that’s how khakhras were born. The moisture is what gets the rotis to go stale, hence, they were dry roasted under pressure on a tava. This made them stay fresh for a longer period of time.
Though khakhras are a popular snack now, they are also served as a traditional breakfast item in Gujarati and Jain homes. The khakhras are served with a side of chutneys, pickles, yogurt, or ghee, along with tea or milk to complete the meal.
The Making
Traditionally, khakhras are made of whole wheat flour, with the occasional recipe adding in mat bean flour as well. For a healthier variety, khakhras are made of jowar or bajra flour as well. Apart from the flour, there is salt, oil, and water added to make the basic dough. Depending on the flavor that’s needed, other ingredients are added, like, methi leaves, dhaniya, ajwain, jeera, pudina (mint), garlic, bajri (pearl millet), masala, etc.
The dry ingredients are mixed thoroughly with water, oil and/or milk to get a soft dough. Small balls are rolled out by hand and flattened. The flattened dough is then roasted over low heat while being pressed by a wooden press until they turn crisp and light brown in color. The khakhras are then stored in airtight containers so that they stay fresh for many days.
The Varieties
The list of the khakhra varieties in the market is going to be pretty exhausting to put up here so we’re going to go with the most popular ones.
Plain
Methi
Masala
Ginger
Garlic
Pizza
Butter
Pav Bhaji
Pepper
Khichdi
Manchurian
Maggi
Just like the flavors of the khakhras, the dips and sides that go with this versatile item are also many in numbers. You can have them with chutneys, sauces, dips, hummus, podi and oil, ghee, pickle, peanut butter, jam, dahi chutney, methi sambar, and the list goes on.
The khakhras have been around for ages and they are definitely here to stay. With the creative minds of the khakhra industry hard at work, we can expect them to dish out some unique varieties that will only up the game. Interesting flavors or traditional ones, khakhras will always have a special place in Indian cuisine.