Coriander Spinach Mathri Recipe | Khasta Dhaniya Matthi

Mathri is a deep fried savoury snack usually made of All-purpose flour and spices. It can be kept fresh in air tight containers for days, and hence it makes a perfect snack with tea and Coffee. Traditionally (or rather out of habit ) mathirs are eaten with pickles. Since Mathris are mildly spiced, hot pickle compliments them very well. It’s a general norm to serve Mathri-Achaar and some sweet (mithayi) when the guests visit, especially during festive time. There are basically two types of Mathris, One is very mildly spiced, thin, crispy variety and the other one is this spicier, thicker, flakier, crumblier one which I have made here today. You can include any other herbs to this Mathri like Parsley, thyme or even greens like fenugreek, spinach etc. as well. Each will provide a distinctive flavour and fragrant to this snack.  Here, I have mixed whole wheat flour with the all purpose flour (maida) and hence the Mathris were a tad bit less crumbly. But nevertheless were as tasty as always. You may try it both ways, with or without whole wheat flour. This recipe is off to Divya‘s South Vs North Challenge, thanks for this awesome challenge Nupur :-).

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 30-40 mins ( for 20-25 Mathris )
Serves: 3-4 People/Servings
Cuisine:- Indian States of U.P. Uttarakhand, Bihar etc.
Recipe Source :- Ukrasoi

Ingredients

All Purpose Flour (Maida ) – 1 and 1/2 Cups
Whole Wheat Flour (Atta) – 1 Cups
Oil – 1/4 Cup for kneading the dough
Ghee – 2 Tbsp for kneading the dough (optional, also you can use room temperature butter)
Cumin Powder (Jeera powder ) – ½ tsp
Black Pepper Powder – 1/2 tsp
Carom Seeds/Ajwain – 1/2 tsp (you can use some dried ajwain leaves)
Red Chili Powder – 1/2tsp (Optional)
Salt (or to taste) – 1/2 Tbsp
Fresh Coriander Leaves – 1/2 Cup chopped finely (I use mix of spinach and coriander leaves)
Dried Fenugreek Leaves/Kasuri methi – 1/2 Tbsp
Oil – for deep frying

Method

• Sieve the flours in a big mixing bowl.
• Add in all the spices, coriander leaves, oil and ghee and knead into a hard dough.
• It should be harder than the Chapathi dough, else the Mathris will break apart while frying.
• Once done, cover the dough with a damp tea towel and keep aside for 20-30 minutes
• Once the dough is set, knead it again for a minute, and divide into small balls of equal size.
• The amount pinched will be more than the Chapathi.
• Flatten each one of them between your palms gently, the mathri will crack a bit from the side since the dough is hard so don’t worry about that
• In the meanwhile, heat oil in the wok .
• To check if its hot enough, drop a small dough ball into the hot oil.
• If it immediately comes up sizzling, that means it’s all done. Turn the flame to low-medium.
• Fry the flattened balls in batches of 3-4 at a time, giving them enough space to float around.
• One batch will take around 10-12 minutes, since these Mathris are thick and should be cooked properly from inside.
• Once all sides are light brown, take them out and drain on a kitchen towel .
• Prepare all Mathris in the same way
• Once they come to the room temperature, store them in air tight container.
• These can be kept fresh for 4-5 weeks easily.
• Enjoy hot and fresh with some Raita or dip, chutney for your tea time.

Notes

1. You may puree the coriander and then mix with the dough. The colour of the Mathris will be darker, and the taste will be slightly different.
2. There will be slight cracks at the sides of these Mathris since the dough is hard, so do not worry about that.
3. Feel free to add any other dry spices like Oregano, basil etc and see how it turns out.