Moong Dal Chilla | Moong Cheela
Moong dal chilla also spelled Moong cheela is one of the easiest Indian Gluten free pancake that we could make for breakfast or dinner. Moong dal or mung bean is one of the easily cooking and digestible lentil.
Servings: 14 Dosai
Calories: 84kcal
Equipment
- 1 bowl
- 1 Blender
- 1 Cast iron skillet
Ingredients
- 1 cup Moong dal yellow skinless
- 2 Green Chilies
- 2 Red chilies
- 1 inch Ginger
- ¾ cup Carrot grated finely
- 3 Tablespoon Cilantro
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- to taste Salt
- 3 Tablespoon Oil I prefer Indian Gingelly oil (to cook the chilla)
Instructions
- Wash the moong dal well and then soak it in fresh water for 2 to 4 hours. If making the chilla for breakfast, we could soak the moong dal overnight as well.
- When ready to grind, drain the moong dal.
- In a blender / mixer jar, add the drained moong dal, green chilies, red chilies, ginger and turmeric powder.
- Grind the mixture well without adding too much water. If we add a lot of water in the beginning, I find it hard to grind the batter smooth. Add water as needed when grinding and grind it into a smooth batter. Pour the ground batter in a bowl.
- Add salt needed to the batter and also add the grated carrots and cilantro. Add the chopped onions if using that as well. Mix well.
- Heat a cast iron tawa / pan or a non stick pan. Once it is hot, reduce the heat to medium and pour a ladle full of batter. Smear the batter in a circular motion spreading it to form a pancake / dosai.
- Drizzle about ½ teaspoon oil around the chilla evenly. Let it cook on this side and then flip the cheela to cook on the other side.
- Remove the moong dal chilla and serve hot with chutney.
Notes
Serving suggestions
I served the Moong dal chilla with spicy Kara Chutney last night for dinner. I love Cheela with some kind of spicy chutney or gothsu. Few other options that will work well -
Kothamalli Thuvayal / Cilantro Chutney
Vengayam Thakkali Kothamalli Chutney (Onion, tomato and cilantro chutney)
Omavalli Chutney / Ajwain leaves chutney
Green coconut chutney
Expert tips
- Soak the moong dal for at least 2 to 3 hours.
- Add less water when grinding as that helps in making smooth batter.
- I added carrots and cilantro, but we could add onions for different flavor as well.
- I didn't use rice or rice flour in my Moong cheela batter. If you prefer crispier chilla, then soak 2 Tablespoon of rice along with the lentil or add 2 Tablespoon rice flour in the batter.
- I like using cast iron pan for even cooking of the cheela. We could use non stick griddle as well.
- Eat the chilla when warm. If making it ahead of time, store in a container covered with cotton cloth and a plate and then re heat before serving.
Nutrition
Calories: 84kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 0.2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Sodium: 31mg | Potassium: 28mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 1201IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 9mg | Iron: 1mg