Besani Koki | Gluten-Free Chickpea Flour Bread

Besani Koki | Gluten-Free Chickpea Flour Bread is a thick, crisp flatbread made with chickpea flour. The gluten-free flatbread comes from a Sindhi kitchen that is delicious and easy to make.

What is Koki?

A thick flatbread, made with either wheat flour or chickpea flour is a Koki. It is crisp like a biscuit and while you chew it you will relish every bite. You will get the sweet crunch from onions, mild zing from the chillies and the tanginess from the dried pomegranate. A Sindhi Koki is truly delicious and is a perfect breakfast, though you can serve it for lunch too. We call them Loli too.

What is Besani Koki | Gluten-Free Chickpea Flour Bread?

Since it is a thick flatbread made from Besan it is called Besani. Onions, coriander leaves and green chillies enhance the flavour of this crisp Koki. It is a common breakfast in Sindhi homes and makes a perfect protein-rich, gluten-free breakfast. You can store the Koki for 2-3 days even without refrigerating it.

Ingredients of a Besani Koki | Gluten-Free Chickpea Flour Bread

Besan / Chickpea Flour: Use a good quality organic besan. It is easily available in grocery stores.

Onion: Onions give a crunch to the Koki. Add finely chopped onions. You can skip them if you are a Jain or making as travel food.

Green Chilly: Finely chopped medium spiced green chillies are the best to use for Koki.

Coriander Leaves: coriander leaves add their aroma and are a must in this Koki.

Mint Leaves: Mint leaves are optional, but I love their flavour. They help in digestion too.

Oil and Ghee: ideally I prefer ghee for both moyan and roasting, but it is optional. You can choose according to your taste.

Anardana / Dried Pomegranate: Most Sindhi’s add a handful of anardana to a Koki. It gives a slight tanginess.

Salt: It is naturally the most important ingredient.

How to make Besani Koki | Gluten-Free Chickpea Flour Bread?

To make a Besani Koki first we will chop onions, green chillies and coriander leaves. I like to finely chop some coriander stems too. Roughly tear some mint leaves.
Now take a kneading bowl and sieve the besan to remove any lumps.
Mix in the chopped ingredients, salt, oil/ghee for moyan.
To make a low-calorie version add 2 tbsp yoghurt instead of oil or ghee.
Rub with hands to resemble bread crumbs.
Now gradually add water and make a dough. The dough should neither be very hard nor soft.
Once the dough comes together, divide it into two balls.
Flatten the ball and roll it into a thick disc.
Using a blunt knife make a cross pattern on the Koki.
Roast the Koki on slow flame, flip over and roast the other side.
Finally, drizzle ghee and roast both sides till crisp.

Serving suggestions:

• Sindhi Aaloo
• Green Chutney
• Papad
• Dahi / Yoghurt
• Pickle
• Tea

Why do I like Besani Koki?

• The koki is ready in less than 20 minutes.
• Besani Koki is gluten free as well as protein rich.
• The shelf life of the koki is good and makes an excellent travel food as well as a tiffin snack..
• It is super delicious and keeps you full for a long time.

Other Sindhi Kokis:

Kare Mirch Wari Koki: We make this koki with wheat flour, salt and black pepper.
Bassar wari Koki / Masala Koki: This koki too has wheat flour, along with onions, green chilly and coriander leaves.
Chawaran ji Koki: Cooked rice and wheat flour go into making this koki.
Mitho Lolo: This is a sweet koki which we make on special occasions or festivals like Thadri.

Notes:

To make a crunchy Koki, make sure –

• The dough is not very hard or very soft.
• After kneading the dough and making balls, flatten the balls and cook for a minute on both sides. Bring it down and roll again. The double roasting will give it a good crunch.
• Ghee as moyan as well as for roasting tastes awesome, but you can use oil to make it vegan.
• I make it low calorie too by substituting yoghurt instead of moyan and spraying a few drops of oil for cooking.

This is my post under Easy Breakfast Recipes. I am reposting it with better pictures.