TIME TO DISCOVER THE HUMBLE `CHEELA’…

Of protein fame for vegetarians and vegans

SUDDENLY over the Christmas/New Year celebrations I was thinking of our humble gram flour “cheela” or “pudla” as we Gujaratis call it, I want to re-discover it and introduce it anew in various interesting avatar. This is a very nutritious, non-gluten recipe which you may want to learn how to do to stay away from refined carb temptations. But the cheela (sometimes spelt “chilla”) is laced with oil, well, it need not be sooooo laced in oil, up to you, what oil and how much of it to use with discretion as with everything else – salt, spices, veggie mixes in your very own cheela to soothe the heart on a blue or white or black day!
Out in Gujarat the traditionally popular common folks oil in the kitchen has always been groundnut oil and this is available ghani-pressed or cold-pressed or physically-pressed. Many Gujarati folk think groundnut oil is best and those like me who’re better read and versed think it’s wise to shun all refined oils in favor of pure desi ghee or cold pressed rice bran which has a high burning index, or olive oil which is very expensive of course now to buy. Make the difference between seed oils, nut oils, fruit oils, etc, dairy fats.
But always shun the refined oils including the vegetarian hydrogenated fats like dalda, vanaspati and a host of other mixed fare fats for doing fryums, although in most of my well-to-do friends’ places they have installed an air-fryer, the merits of which are still being debated.
At home now I tend to use only some shudh desi cow’s ghee (clarified butter) or physically pressed rice bran oil which has a highpoint burning index to repeat, and rarely for special reasons only, golden green olive oil. Making an olive oil aioli with herbs green and dry mashed in and served in a pretty bowl is quite the thing …serve with crusty wholegrain bread to dip and relish! Salad on the side.

But this is about the all-Indian piquantly savoury cheela of gram flour or “chana ka atta” or “sattu” mostly. When the hubby was laid up in bed for four months in the Geriatrics Ward of the Goa Medical College and Hospital entertaining spine tuberculosis …there was endless talk about the importance of protein in a vegetarian’s life and HOD Dr Edwin Gomes would spend time explaining how the patient should eat six or eight eggs daily, nobody took him seriously of course and especially not the patient who was up to only two boiled eggs for breakfast…well, at least this patient learned to drink more water (other than just with his medications) and to eat the humble “besan ka cheela” which the kind dietician who turned up every now and again prescribed for him by way of an increased protein diet. “Roj ek cheela khao”…everyday eat one cheela or gram flour pancake, not sweet, always savoury.
The cheela would arrive from the GMC kitchen warm and aromatic with onion-ginger-tomato chopped in the gram flour batter, a most golden dulcet affair and the patient ate it, if too large, at least half of it and the other half his wife was happy to take home and savor for her dinner. Cheela are best wound up with a glass of buttermilk, just a wee bit tart. Can only do this at home for out in the many eateries of various denomination nobody knows how to do good buttermilks – at home I will add black salt, maybe some ginger juice or lemon juice or orange juice to yes – jazz up plain buttermilk.
The traditional way to do a seasoned Gujarati buttermilk (“vagareli chaas”) to go with a Sunday lunch or evening “kichadi” is to take curd, add water just so, use a wooden spinner to whip it all up smoothly; finally, give the buttermilk a tempering (phodni) in bit oil, half teaspoon full of mustard seeds, pinch asafetida, bunch of fresh curry leaves. The buttermilk may be seasoned with sea, or black, or pink salt nowadays in mod con homes. So refreshing on a hot summer’s day, buttermilk, forget gooey sweet lassi which won’t quench thirst!

BUT to return to the humble cheela learn how to serve up a hot golden yellow besan ka cheela. This cheela is a little different from the Guju “pudla” which is also gram flour batter spread out like a pancake on a seasoned pan, dribbling of oil around it…I don’t know about this but I’ve seen cheela and pudla lovers stuff the savoury pancake between two slices of bread, a sort of gross sandwich style snack even if lined with fresh mint chutney (this is today’s mod con easy way).
But yes, country home evening meals do come with pudla, or thepla, to be eaten with various digestive pickles from sweet lemon to the most loved mango relish of “chundo” (call it spiced up grated mango pickle if you like, but the chundo cooked out in the sun for a few days and then laced with cardamom-cinnamon-clove powder is yummylicious). Pickles are probiotic affairs and meant to be relished in small portions, not like dollops of sabzi, okay.
THIS is to say you may make your besan ka cheela modestly thick or thin, but don’t go to extremes, or you’ll get that gobbledy gook feeling in your mouth! As if something is overcooked or under-cooked…lately on social media sites I find a great array of recipes being very well presented, the healthy ones as also the not so healthy ones; all traditional recipes need not be healthy for the laid-back, time pass preoccupations of today, like being buried in the goings-on on your hand phone screen all day and all night till cross-eyed
This said I must confess I do like to catch some of the easier health friendly recipes over the social media and there are so many of them. Like so many women and a few men want to make a living out of feeding you right or wrong, something like that. There’s a lot of “cheela” or “chilla” recipes coming up to so do study them before deciding what appeals to you…one may also find besan ka cheela listed on the menu of Udipi eateries — but as “vegetable omlet.”
Right, these vegetable or tomato omlet for vegetarians come in various avatar – either too thin and burnt or too thick and yucky. It’s hard to find a terrific just so delectable besan ka cheela anywhere, although one may find a reasonably edible one sometimes (usually served with tomato ketch-up or some chutney).

Make your cheela with a light touch adding in finely cut fresh herbs (chopped spring onions and even spring garlic in season). There’s nothing like an appetizing savory cheela to make a meal of, complemented with a freshly made mint or green coriander chutney alongside, or a curd raita and even a thin flavorful buttermilk – yes, a mini meal.
Nowadays cheela is being made with a gamut of flours including the millet flours. Do discover if you haven’t yet — “besan ka cheela” in 2026. Experiment with a mix of millet flours…can mix in a tablespoon of rice flour in your besan ka cheela batter, for a crisper finish for the cheela. (Sigh) A toast to a besan ka cheela on a wintry sunshine filled morning for brunch! Go for it.
PS: Always add crushed ajwain or thymol seeds to your besan ka cheela batter, makes for better digestion say the experienced old-timers. Never forget ajwain, no cheela without ajwain.