Besan Chilla Recipe

There are hundreds of chilla recipes followed across India. But unlike crepes, a chilla is purely vegetarian and egg-free. For those who are looking for wholesome, fulfilling vegetarian breakfast recipes – Indian Chilla is an excellent choice.

gluten-free low on calories easy to digest perfect for kids meal-prep friendly.

Do you need more reasons to try this besan chilla recipe?

Ingredients Required

Gram Flour: The key ingredient for this chilla recipe is gluten-free gram flour (besan). You can make ladoo, dhokla, kadhi, pakora, and many more dishes using gram flour. Rice Flour: To give a moist texture and crispiness to the besan chilla, I combine rice flour with gram flour to prepare the batter. Water: This chilla batter is combined with lukewarm water: no curd or eggs are required to make the batter. Vegetables: Finely chopped onion, spinach, bell pepper, shredded cabbage, carrot, and grated paneer (cottage cheese) works best for this chilla recipe. Feel free to add vegetables of your choice. Seasoning: The key flavouring agents of besan chilla are – hing (asafoetida), ginger paste, and roasted cumin powder. Apart from these – salt, chilli, and turmeric are added to the batter.

Besan Chilla – Two Ways

You can make besan ka chilla in two ways with the same batter and vegetables.

Stuffed Besan Dosa Cum Chilla: This is a crisp, dosa-style besan ka chilla stuffed with vegetables, potato, or paneer stuffing.

No vegetables or herbs are added to the batter to make stuffed chilla. The chilla is prepared with a plain seasoned batter and, once crisp, layered with the vegetable stuffing of choice.

Besan Ka Pudla: This is a Gujarati style of making a slightly thick besan ka chilla or pudla. The chopped and shredded vegetables are added to the batter. This is a classic way to make cheela.

My Verdict – I feel when the chilla is made with plain batter, it has a more crisp texture, and the layer of stuffing makes it delicious. But when in a hurry or for the fussy vegetable eaters, especially kids – the besan ka pudla style chilla works best.