Dar Ni Pori: The Parsi Cousin Of Gujarat’s Puran Poli
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The Western coast of India is a fascinating journey through culinary evolution. As you move up or down the coats the cuisines can appear startlingly different but as you look closer, it seems that their similarities outweigh their differences. Food culture is more often dictated by geography than the people and the western belt is proof of that. Outside the fertile belt of land near the sea, the rest of the west is dominated by the dry and dusty Deccan plateau, a topography that shaped the food of these areas and necessitated austerity.

Dal, wheat flour, jaggery and ghee. With just these few homely ingredients you can create a dessert that stretches up and down the coast, evolving as you pass from state to state and getting slightly different names, but best known as Puran Poli.

Each community of West India has reimagined the humble ingredients into a unique dish with Gujarat favouring a ghee-soaked indulgence while Maharashtra takes on a more humble, flat version that needs to be dipped in milk before eating. The Parsis on the other hand have created something that more closely resembles a cake, thick and generously stuffed with dar (dal), held together with a fragrant flour slurry called maan and filled with nuts and dry fruits, a nod to the Persian roots with an Indian soul.

This creation was like the others initially known as a Poli (meaninng hollow)but somewhere down the line, colloquialisms changed the word to ‘pori’ an affectionate term for a young, sweet girl. The dessert is a tea time favourite with large slices being doled out alongside steaming mugs. Though the ingredients are few, making Dar ni Pori can be labour-intensive with a long process and many layers of flavour to create. But the good news is they can be made in bulk and frozen, so if you do take on the process, you can make enough to last a while.

Ingredients:

For the Dar Filling:

  • 2 cups toor dal
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 3 tbsp ghee
  • 2 tbsp blanched almonds thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup mixed fruits (raisins, tutti fruity)
  • 1 tsp rose essence
  • 2 tsp elaichi powder
  • 2 tsp jaifal powder
  • 1 tsp charoli (optional)

For the Maan:

  • 4 tbsp ghee
  • 2 tbsp all purpose flour
  • 2 – 3 drops rose essence
  • Cold water to soak the maan

For the Pastry:

  • 1 cup fine semolina or rava
  • 1.5 cups all purpose flour
  • 1.5 tbsp ghee
  • 2 – 3 drops rose essence

Method:

  • Soak the dal overnight and pressure cook for 2 whistles. 
  • Take it off the heat and add the sugar and ghee. Using a hand blender, mix everything well. Now, add the almonds, charoli, mixed dried fruit, essence, elaichi and jaifal powder. 
  • Cook the mixture on very low heat stirring continuously until thick and well mixed.
  • For the Maan, mix the flour and ghee with your hands until smooth and light to touch. Keep this Maan immersed in cold water to ensure it stays moist. 
  • Add 2 drops of rose essence to the water for perfume. 
  • Mix the semolina, flour and ghee in a food processor or by hand to make a dough and divide into balls. 
  • Knead each ball into a smooth mixture on a floured surface roll them into discs and cover with a damp cloth.
  • Spread a tablespoon of maan on the flat pastry. Sprinkle this sheet with flour and now layer another sheet on top of this.
  • Create small cup shapes out of the dough and place them aside to rest for 10 minutes. 
  • Roll the dar mixture into an equal number of balls and place one inside each cup, slowly stretching the edges together and sealing them with water. 
  • Preheat an oven to 200 degrees C and place the poris inside to bale for 10-15 minutes until each side is golden brown.
  • Let them cool, slice and enjoy!