Author Notes: This whole mung bean crepe recipe needs essentially, 3 key ingredients. It makes wholesome and toothsome savory green pancakes. No pressure cooker required, just some pre-planning since the mung bean needs to be soaked until it softens for about 8-10 hours before cooking.
You can add lots of things to play with the basic flavor of these crepes: chopped onions, cilantro, cumin seeds, grated carrots, finely chopped cabbage. It’s best eaten with a spicy ketchup, like Maggi Hot & Sweet, available in Indian grocery stores or with tart plain yogurt. The batter keeps well in the refrigerator for several days, and it’s a great anytime meal, especially for little children.
For a quicker meal, you can make these crepes with split mung beans. The yellow crepes (called chilla in Calcutta) are even tastier than the green ones, and the beans require just 2 hours of soaking. – Devika —CalcuttaChow
Food52 Review: This one’s a hit! As Devika mentions, this flavorful snack requires a little planning (for bean soaking). The instructions and photos are clear and helpful — for instance to indicate that the onion and other ingredients are best “sprinkled,” they are not meant to be a hefty filling. I used an immersion blender with good results, and opted for the additional shredded carrot and cumin seeds. Paired with a mixture of 2/3 ketchup, 1/3 sriracha, these were a treat for happy bellies. I only wish I had a restaurant-sized grill so I could serve up more than one pancake at a time! – janecf —janecf
Serves: 2
Ingredients
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1/2
cup whole mung beans, soaked for 8-10 hours
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1
small clove of garlic
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a few thin slivers of ginger
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salt to taste
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1
small chopped onion
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a few springs of cilantro leaves, chopped
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oil
Directions
- Discard the water in which the mung beans have been soaked. Place the beans into a blender, with the garlic and ginger. Add some water, about 1/2 – 1 cup, and turn the blender on. Blend until a smooth batter is formed. Can add more water if the mixture is too thick. The consistency should be similar to crepe batter, but slightly thicker and not as runny. Add salt to taste.
- Heat 1 tsp of oil in a non stick pan. When hot, use a small round ladle to put the batter in the pan. Using the back of the ladle, spread the batter using a hand motion of concentric circles until the batter is well spread out, into a 4-6 inch circle. Add the chopped onions and cilantro to the crepe. Don’t worry if at first the batter appears unwieldy. On medium heat, let the crepe cook for a minute or two on one side, and then flip it over, as the sides get cooked. Allow to cook on the other side. Remove when the crepe has patches of golden brown all over. The crepe should be soft and somewhat pliable. Serve immediately.
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