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Dal Pitha

Steamed rice-flour dumplings from Jharkhand and Bihar, filled with coarsely ground chana and moong dal seasoned with garlic, ginger and mustard oil.

Region

Jharkhand (also Bihar)

Status

Traditional

Diet label

Strictly vegetarian, egg-free

Time

Soak 3 h · Prep 30 min · Cook 25 min

Serves

3 (4 pitha each)

Difficulty

Moderate (shaping)

Good for

Evening snack, festival food, tiffin

Tags

Good source · Dairy-free · Soy-free · Whey-free · Gluten-free* · No added sugar · Lower-fat

Allergens

None of the major allergens (mustard oil; check hing)

Nutrition (estimated)

Calories

285 kcal

Protein

11 g

Carbs

49 g

Fat

4 g

Fibre

6 g

Headline values are per serving, as written.

Good source. With 100 g curd: 345 kcal, 14 g protein. Values checked against IFCT 2017 on 14 Oct 2026.

Ingredients

• Shell: 120 g rice flour · about 200 ml water · 2 g salt
• Filling: 75 g chana dal · 25 g yellow moong dal · 5 garlic cloves · 10 g ginger · 2 green chillies · ½ tsp cumin · ¼ tsp ajwain · ¼ tsp turmeric · 3 g salt · 8 g mustard oil · 2 tbsp coriander

Method

1. Soak both dals 3 hours. Drain and grind coarsely with garlic, ginger and chillies, without water.
2. Heat mustard oil until it just smokes; lower the heat. Add cumin and ajwain, then the dal paste, turmeric and salt. Cook 5–6 minutes, stirring, until dry and crumbly. Stir in coriander; cool.
3. Bring 200 ml water and salt to a boil. Off the heat, add rice flour and stir to a rough dough. Cover 5 minutes, then knead while warm until smooth (wet your hands if it sticks).
4. Divide into 12 balls. Flatten each into a 7–8 cm disc, place 1 tbsp filling in the centre, fold into a half-moon and pinch the edges to seal.
5. Steam on a greased plate for 12–15 minutes until the shells turn slightly translucent and no longer sticky.
6. Serve warm with tomato-coriander chutney.

Protein optimisation

• The dal filling supplies 7.5 g per serving; rice flour 2.5 g.
• Boost: increase the filling to 140 g dal in total and use slightly larger pitha (+2.5 g protein, +45 kcal per serving), or serve with 100 g curd.

Variations, serving and storage

• Regional: Bihari style — boil the pitha in salted water for 10 minutes instead of steaming, then toss in a little tempered mustard oil and chillies.
• Substitution: urad dal in place of moong in the filling.
• Storage: 2 days refrigerated; re-steam to soften.
• Food safety: refrigerate within 2 hours.
• Meal prep: good — make the filling a day ahead.

Nutrition values are estimates calculated from the Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 (ICMR-NIN) and typical product labels. They have not been laboratory-analysed and will vary with your ingredients, brands and cooking. Recipes are for healthy adults and are general information only, not a substitute for advice from a doctor or qualified dietitian. If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, cooking for children, have food allergies, or live with kidney disease, diabetes or any other medical condition, please take professional advice about your diet. From the collection Protein-Rich India by Dr. Shantanu Deshpande · drshantanudeshpande.com