What is Kulcha?

• Kulcha is a slightly leavened Indian flatbread popular in Northern India whose history dates back to long centuries ago.
• Kulcha is almost a replica of Naan in its soft and chewy nature but has gotten credits with some variation (with the inclusion of stuffings and toppings).
• Authentic kulchas call for all-purpose flour and the dough is leavened usually with leavening agents like baking soda or yeast.

Kulchas are usually oval and sometimes circle in shape and they could either be plain or stuffed. The random black sesame seeds as a topping is a usual thing in kulchas. The dough should be kneaded firm and tight to get the kulchas perfectly. Curd could be added to make the dough soft which also helps in the leavening process. In case you want to skip curd for any reason, lukewarm water would give hands to you.

How the Kulchas are cooked?

• Kulchas are usually baked in the tandoor oven (traditional Indian oven made of clay) which could also be done on an iron skillet or Tawa (flat pan).
• Kulchas can be easily prepared on Tawa using the upside-down technique which is shown in the step-by-step procedure and the video of this Garlic Cheese Whole Wheat Kulcha post.

Topping and Stuffing:

• Kulchas are mostly stuffed and the stuffings may vary from cheese to paneer to vegetables like aloo (potato) and gobi (cauliflower) to any meat of our choice.
• Plain kulchas distinguish themselves from Naan with their toppings.
• The usual toppings are black sesame seeds and fresh coriander leaves.
• Grated carrots add appetizing look plus healthiness and hence I love to add them.
• Garlicky kulchas are possible with some finely chopped garlic topped over the kulchas.

The kulcha recipe which I post here is made of whole wheat flour and the dough is leavened using baking soda. Though adding curd is completely optional, I add little curd to help better fermenting. You could use lukewarm water instead. Allowing the dough to leaven slightly before you roll is very much needed to make perfect kulchas.

Whole wheat kulchas are a healthy substitute for the craving of usual maida kulchas. As cheese is stuffed inside, it would be mouth-melting on each bite giving heavenly taste to the taste buds. Though garlic and green chillies could be stuffed inside, I skip stuffing them. Sesame seeds and coriander leaves stand as a common topping in plain and butter kulchas. To make them garlicky, finely chopped garlic cloves are added in this recipe making it mouth-watering and healthy home-style Garlicky Cheese Whole Wheat Kulcha.

Kulchas pairs well with Paneer butter masala, or any spicy and non-spicy versions of curries alike. As the kulchas are cooked on a direct fire, the brown crest and the roasted random toppings enhance the taste of the kulcha. I make semi-circle like kulchas which you could change to square, oval or circle as per your wish.

⌚Preparation Time: 15 minutes
⌚Soaking time: 1 to 2 hours
⌚Cooking Time: 2 minutes per kulcha
🍴Servings: 15 to 18 kulchas (approx)
🍽Cuisine: North-India

Garlic-Cheese Whole Wheat Kulcha | No Yeast Kulcha Recipe | on Tawa

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An easy-to-make, healthy kulcha made with whole wheat flour, leavened using baking soda, stuffed with processed cheese and topped with chopped garlic.

What to Use?               For Making dough: Whole wheat flour - 400 g Salt - 1 tsp Baking soda - 1 tsp (or yeast) Curd - 3 tbsp (optional) Olive oil - 1 tbsp Honey - 1 tbsp (optional) Water - 130 ml (approx)       For Stuffing: Processed cheese block - 50 g       For Topping: Grated carrot - 2 (medium-sized) Fresh coriander leaves - a few Black sesame seeds - 50g Garlic pods - 2 (finely chopped) Steps Involved:

Knead to make a firm dough using whole wheat flour, salt, baking soda, olive oil, curd, honey and water. Apply some oil and close the dough using some wet cloth and leave it to get leavened for about 1 to 2 hours. Knead again the dough for a minute. Roll a small portion of dough to some extent and apply some butter over it. This step is optional but gives layered kulcha. Fold and roll the dough again to form a thin layer like you roll for roti or chapati. Place some cheese slices inside and fold the layer diagonally to get semi-circle like kulcha. You could fold the edges, merge and roll again to form any-shaped kulchas (oval, circle or even square). Spread the ingredients listed under 'for topping' over each kulcha randomly and press gently to embed them slightly. Flip the kulchas and apply some water on the other side to get it glued to the Tawa while flipping down the Tawa. Place the kulcha on Tawa and cook for a minute to see the bubbles forming on the kulcha. Flip the pan (not the kulcha!) upside down and cook the topped side of kulcha over direct flame for a minute. Scrape the sides and gently remove the cooked kulcha from the Tawa with a spatula. Serve the kulchas hot to enjoy the melting cheese inside!

Visual Treat: 
Video link for "Garlic-Cheese Whole Wheat Kulcha | No Yeast Kulcha recipe | on Tawa" post:
https://youtu.be/iS-XXeadu7E
Subscribe to our YouTube channel!

For comforting the easy understandability of the recipe, the step by step detailed procedure along with the picture is shown below:

Step-by-Step Procedure with Pictures

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How to Make?

• Take whole wheat flour in a large mixing bowl.

• Add in the needed salt and baking soda.

• Add a tablespoon of cooking oil (preferably olive oil) or melted butter to the flour.

• Add a tablespoon of honey to the flour. Alternatively, jaggery powder or sugar could be added. If you don't want a hint of sweetness in the kulcha, just dare to skip the sweetening agent.

• Mix the dry and wet ingredients well with the help of a spatula or hands to evenly spread them throughout the flour.

• Add some curd to the flour. Avoiding curd is completely okay if you are lactose intolerant. But, I suggest adding curd which helps in proper fermenting of the dough and gives softness to the kulchas.

• Add the required water at room temperature to knead it to a firm dough. As the flour quality may differ, the mentioned amount of water may vary a little.

• The soft dough is not at all needed in this recipe and what we need is the tight and firm dough.

• Brush the dough with some olive oil and keep it covered with a damp cloth or a lid. Brushing with the oil helps avoid drying of the dough.

• Leave the dough undisturbed for about 1 to 2 hours. Soaking time is mandatory in making kulchas which leavens the dough and make it suitable for making kulchas.

• Knead the leavened dough again for a minute or two.

• Take a small portion of the dough and roll it to approximately 4-inch diameter circle.

• Apply some olive oil or butter to the rolled circle. Doing so would give layer in the kulcha while cooking. This step is optional and you could skip it without impacting the taste.

• Fold the dough again and roll it to a thin layered kulcha. 

• Place some cheese slices or grated processed cheese at one side of the rolled kulcha.

• Fold the kulcha into half, making sure the cheese slices are stuffed inside. You could stuff green chillies and garlic if you desire.

• Press gently the half-folded kulcha to make it a semi-circle shaped kulcha. You could make an oval, circle or even square-shaped kulchas as shapes are up to our creativity.

• Sprinkle some grated carrots randomly throughout the one side of kulcha. Carrots give an appetizing look plus they add healthiness to the body.

• Spread some fresh coriander leaves which again makes the kulcha more aromatic and special.

• Spread some finely chopped garlic cloves as well which when roasted on the flame lifts the kulcha taste to the next level. 

• Sprinkle some black sesame seeds as a topping which when cooked on a direct fire adds a nice taste to the kulchas.

• Press gently the topping ingredients, so that they stick to the surface of the kulcha.

• Flip the kulcha and apply a little water to the other side of the kulcha. This helps the kulchas to glue to the pan while cooking them upside-down along with the pan.

• Place the kulcha on Tawa keeping the topping side on the top. The water applied side would stick to the non-greased Tawa (or flat iron skillet) comforting the upside-down cooking job easier. After a minute, kulcha would start to show bubbles.

• When the kulcha starts to bubble, flip the Tawa upside-down (not the kulcha!) and cook the topping side over the direct flame for less than a minute. Brown spots would appear and that's the end time of the cooking process.

• Carefully scrape the sides and take the kulcha from the Tawa.

• Serve the Garlicky Cheesy Whole Wheat Kulchas HOT! Consume the kulchas hot to enjoy the melting cheese inside.

Visual Treat: 
Video link for "Garlic-Cheese Whole Wheat Kulcha | No Yeast Kulcha recipe | on Tawa" post:
https://youtu.be/iS-XXeadu7E
Subscribe to our YouTube channel!

Tips:

• If you skip curd, add lukewarm water to the flour while kneading.
• Applying some butter on the cooked kulchas help them to stay soft for a long time.
• Soaking time is much mandatory to leaven the dough. Always brush with oil and close the dough with a damp cloth or a tight lid to avoid drying of the dough.
• Some chopped garlic could be stuffed inside and you could introduce green chillies as a topping or stuffing to introduce mild heat to the kulchas.
• Baking kulchas in the tandoor oven is the traditional method of preparing kulchas. You could bake them in the convection oven as well.

Healthy, Garlicky & Cheesy Whole Wheat Kulcha!

It's really tough to stop munching the Cheesy Kulchas!