Getting to this recipe for the perfect Ratlami Sev was quite a challenge, but the end result was just absolutely worth it. The final version of the Ratlami Sev was crisp but not crunchy with the flavour of cloves coming through. So all’s well that ends well.
Ratlam is a major junction in Madhya Pradesh and most long-distance trains from West and South of India to the North India pass through this junction. It is famous for its food and one of its iconic dishes is the potent Ratlami Sev.
Ratlami Sev is flavoured primarily with cloves (hence it is also called Laung Sev) with pepper and carom seeds adding to the depth of flavour. It has a wonderful texture and is crisp and relatively soft.
I made this dish for the Madhya Pradesh challenge on the Shhhh…. Secretly Cooking Challenge group. This month my partner was the truly versatile Priya Suresh who blogs at Priya’s Versatile Recipes. She gave me Ajwain (Carom Seeds) and Laung (Clove) as the secret ingredients I should cook with.
My secret ingredients for Priya were Milk and Sugar and she made this delectable Mawa Jalebi | Khoya Jalebi with it.
Make this recipe exactly as I have shown here and you get fabulous results. I had to try a couple of recipes before I got to the perfect recipe for Ratlami Laung Sev. My first two tries resulted in crispy, crunchy sev that was more like Khara Sev.
The secret to making great Laung Sev from Ratlam is the oil and soda in the batter, and the consistency of the dough.
Ratlami Sev | Laung Sev
Ingredients
- 125 gms Besan
- 60 ml Water (1/4 Cup)
- 60 ml Oil (1/4 Cup)
- 1/4 tsp Soda
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 30 Cloves, Laung (~2 gms)
- 1/2 tsp Pepper Corns (~ 2 gms)
- 1/2 tsp Carom Seeds, Ajwain (~ 1.5 gms)
- Oil for Deep Frying
- 1 Chakli/Murukku Press with Large Sev Attachment
Instructions
- Over low flame, dry roast cloves and carom seeds till they become aromatic.
- Grind the roasted cloves and carom seeds with pepper to a coarse powder.
- Mix the besan and roasted spice powder.
- Blend the oil, water, soda and salt together till you get a white, frothy mix. You can whisk by hand, use a hand blender or whip in a regular mixer.
- Add this oil-water blend to the besan in small quantities and mix well till you get a sticky dough. Use all of the oil-water mix.
- Over low flame, heat enough oil to fry the sev. Test the heat of the oil by dropping a tiny bit of dough into the it. The dough ball should rise to the surface and fry slowly without changing colour.
- Grease the murukku maker and fit the large sev attachment.
- Take enough dough for one round into a plate.
- Add a little water (1/4 tsp at a time) and mix well till the dough lightens in colour. Ensure that the consistency of the dough does not become runny.
- Fill this dough into the murruku maker and pipe one round of sev into the hot oil.
- Keep flipping the sev every few seconds and fry it till becomes crispy. Ensure that the sev does not change colour.
- Remove the sev from the oil and drain all excess oil.
- Transfer the sev to a plate and let it cool.
- Making the remaining sev in the same manner.
- When the sev has cooled, crush the rounds lightly to break them into small pieces.
- Serve the Ratlami Sev with hot tea or use it as a garnish for Indori Poha.
- Store in an airtight container.
How to Make the Perfect Ratlami Sev | Laung Sev
Roast and Grind the Spices- On low heat, use a large ladle or small pan to dry roast the cloves and carom seeds till they become aromatic. Be careful as cloves can burn and become bitter quickly.
- After the spices cool, add pepper and grind all the spices to a coarse powder. Set aside.
- Making the Dough for the Ratlami Sev
- In a large enough bowl, add the roasted spice powder to the besan.
- Mix well.
- Mix the oil, water, soda and salt together.
- Use a whisk or a hand blender to blend the oil-water till it is white and frothy. I used the chutney grinder to whip the mix as I was using just a small amount.
- Add half of this oil-water blend to the besan and mix well.
- Slowly add the rest of the oil-water blend to the besan and mix till you get a smooth but sticky dough. Use all of the oil-water mix.
- In a large enough bowl, add the roasted spice powder to the besan.
- Making the Ratlami Sev | Laung Sev
- Over low flame, heat enough oil to fry the sev. Ensure you use a lot of oil, otherwise the sev will change colour as you are frying and we do not want that. I added enough oil to create a 3″ depth.
- Test the heat of the oil by dropping a tiny bit of dough into the oil. It should rise to the surface and sizzle. The dough ball should fry without changing colour.
- Grease the murukku maker and fit the large sev attachment.
- Take a portion of the dough and transfer to a small plate.
- Add a little water (about 1/2 to 1 tsp) and mix well till the dough lightens in colour. Ensure that the consistency of the dough does not become runny. We are just adding enough water to get the colour to change.
- Fill this dough into the sev maker and pipe one round of laung sev into the hot oil.
- Keep flipping the sev roundel every few seconds and fry till the sev becomes crispy. Ensure that the sev does not change colour.
- Using a slotted ladle remove the sev from the oil and drain all excess oil.
- Transfer the sev to a plate and let it cool.
- Making the remaining sev in the same manner.
- When the sev has cooled, crush the rounds lightly to break them into small pieces.
- Serve the Ratlami Sev with hot tea or use it as a garnish for Indori Poha.
I am taking this Laung Sev to the party at Shhhhh…. Secretly Cooking Challenge. You can see what my fellow bloggers have cooked from Madhya Pradesh by clicking on the image below.
Nice spicy snack.. I remember when we were kids and travelled every year to nani’s place in Rajasthan, train would stop for a long time at Ratlam Junction. We used to buy all these goodies to eat in the train.
Indeed those train journeys were magical; at least they seem so now! So many memories tied up with the journey itself and the various stations that the train stopped at.
Wow, this is my fav namkeen, have it with poha or dal rice or at tea time. Thanks for sharing?
Thank you. I hope you make it soon. 🙂
Making these kind of snacks perfectly is really a challenge……..and your performance is extraordinary ?
the perfect sev for Indori poha! I wish I had that namkeen making mould to try it out… It is on my to-buy list when I go to India next ? Thanks for the recipe. I am wondering we can even make pakoras with this dough?
Your Ratlami sev looks just perfect – delicious and addictive. Kudos to you for making them from scratch! 🙂
I can definitely vouch that Ratlami sev is so delicious. Wonder why I was buying the ready made one?? Lovely share for the theme as MP is so well known for its different kinds of sev. After reading your post realized that sometime I must have stopped at Ratlam during the train journeys from the North to Mumbai.
Making Ratlami Sev to such perfection is really commendable Aruna ! Will try your recipe this weekend. Thanks for the share.
Excellent effort in finding the perfect texture for the sev. You have indeed nailed ‘The Perfect Ratlami Sev’.
We use to always bring this packet of ratlami sev when we use to go to North side and now I have a lip smacking recipe. 30 cloves in that much of flour it really is long sev.
I have a secret admiration for you… how much ever busy you are, you dig in recipes not heard of and bring it to forefront! The sev sounds very tempting, especially with the heavy clove taste. I am not a fan of cloves myself, but I guess this sev deserves to be tried for its uniqueness… Looks totally amazing!
Tasted recently from haldi ram’s snacks.. Was in love with tasty sev.. Now I can do at home.. Urs came out just perfect
You have nailed them prefectly Aruna, well done and Ratlami sev is in my bookmarks since a while. Very tempting sev to give a try without any fail.
What a beautiful share!! I love the way you have done the step by step. Adding cloves is new, i will try this soon.
Adding cloves to sev is something i have never tried. Will surely try this version. Looks spicy and I think I can just go on munching these sev with a cup of tea.
you brought back a lot of memories of our train journeys during school times…lovely recipe
Aruna I am bookmarking this recipe as you said. Because ratlami sev is my husband’s favourite and really love it if I make at home. Thanks for sharing this recipe. I am so so happy to find no fail recipe.
I often bought this Ratlami sev, good to have the recipe now. Shall soon try it sometime Aruna. Nice share for the theme.
Sev looks so perfect .just like store bought. Never tried it. Now I have a full proof recipe Bookmaking it to try soon. Thanks for the recipe. Lovely share.
Thanks for the trip, Aruna ? we love Ratlami SEv although its super spicy ! I would also like to try a small quantity at home … good share for the theme !
OOO! Mama! I love ratlami sev. Has been ages since I ate it. In fact after Indore we have not had ratlami sev. Thanks for the recipe.
ooohhh…I am drooling here. Your pictirial makes it easy to follow. Lovely share
I saw the name Ratlami Sev in another bloggers post, where it was an ingredient, and I was wondering what this sev is and where I can get some. Thanks for the recipe, I think I can make an authentic ratlami laung sev by following it, and then I can use if for chat too!