Singhare Ke Aate Ka Cheela (Water Chestnut Flour Pancakes)

Singhare ke aate ka cheela is a tasty nutritious gluten free pancake made with singhara flour (water chestnut flour), grated veggies and few spices. It can be consumed during Navratri or otherwise also as breakfast or snack.

This chilla or Indian pancake is simple to make, customisable and can be enjoyed with chutney, yogurt or any curry. They are a great option during Navratri fast or for phalahari diet. The recipe shared here is-

Vegan
Vegetarian
Gluten free
Kids friendly
Great as quick lunch, breakfast or evening snack

Ingredients you’ll need-

Singhara Flour- Singhara or singhada, also known as water chestnut in english, is an Indian fruit that grows underwater. Please do not confuse it with ‘chestnuts’ as it is not a nut but fruit. It has thick dark green peel and the inside edible fruit is white in colour with mild flavour and slight crunch.

The fruit is known to be good source of fibre, folate, antioxidants and minerals like potassium etc. It can be enjoyed as it is or cooked by boiling or stir frying.

To make singhara flour (atta), it is first dried and then ground to make fine flour. This gluten free flour can be used in variety of recipes like- paratha, pakoda, vada, roti, puri, halwa, cheela or pancakes.

Bottle gourd- Also known as calabash, lauki or ghiya, this vegetable is from gourd family (cucumber, melon, pumpkin, squash etc) and is known for its high fibre, low calories and high water content. As singhada flour is gluten free, it helps in giving structure, binding to the cheela and makes it soft and moist.

Instead of bottle gourd, you can even use grated zucchini, carrots, chopped spinach or boiled potatoes. As I was making it for Navratri fast, I have used lauki here but you can use any veggie of your choice

Spices & Aromatics- The chilla is seasoned with simple spices like crushed black pepper, cumin seeds and salt or sendha namak. For flavour and aroma, green chillies, coriander and ginger paste is added.

How to make singhara cheela?

For making this cheela, we will mix singhara aata (water chestnut flour), shredded lauki (bottle gourd), green chillies, spices and water to make smooth batter. The batter is then spread on a well seasoned pan and cooked on both sides. You can spread it thinner (but thicker than dosa) or keep them small and thick like pancakes.

More Navrati special (or gluten free) recipes:

Ingredients:

Singhara Atta / Water Chestnut Flour- 1 cup
Grated Bottle gourd (Lauki / Ghiya)*- 1/2 cup (tightly packed)
Chopped Green Chillies- 2
Chopped Coriander- 2 to 3 tbsp
Grated Ginger- 1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds (Jeera)- 1/2 tsp
Crushed Black Pepper- 1/2 tsp
Salt / Rock Salt- 1 tsp (to taste)
Water- 3/4 cup (approx.)
Olive Oil / Ghee – For cooking

Note:

*Instead of bottle gourd, you can use grated zucchini, carrot or 1 medium boiled potato.
Instead of black pepper you can use red chilli powder also. Adding ginger is optional.
The above recipe yields 4 cheela. Halve or double the quantity as per your choice.

Directions:

Step 1:
Peel the bottle gourd and cut it into half. If there are too many seeds in the centre, remove them first. Shred it using a grater or food processor. Measure 1/2 cup grated lauki.

Step 2:
Add singhara flour, shredded lauki, green chilli, ginger, coriander, all the spices in a bowl and mix well. Add water gradually to make a flowy but thick mixture (Here it took me roughly 3/4 cup water). You can add more water if required. Cover the batter & let it rest for 5 minutes.

(Note: After resting for 5 minutes, if the batter becomes too thick add 1-2 tbsp water more.)

Step 3:
Heat a non-stick pan or cast iron pan. Drizzle som oil on it and wipe with tissue. Pour a laddle of batter on the pan & spread in a circular motion (keep it thicker than dosa). Cook on medium heat. After a minute, drizzle some oil or ghee near the edges. Let it cook for 2-3 minutes.

Step 4:
When the top of cheela is not wet anymore, try to lift the edges using a spatula. Drizzle some oil on its top, flip and cook from other side as well for-1-2 minutes. Fold it into half and transfer on a plate.

Enjoy this cheela with yoghurt (curd), green chutney, imli chutney or potato curry.

Tips:

To add protein to these pancakes, you can add some grated paneer in the batter, stuff the cheela with paneer or serve it with paneer bhurji.
Taste a small piece of bottle gourd after peeling as sometimes it is bitter in taste that can ruin the entire dish. Do not consume if bitter.
If you don’t have singhada flour, you can use this same recipe to make kuttu cheela by using kuttu (buckwheat) flour.

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(Note: This recipe was originally published on April 12, 2016 and has been updated with better images and more tips.)

If you try this singhare chilla recipe & share pics on social media, then don’t forget to tag on Facebook, Instagram or use #kuchpakrahahai.

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(3 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)