Methi Muthiya | Steamed Methi Muthia Recipe
Methi Muthiya or methi muthia is a healthy and steamed tea time snack recipe from Gujrat made with fresh fenugreek leaves and spices. Serve as side or snack with sweet tamarind chutney and coriander chutney.
Servings 4 people
Equipment
- Steamer
Ingredients
Ingredients for Methi Muthiya
- 1 cup Whole Wheat Flour
- 1 cup Besan, Kadala Maavu or Chickpea flour
- 1 cup Finely chopped Methi Leaves (tightly packed cup)
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri Red chilli powder
- 1 tablespoon Green Chilli + Garlic Paste
- 1 teaspoon Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ¾ teaspoon Hing or Asafoetida
- ¾ cup Water for kneading the dough
- 1 teaspoon Oil for dough + extra for greasing the steamer plate etc
Ingredients for Tempering / tadka
- 2 teaspoon White Sesame Seeds
- ½ teaspoon Mustard Seeds or Rai
- 2 tablespoon Groundnut Oil
- Finely chopped Coriander leaves as required
1 cup is 250 ml, 1 tbsp is 15 ml and 1 tsp is 5 ml
Instructions
- Sort the methi leaves, rinse under running tap water in a colander and drain water completely. Pat dry and finely chop.
- In a bowl, sift the whole wheat flour and besan (chickpea flour). Note - Sifting the flour helps avoid lumps.
- To this, add green chili-garlic paste, kashmiri red chili powder, turmeric, salt to taste, sugar, hing or asafoetida and a tsp of oil.
- Next, add finely chopped methi leaves to the flour and spices. Knead into a soft dough using water. Note - If you accidently add excess water and the dough appears sticky, add whole wheat flour and knead until the moisture is absorbed by the flour. Do not add excess flour as it will affect the texture.
- Prepare the steamer pot. In the meanwhile, divide the dough and shape into cylindrical logs. Note - shape the logs depending on the size of your steamer plate (refer pic)
- Steam the muthiya for 15-20 minutes. To check whether its cooked, insert a knife in the center of one of the muthiya logs. If it comes out clean, its ready.
- Carefully remove the steamer plate and allow the muthia to cool completely. Notes for Meal Prep - Once cool, transfer the steamed muthiya into the refrigerator (for 1-2 days) or freezer for longer.
- Once cool, slice the muthia (approximately 1.5 inch thick). Keep this aside and prepare for tempering.
- Heat a pan, add oil, mustard seeds and once it crackles add some sesame seeds.
- To the tempering, add the sliced muthiya and mix. Switch off heat, garnish with loads of coriander / cilantro and serve warm.
Notes
Serving - The above measurements serve 4 adults as snack and filling dinner for 2.
Ingredients and Substitutes
How to Prep Methi leaves - Use the leaves, avoid stems. Methi leaves can be sorted a day (or two) earlier. Store in ziplock bags under refrigeration.
Until you are ready to cook, never wash greens or leafy veggies. Moisture is the worst enemy when it comes to leafy greens.
Once you are ready to make muthia, rinse the sorted methi leaves in a colander and drain completely before proceeding with the recipe.
Sugar is added to balance bitterness from methi leaves and heat from green chilies . Traditionally this ingredient is added in most Gujarati recipes.
The Recipe is Vegan. For a gluten-free recipe, replace with Jowar flour (Sorghum). or Bajra. Hing or compounded asafoetida can be omitted.
I have used Groundnut oil or peanut oil for the recipe. You can use any cooking oil, you like and stock at home - Avocado, olive oil, sesame oil are all great options.
Meal-Prep / Storage / Leftovers
- Muthiya is perfect for meal planning. Once steamed and cooled, it can be stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 days or freezer (more than a month) in an airtight container or zip lock bags.
- Thaw the muthia overnight in the refrigerator or kitchen counter for couple of hours before adding the tempering or air frying.
- This makes a quick snack with afternoon tea or filling after school snack for kids.
- Leftovers stay fresh for a couple of days. It can be re-heated in a microwave.