Mangalore buns are a popular dish from Karnataka, however, it is one of those things that the early immigrants from the state brought to Goa and it became a favorite among Goans too. It is not uncommon to visit a local breakfast spot in Goa and see these golden-brown buns in the showcase, warming under the light of a dimly lit bulb.
One of my fondest memories of Mangalore buns was during my visit to India during my brother’s wedding. There was a pooja at someone’s house and there were a lot of bananas that were distributed amongst the relatives. We were going to meet to celebrate Bhaubij at one of our cousins’ houses. There were so many over-ripe bananas that she was not sure what to do with them. I recommended making Mangalore buns.
So we started prepping and made the dough before sleeping so that it could ferment overnight. It was a lot of dough and she was worried that we would not be able to finish so many buns. The next morning, we all started making the buns. One of us was making the dough balls, another rolling them out, someone was frying and the rest were enjoying it with mutton curry! I am sure we made more than 200 buns and at the end of it all we ran out of buns! 😀
On the occasion of Bhaubij today, it only felt apt to share this recipe to remember fondly one of the best Bhaubij we had as a family!
What you will need:
| Ingredients | Quantity |
|---|---|
| For the dough: | |
| All Purpose Flour | 3 cups |
| Overripe Bananas | 250 grams |
| Sugar | 1/4 cup |
| Salt | 1 teaspoon |
| Yogurt | 1/2 cup |
| Baking Soda | 1/2 teaspoon |
| Cumin Seeds | 1 1/2 tablespoon |
| All Purpose Flour (while rolling) | 1/4 cup |
| Oil | For Frying |
Prep time: 30 min and then overnight fermentation
Cook time: 45 minutes
Servings: 10 (Makes around 20-25 buns)
How to make it:
- In a stand mixer or mixing bowl, mash the bananas.
- Add yogurt, salt, and sugar to the bananas and mix well.
- Tip: Adjust the sugar according to the sweetness of the bananas. You can also use jaggery instead of sugar.
- Then add in the all-purpose flour, cumin seeds, and baking soda.
- Tip: You might also need to add a little less or a little more flour based on the texture of your bananas. It is recommended to add half the flour first and then add the remaining half slowly.
- Knead into a soft dough.
- Leave this overnight to ferment.
- Heat the oil on a medium flame.
- Take a golf-size ball of the dough and roll it out till it is about 1/5th inch thick.
- Dust the surface as needed with flour while rolling them out to avoid sticking.
- Fry until golden brown on a medium heat.
- Enjoy!