Handva premix : method 1: roast rice in a non-stick pan on very low flame just till they are warm a bit. Keep aside. Mix all Dal and roast them in the same manner. Keep them all aside to cool completely. This process helps to remove moisture from the grains and makes it easy to grind them. It also increases the shelf life of the premix. Grind them coarsely(rice and Dal separately). They should feel like sooji. Add sooji (roast it till warm to increase shelf life). Combine well.

Method 2: combine all the deals and rice. Roast them a bit and the let it cool. Grind. Sieve through atta sieve. The sieved mixture will feel like Sooji. grind the remainings after sieving once again. It will still remain coarse, but will be uniformed. Add it in the sieved mixture. Mix ½ cup thick wheat flour and 1-2 tbsp oil. Add it in the Dal-rice mixture along with 1 tsp methi seeds and 1 cup curd. Keep it over night. Spice up the batter as normal 3 hrs before cooking.

Making batter:Take 2 and a half t cups handva premix. ADD OIL IN IT FOR MOVAN and MIX WELL while rubbing it in your hands. This is a very imp step, DO NOT MISS IT OR ELSE THE HANDVA TECXTURE WILL BE STICKY. Add curd and 1 tcup warm water in it. Mix well, beat it well to incorporate air, cover and keep the pot in warm place for fermentation for 4-6 hours (depends on the temperature). Oven is a better place, especially if you are going to use the stove on the top. Hot sun is a good option too.

Spice-up the batter: you need to add spices in the batter minimum an hour before cooking. Take grated dudhi, add jaggery, turmeric, salt and chillies-ginger-garlic paste, chilli powder and achar masala. Mix well till jaggery melts. Add it in the batter(I added spices in the batter, but I think adding in dudhi marinates it and helps to combine everything well.) You may add some water in the batter if it looks too thick. The batter be thick, but not dry. Cover and keep aside.

Take sand in the handva cooker attachment. Put on the stove. Let the sand heat up thoroughly. Wash hands well. Brush oil in the cooker all around. Pour handva batter. Tap it to spread the batter evenly all around.

Heat oil for tempering. crackle mustard. Turn off the stove when most of the mustard has crackled. Add sesame seeds and asafoetida. Fry for 2-3 seconds and then pour it over the batter evenly using a spoon. Place the cooker on the sand attachment, cover it with the lid and turn on the heat. Heat can be high for the first 5 minutes to heat up the sand and then turn it very low. Cook, or rather bake, for an hour on very low heat on gas (no idea of temperature and timings on electric stoves).

Cut through the handvo till the bottom end with a knife to check if it's ready after an hour. Handvo is totally ready when the knife comes out clean, it's golden brown on top and it has crunchy brown layer all around, but is soft and well moistured from inside. Let it cool for 20-30 min in order to be able to get neatly cut pieces. Banking it on high heat will reduce the cooking time, but you will not get the perfect outer layer and hence the taste and the texture of it will differ.

Variations: it can be cooked in many ways such as baking in the oven or cooking it in a non-stick fry pan or even on a roti tawa. You can even cook it like cup cakes/pancakes. The taste of handvo and the cooking time differs with the type and method of cooking.

Cooking in a fry pan takes only 15-20 min to cook and that too tastes nice-a good option for change of taste. In that, you prepare the tempering in the fry pan and add the batter on it. Cover and cook on low heat for 5-7 min. Then place a plate on the pan and flip the pan over. This way, handvo will be transferred to the place. Then just slide the handvo back to the pan(with the uncooked side down)and cook for another 5 min or until it's golden brown on the other side..

Handvo cooked in a pan is called dongeru. It differs from the traditional handvo in terms of its texture. Dongeru has a thin crust on each side and it absorbs more oil till within. Whereas the handvo baked in the hands cooker has a thick and crispier crust. It is more crumbly inside.

Mix ingredients for chutney and grind. This is an authentic Gujarati coriendar chutney. It goes very well with handvo.

Note: if you replace plain water with the milk saperated after making butter from cream, handvo comes out very soft. 2. Be careful while adding water/milk in the batter. Add a little at a time to control the consistency.

3. Cook handvo on high flames for 10 min and then medium to slow heat for 20-30 min. Then turn off the stove and keep it on hot sand until the sand cools down. That way handvo does not stick on the sides or at the bottom and it also has crunchy sides, but soft sponge.

It is very important to let he sand heat up before you put the handva cooker on it. If not done so, handvo will not rise. It is kind of preheating.

4. Sticky handvo? Reasons could be...1. new rice 2. Premix not mixed with movan well before adding other ingredients. 3. More quantity of dudhi 4. Watery batter. 5. Not baked for long enough (timings mentioned in step 13 is perfect).

Hard and crumbly handvo? 1. Less water in the batter 2. No fermentation/eno/soda in the batter.

Eno vs soda: eno doesn't have the soapy taste like soda, so we can add as much as a tsp full. This helps to puff the handvo and gives it a spongy texture.