There’s nothing like a light, spongy snack to go with that evening cup of piping hot, (preferably) flavoured tea.

When we were kids, mom would return home early every Saturday since it was a half-day at office. And, without fail, she’d bring a parcel of samosas, vada pav, dhokla, patra or some other delicious snacks (puffs, pakodas) from our favourite shop just outside the railway station.

I never liked eating samosas that weren’t made by my grandmother simply because I found them too spicy for my liking. So I’d usually eat the outer skin and leave the filling for my brother to wipe off. But dhokla and patra I would gorge on like crazy.

Few days back, I had a really boring lunch and was desperate to eat something yum. To be honest, I was specifically in the mood for dhokla. I hadn’t eaten any in a while and the more I thought about it, the more I craved it.

So I began looking for its recipe. And as it turns out, making dhokla (especially in microwave) is the easiest thing on this planet. Anyway, so I just followed the recipe from the book which is complimentary with the electronic device. Here’s how you go about it.

All you need is one cup of besan (gram flour), 1/4th cup of semolina, prepare a pouring consistency batter of these two with water. Mix some salt, sugar and grated ginger into it. Leave it alone for 20 minutes. Then introduce a teaspoon of baking soda or lemon-flavoured Eno fruit salt or a cup of yogurt, whichever option you please, stir it nicely and microwave in a greased vessel for 3 minutes with a lid on top. The lid should have a tiny opening or use cling film and with the help of a fork make a couple of punctures.

When it’s done, let it stand for a few minutes while you prepare the garnishing. In a pan, heat some oil, add mustard seeds, sesame seeds, green chilis, curry leaves. Just when they began to crackle and sputter nicely, add a cup of water with some sugar and let it come to a boil. Pour this decoction on the dhokla cake, after you’ve flipped it on a serving tray and cut it into square pieces so that it’s nice and spongy. Sprinkle lots of freshly chopped coriander.

And it’s done. Now chomp it off with masala tea on the side.