Mathri also called as mathiya or mathari is a popular North Indian tea time snack of savory, flaky, spiced and crispy crackers made with all-purpose flour, spices and seasonings. I share both fried and baked versions.
Recipe Snapshot
- Prep time: 10 minutes
- Cook time: 30 minutes
- Total time: 70 minutes
- Yield: 30 · 30 mathri
- Category: Snacks, Starters
- Cuisine: North Indian, Punjabi
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour ((maida) - 250 grams)
- ½ cup whole wheat flour ((atta) - 60 grams)
- 3 tablespoons ghee (or 3 tablespoons oil - any neutral tasting oil)
- 5 to 6 tablespoons water (or add as required)
- 2 teaspoon carom seeds ((ajwain))
- 2 teaspoon black peppercorns (- crushed coarsely or kept whole if you prefer)
- 2 teaspoon dry fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 pinch asafoetida ((hing) - optional)
- 1 pinch baking soda (- optional for frying but do add if baking the mathri)
- salt (as required)
- oil (as required, for deep frying)
Method
Making dough
- First heat the ghee or oil in a small pan until hot. Take the hot ghee or oil and all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, all the spices, dry fenugreek leaves, salt and baking soda in a mixing bowl.
- First mix everything well with a spoon. Then when the mixture is warm or cool enough to handle, mix the fat evenly in the flour with your fingertips.
- The whole mixture should resemble breadcrumbs. The more you do this, the more flaky texture the mathri or mathiya will have.
- Add 1 or 2 tablespoons of water at a time and only mix the dough. Don't knead like a roti or poori dough. But only mix the water in the dough until it comes together.
- When the whole mixture can be easily clumped or gathered together into a ball, cover with a kitchen towel and keep aside to rest for 30 mins.
Rolling mathari
- Heat oil for frying in a kadai (wok) or frying pan. Pinch small balls from the dough. Simply roll them lightly in your palms to even them. No need to give them a proper round shape.
- Keep the balls covered with a kitchen towel so that they do not dry out.
- Flatten each ball with a rolling pin to medium thickness. You will see jagged uneven edges and they are alright.
- Prick each rolled dough with a fork or pierce them with a knife.
- In case you want a smooth finish, then use a biscuit or cookie cutter. Roll a large piece of dough and cut with a cookie cutter.
Frying Mathri
- Check the hotness of oil before frying the mathari.
- Drop a small piece and if comes to the surface gradually, then the oil is ready.
- If it comes to quickly, then the oil is very hot and the mathri will brown from out but remain uncooked from inside and will become soft.
- If it comes slowly, then the oil is cold. Result would be the mathari would absorb a lot of oil and become dense due to over frying.
- Fry them in medium hot oil turning over as needed until crisp and golden.
- Regulate the heat between medium-low to medium if required.
- Drain on kitchen paper towels and when cooled store them in an airtight box.
- Fry them in batches this way.
- Serve these flaky spiced punjabi mathri with ginger tea or masala tea as an evening snack.
Baking Mathri
- Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius (356 degrees Fahrenheit).
- Roll the dough into round disc as mentioned above.
- Place them in a baking pan or tray and then bake for 20 to 30 mins or till light golden in the preheated oven at 180 degrees Celsius (356 degrees Fahrenheit).
- After 10 to 12 minutes, turn over the mathri for even baking and browning.
- If even after 20 to 30 minutes the mathri look soft or under-baked, then bake for some more minutes.
- Please keep an eye on the baking as oven temperatures differ in various models and brands.
- Remove with a spatula and place the baked crackers on a wire rack to cool.
- Once cooled, store them in an airtight container or jar.
Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note
Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.