Popular in Awadhi & Mughlai cuisines, Sheermal or Shirmal is a soft, mildly sweet, saffron-flavored, enriched leavened bread baked in tandoor or on a griddle. Sheermal recipe originates from the Mughlai cuisine, with strong influences from Persia. The rich dough is made with white flour, milk, cardamom, sugar, salt & lots of ghee. The baked Sheermal Roti is brushed with saffron milk, melted ghee or butter and typically served warm with rich spiced gravies or as a tea-time snack.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 25 minutes
  • Cook time: 30 minutes
  • Total time: 90 minutes
  • Yield: 8
  • Category: Side Dish
  • Cuisine: Mughlai, North Indian

Ingredients

  • 2.25 cups or (281 grams) all-purpose flour ((maida))
  • ½ teaspoon green cardamom powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup milk (- warm, or add as needed)
  • 1 teaspoon or (5 grams) sugar
  • 1 tablespoon kewra water
  • 100 grams ghee (or ½ cup melted ghee, warm)
  • 25 to 30 saffron strands (- or about 1 pinch of crushed saffron)
  • 3 tablespoons milk (- warm)
  • 3 tablespoons melted ghee (- warm or can use softened or melted unsalted butter)

Method

Make dough

  1. In a mixing bowl, first mix the all-purpose flour, salt and cardamom powder.
  2. Next take the sugar and milk in a small saucepan.
  3. Heat until the milk becomes warm and the sugar dissolves. Stir often so that the sugar dissolves.
  4. Add this warm milk in portions to the flour.
  5. Mix and then begin to knead.
  6. Keep on adding milk in portions and continue to knead.
  7. Knead to a smooth and soft dough. If dough is dry or floury, add 1 to 2 tablespoons warm milk. If it is sticky, add in some flour and knead again
  8. Keep in mind that you may not need to use all of the milk while kneading the dough. Stop adding milk, once the dough turns soft, smooth and pliable.The amount of milk needed will vary depending on the quality and texture of the flour that you are using.
  9. Cover the dough with a moist kitchen towel and let it rest for 15 minutes.

Make saffron milk

  1. Next crush saffron strands with your fingers and mix it with 3 tablespoons of warm milk. Set this saffron milk aside.

Adding melted ghee to dough

  1. Melt 100 grams of ghee in a small frying pan and set it aside. Do not make the ghee very hot.
  2. It must be warm when you add it to the dough.
  3. After the dough has rested for 15 minutes, add kewra water and 2 to 3 tablespoons of the warm melted ghee.
  4. Press your fingers into the dough to create indents and mix the ghee with the dough. Knead nicely so that the ghee is evenly mixed and absorbed into the dough.
  5. Again poke the indents with your fingers on the dough and add 2 to 3 tablespoons of melted warm ghee.
  6. Continue to mix and knead. Stretch the dough while kneading. Knead until the ghee gets incorporated into the dough.
  7. Repeat and use up all the ghee by creating indents and adding 2 to 3 tablespoons of the ghee at a time, mixing ghee with dough and kneading until the ghee is absorbed. You will get a super soft and smooth dough.
  8. Cover with a moist kitchen towel and rest the dough for 10 to 12 minutes.

Assembling and rolling

  1. After the dough has rested, portion and form 8 equal sized balls from the dough.
  2. Cover with a moist kitchen towel and rest again for 10 to 12 minutes.
  3. Sprinkle some flour on your work surface and on the dough ball.
  4. With a rolling pin, roll each dough ball to 6 to 7 inches circle, sprinkling flour lightly if needed.
  5. Prick or dock the dough with a fork.

Making Sheermal on a skillet/pan/griddle

  1. Heat a skillet, frying pan or tawa (griddle or a flat skillet) to medium-low or medium heat.
  2. Place the rolled dough on it.
  3. Cover with a lid and let the bottom of the sheermal roti cook.
  4. Check after 1½ to 2 minutes and when the bottom crust has golden blisters, flip gently.
  5. Cook the second side until golden without covering it with a lid. Press the edges with a spatula so that the edges also get cooked evenly.
  6. Remove and brush first with the prepared saffron milk and then with the melted ghee.
  7. Similarly make the remaining breads in batches on the skillet or tawa.
  8. Place the saffron milk and ghee brushed sides of two breads facing and touching each other while storing.
  9. Keep them covered in a moist cotton kitchen towel or a moist cotton napkin.

Baking Shirmal

  1. Preheat oven at 230 degrees Celsius/445 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes, if you plan to bake these breads.
  2. Place on a greased baking tray or a baking tray lined with parchment.
  3. Place the tray in the preheated oven and for about 12 to 15 minutes or until the edges are golden.
  4. Once baked well, remove the baking tray from oven.
  5. With the help of tongs or a spatula, place the sheermal bread on a wired rack.
  6. Brush evenly with the saffron milk. Next brush with melted ghee or softened butter.
  7. Keep the sheermal roti covered in a moist kitchen towel.
  8. Repeat the baking if you have a small oven or small-sized trays.

Serving & Storage Suggestions

  1. Sheermal Roti can be paired with kahwa, chai or even a vegetarian korma, paneer korma, shahi paneer, paneer butter masala or vegetable kabab.
  2. Refrigerate leftover sheermal bread wrapped up in a cotton napkin in an air-tight container.
  3. The ghee in the sheermal will become solid after refrigeration leading to the bread become hard. So lightly roast the sheermal bread on a tawa/skillet until warm. You can also warm these breads in the oven before serving.

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.