Siddu
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A steamed bread of leavened wheat dough stuffed with poppy seed or walnut paste, eaten with ghee in the Kullu and Shimla hills.
Region: Kullu, Mandi and Shimla, Himachal PradeshOccasion: Breakfast and winter meals; festivalsTime: 1 hr 15 min + 2–3 hours risingServes: 4Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 2 cups wheat flour
- 1 tsp dry yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- Salt to taste
- ½ cup poppy seeds (khus-khus), soaked 2 hours, or ½ cup walnuts
- 1 small onion, finely chopped (optional)
- 1 green chilli and 1 tsp grated ginger
- Ghee for serving
Method
- Mix the yeast and sugar in warm water. Knead with flour and salt into a soft dough, cover and leave it to rise for 2–3 hours.
- Grind the soaked poppy seeds or walnuts to a paste with chilli, ginger and salt. Mix in the onion if using.
- Divide the dough into balls. Flatten each, put a spoonful of filling in the centre and seal it into an oval bun.
- Leave the stuffed buns covered for 15 minutes so they rise a little.
- Steam them over boiling water for 20–25 minutes, until firm and cooked through.
- Serve hot, broken open and drenched in ghee, with green chutney or dal.
History
Siddu is an old dish of the upper valleys of Himachal Pradesh, where wheat and walnuts grow and fermented dough helps keep bread soft in the cold.
Significance
It is a warming winter food, eaten in homes and now also sold at roadside stalls in Kullu and Manali.