How to make Baked Mathri

What are Mathris?

Mathris or Matthis are Indian style crispy and spicy fried crackers which are a very popular snack in the northern part of the India. These mathris make wonderful teatime snack for any day. Just pair them with a masala chai or coffee and your brunch is sorted. Mathris also make a great festive snack, thus it is made during festivals such as Diwali and Holi. They are simply perfect for family gatherings and get togethers.

To see the video of baked mathri recipe please go in the last of section in this post.

What are the common ingredients for Mathri?

Making these flaky, crispy, and spicy mathris are super easy. And you only need some basic ingredients to make these flaky and crispy mathris such as flour, salt, ghee/oil, and a combination of spices. These spices include carom seeds (ajwain), fennel seeds (saunf), black pepper (kali mirch), dry fenugreek leaves (Kasuri methi), asafeotida (Hing) and cumin seeds (jeera).But you can make other flavours of mathri like pizza mathri, soybean ki mathri, achari mathri,mathri with besan filling, till wali mathri and many more flavours you like.

How to serve Mathri?

This mathris are truly amazing on their own. They also go perfectly well along with a hot tea or coffee. They are very popular as a tea time snack. f you want more flavours, then you can serve them with any kind of pickle, chutney or sauce. I like this mathri with bhrawan red chilli pickle.

How to store Mathri?

Storing mathri is very simple. Good thing about these mathris is their longer shelf life. After frying or baking, you can simply store them in an air-tight container. And they would stay fresh for up to 2-3 weeks. Savour them with your evening tea or coffee.

What are some important tips and variations to make Best fried Mathri?

Always fry mathris on medium-low heat, or else they will not come out crisp. Frying perfect flaky and crispy mathris take some time, but all the patience is worth it. Also, If you deep fry mathris on high heat, then they will turn golden faster from the outside and they would remain uncooked from inside.
While frying mathris, do not overcrowd the pan.
Always add sufficient amount of oil while incorporated with atta and add oil in small batches until it has crumble texture.
You can store these mathris in an airtight container at room temperature for about 2-3 weeks.
These mathris are also good snack option while you travelling. So remember to pack these mathris next time when you are planning a trip.

Can I Bake Mathri?

Yes, you certainly can. Many people are kind of health conscious when it comes to fried snacks. So I always prefer eating baked snacks whenever there’s an option. So on this post I am sharing baked method for Methi Mathris.

How to bake mathri with some tips?

For baking mathris, I always rely on a good baking pan, because a good pan can create wonders. No wonder the traditional deep fried mathris taste so good. But if you are someone who adores anything baked, then you would definitely love this baked mathris too.
It’s actually very simple! You make the dough in the same way as you would make for regular fried mathri. There’s whole wheat flour, oil and some common spices like ajwain, kalonji, salt, red chilli powder, kali mirch or black pepper powder and added a lot of Kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) here since I was making Methi Mathri but you can add any spice that you like.
I have used refined oil here but You may use ghee or any oil of choice. I would highly recommend not cutting down on the oil. We are baking them and to get that right texture we do need the oil.
Once the dough is done, let it rest for at least 10- 15 minutes and then roll and cut into pieces.
You can cut them into any shape you like. I made in squares using my knife
I like to keep these around 1/4 inch thick. If it’s too thin, it might burn quickly and too thick will take a long time to bake and become crispy.
Once cut into shape, simply bake in the oven at 180*c degrees until they are crispy.

These Baked Methi Mathri are

- flavored with lots of dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)

- crispy and crunchy

- taste as good as fried mathri

- super easy to make

- made with whole wheat flour

- make the perfect chai time snack

- take less time than fried mathri

Ingredients for Baked Mathri

Atta - 1 Cup

Kasuri methi - 1/4 cup

Turmeric or Haldi - 1/4 tsp

Red chilli powder -1/2 tsp

Roasted cumin powder - 1/4 tsp

Salt - 1 tsp

Refined oil or ghee - 1/4 cup

Ajwain - 1/2 tsp

Kalonji - 1/2 tsp

Sesame seeds - 1 tsp

How to make baked mathri

In a large bowl add atta (whole wheat flour).
Now add 1/4 cup Kasuri methi.
Add 1/4 tsp turmeric or haldi.
Add 1/2 tsp red chilli powder .
1/4 tsp roasted cumin powder.
Add 1tsp salt.
1/2 tsp ajwain (carom seeds).
1/2 tsp kalonji.
Now add 1 tsp sesame seeds.
Add 1/4 cup refined oil. You can also add ghee.
Mix to combine it all together. Add oil (or ghee) and mix it well with the flour using your hands (rub the flour between your palms to incorporate the oil).
The oil should be well incorporated into the flour. The mixture will turn crumbly.
Now, start adding water little by little to knead the dough.
Once the dough comes together, knead it for 5 minutes. Cover and rest the dough for 15 to 20 minutes.
After the dough has rested, divide it into 2 parts. Take one part of the dough and roll it, around 1/4 inch thick.
Now you can either use cookie cutter or pizza cutter to shape the mathri. I simply cut some into squares using my knife.
Repeat with the remaining dough.
Preheat the oven at 180*c for 10 minutes.
Place the mathri on baking tray lined with parchment paper or silicone mat. Leave a little space between each mathri.
Bake at 180*c degrees for 20-22 minutes, flipping them once half-way. I usually bake around 23-24 minutes since I like quite crispy mathris.
If you don't like super crispy, bake around 20 minutes.
Let cool and then store baked methi mathri in an airtight container.