Urad dal papad

Step 1: Stir 1 ½ tsp papad khar (papad salt) and 1 tsp salt into the warm ½ cup water until dissolved; the water will look slightly cloudy.

Step 2: Mix 9 oz gluten-free urad dal flour, 1 ½ tsp black peppercorns, 1 tsp cumin seeds and ¼ tsp gluten-free asafoetida in a wide bowl, then add the khar water a little at a time and press it into a very stiff, crumbly-looking dough. It should be much firmer than chapati dough.

Step 3: Rub your hands with a little of the ½ tbsp sunflower or groundnut oil and pound the dough with a pestle or the flat end of a rolling pin for 10–12 minutes, folding it over itself every minute. It is ready when it turns smooth, stretchy and a shade paler, and a pinched piece pulls without tearing.

Step 4: Common mistake: softening the dough with extra water to save effort. A soft dough sticks to the pin, tears when lifted and takes days to dry. Keep it stiff and let the pounding do the work.

Step 5: Roll the dough into a log about 3 cm thick, wrap it in a damp cloth and rest it for 15 minutes.

Step 6: Cut the log into 24 pieces of about 15 g and keep them under the damp cloth so they don't skin over.

Step 7: Smear a drop of the remaining 1 ½ tbsp sunflower or groundnut oil on the board and pin, and roll each piece into a 15–17 cm disc so thin you can almost see the board through it. Turn the disc often as you roll to keep it round.

Step 8: Lay the papads in a single layer on a clean cotton sheet or steel plates, in light shade for the first hour, then in direct sun. Turn them over after 3–4 hours.

Step 9: Dry for 1–2 sunny days, bringing them indoors at night. They are done when they are stiff and brittle and snap cleanly, with no soft or bendy centre.

Step 10: Stack the papads flat in a dry, airtight tin; they keep for 6 months. To serve, hold one with tongs over a medium gas flame for 20–30 seconds, turning constantly, until it blisters and turns pale gold all over with no grey patches.