Amritsar Kulcha Butter Stuffed Bread Golden Temple

A thick, fluffy, slightly leavened flatbread stuffed with spiced potato and baked in a tandoor until puffed and golden — served with chole (chickpea curry) and raw onion at the street shops surrounding the Golden Temple in Amritsar. The most well-known street food of Punjab.

Ingredients

For the kulcha dough:
2 cups maida, 1/2 cup yogurt, 1 tsp sugar, 1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp oil, a pinch salt, milk — about 1/4 cup
For the potato filling:
4 medium potato — boiled and mashed
1 onion — very finely chopped
2 green chilli — minced
1 tsp ajwain, 1/2 tsp red chilli powder, 1/2 tsp amchur
salt, coriander leaves — finely chopped
White butter for applying after baking

Method

Make the dough: Combine maida, yogurt, sugar, baking soda, oil and salt. Add milk to form a soft, smooth dough. Knead 8 minutes. Oil the surface. Cover and rest 1 hour.
Make the filling: Mix mashed potato with finely chopped onion, green chilli, ajwain, red chilli powder, amchur, salt and coriander. Divide into 8 portions.
Divide dough: After resting, divide into 8 balls.
Stuff each kulcha: Flatten each ball into a disc. Place filling in centre. Gather edges upward and seal firmly. Re-roll gently into a thick oval about 15 cm long and 8 cm wide — kulcha is oval, not round like roti.
Preheat oven to 250°C (480°F): Or prepare a tandoor.
Bake on highest heat: Place kulcha directly on the oven rack or a hot baking stone. Bake 5 to 6 minutes until puffed, golden and char spots appear on the surface. The very high heat is essential for the characteristic puffing.
Check the bottom: Flip briefly to ensure the bottom is cooked.
Apply white butter immediately: The moment the kulcha comes out, apply a generous amount of white butter on the top surface. It melts into the hot bread immediately.
Serve hot: Kulcha must be served immediately while hot and puffed.
Serve with chole: Serve alongside the chickpea chole curry, raw onion rings and a green chutney.
Note: The kulcha-chole combination around the Golden Temple in Amritsar is one of the most well-known street food experiences in India. The kulcha shops of Amritsar — particularly in the lanes of Hall Bazaar and Lawrence Road near the Golden Temple — have been operating for generations. The white butter (safed makhan) made from local buffalo milk dairy is an essential element — the Amritsari kulcha without the white butter is considered incomplete.