Kulcha Bread Recipe

Substitutions and Additions

• Flour - instead of using 50-50 blend of all purpose flour and whole wheat flour, you can make it using only all purpose flour as well. That is the traditional way to make kulcha.
• Egg - you can skip the egg if you like. I add it since it adds richness to the kulchas and also makes for a more airy texture.
• Garlic butter - you can make a garlic butter to brush the kulchas as they come out of the oven. You can make it as in the homemade garlic naan recipe or by simply adding some garlic powder or minced garlic to melted butter
• Cilantro - a sprinkle of fresh chopped cilantro is always a good idea!

Variations

• Spices - add kasuri methi into the dough while kneading it
• Using Instant Pot to proof the dough - You can us the Instant Pot to rise the dough. Lightly grease the steel bowl insert with oil, place the dough inside, and cover the pot with a clean kitchen towel instead of using the IP lid. Use the yogurt function with the time set for 1 hour.
• Make it in a skillet - you can use a cast iron skillet to make kulchas as well. Heat it on medium high heat and cook one kulcha at a time. Cook on one side for 1-2 minutes and then flip and cook on the other side for a minute. Spread some butter on each cooked side, one at a time to toast it up slightly.

See this homemade garlic naan recipe as another Indian bread option!

How to make this recipe

Plan ahead for this recipe. You will need time to let the dough rise until doubled. On a warm day, this might be in about an hour whereas on a cooler day, you might have to stick your dough in a warm oven or try other tricks to get it to rise. I have included one hour rise time in this recipe.

Step 1: Mix milk and water in a glass measuring cup and microwave it for 1 minute. If you own a food thermometer, this would be a time to grab it and check the temperature of this water and milk mixture. It should be between 105-110 degrees Fahrenheit. In other words, luke warm. Add sugar and yeast and let it stand for 5-7 minutes to "bloom" (Image 1).

Step 2: After 5-7 minutes, add the yeast and milk mixture to the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add melted butter and salt (Image 2). Crack one egg and add to the stand mixer bowl with the yeast mixture and butter.

Step 3: Mix both the flours and salt in a mixing bowl. With the stand mixer on low speed, slowly start adding the flour mix to it. Once all the flour is in, increase the speed to medium and mix until a sticky dough forms (Image 3). Remove the dough hook, and the bowl from the stand mixer. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and set in a warm spot to rise. Proof for an hour or until doubled in size (see Tips below!).

Step 4: After the dough has doubled in size, sprinkle some whole wheat flour on your kitchen counter or on a pastry rolling mat. Dump the dough on the mat (Image 4).

Step 5: Using your hands, form the kulcha bread dough into a circle and cut it into roughly 16 equal pie slices (Image 5).

Step 6: Take each dough pie slice and roll in in flour to make smooth(ish) dough balls of roughly equal size. Roughly is the key here 😂 (Image 6). Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise for another 30 minutes. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit (230 degrees Celsius).

Step 7: Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Take a dough ball and using your fingers, make into 5 inch wide discs (Image 7). Lay 3-4 kulcha bread discs on the lined cookie sheet and bake for 8 minutes, flipping the kulchas at 4 minute mark.

Step 8: The kulchas will puff up and have some brown spots. Take the cookie sheet with the kulchas out of the oven and brush with butter (Image 8). Repeat until all the dough is used.