Mangalore buns (banana buns) step-by-step recipe with photos.
I spent my childhood in a small township Kudremukha (now a world heritage site), which was about 100 km from the beautiful coastal town Mangalore in Karnataka. Mangalore was our go-to place when it came to day trips, shopping, and of course beach time! My favourite part of the trip was these delicious Mangalore buns.
Jump to:
About this recipe
Mangalore buns is a popular breakfast and snack from the Udipi-Mangalore region of Karnataka. These delightfully sweet and soft Mangalore buns (banana buns) are made with overripe bananas and plain flour. They are deep-fried and are technically pooris, not buns. Why are they called bun then – I have no idea! Maybe because they don't absorb even a drop of oil, unlike pooris. These mildly sweet buns are served with a spicy chutney which balances the sweetness from the buns, but they also taste great just by themselves.
Origin
It is believed that these buns were created by cooks in Udipi to find a way to use up overripe bananas. They added flour to these overripe bananas and deep-fried them which resulted in the creation of this delicious dish.
The dough of these Mangalore buns is made with mashed bananas, yogurt, flour, cumin seeds, salt, and sugar. The dough is then let to ferment for a few hours before rolling them into thick discs and deep-frying.
Fun fact: you call them 'buns' even if there is just one of them. It is always 'Mangalore buns'!
Ingredients to make Mangalore buns (banana buns)
Banana: Make sure you use overripe bananas to make these buns.
Plain flour: Plain flour (maida) is used to make these buns; however, you may add a mix of plain flour and whole wheat flour to make these buns.
Yogurt: Make sure the yogurt is at room temperature when adding to the dough.
Sugar: Both plain and raw sugar works well for this dish.
Cumin seeds: Cumin seeds makes these buns very flavourful. It can be replaced with fennel seeds (saunf).
Tips for making perfect Mangalore buns
Make sure the banana you use is overripe. Overripe bananas are sweeter, more aromatic, and adds more flavour to the buns.
Mash the banana well taking care there are no lumps. Dough with lumpy banana will be difficult to roll and will not puff up when deep-fried.
Let the yogurt come to room temperature before adding to the dough.
Serve it with a spicy coconut chutney. This will balance the sweetness very well.
Make these delicious poori-like buns and see how good they are for yourself!
For more banana recipes, click here.
Mangalore buns (banana buns) step-by-step recipe with photos
1. Mash the bananas well using a fork
2. Add rest of the ingredients
3. Mix them well together
4. Add flour gradually and knead well. Brush oil onto it and let it rest
5. Let the dough rest. Then, roll out the dough into a thick disc
6. Heat oil and carefully drop the disc into it
7. Fry until it is golden brown on both side
8. Drain onto a kitchen towel
Recipe card
Mangalore Buns
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
Leave a Reply