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Indian

Sheermal

Vegetarian

شیرمال · sheermal

A lightly sweet, saffron-tinted flatbread made with milk and ghee and glazed as it bakes. Lucknow's classic accompaniment to kebabs and nihari.

Sheermal is an Indian bread, ready in about 2 hours 20 minutes and made with all-purpose flour, milk and ghee. It serves 6 and is rated intermediate to cook.

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Prep
25 min
Cook
25 min
Rest
1 h 30 min
Total
2 h 20 min
Serves
6
Level
Intermediate
Calories
329

Ingredients

6 sheermals

Saffron glaze

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Crumble the saffron (opens in a new tab) into the 3 tbsp warm milk (opens in a new tab) for the glaze and set aside to infuse.

    • 2 min

  2. Step 2

    Mix the flour, yeast, sugar (opens in a new tab), salt and cardamom. Add the lukewarm milk (opens in a new tab) (and rose water (opens in a new tab)) and knead for 5 minutes, then work in the softened ghee (opens in a new tab) and knead 5 minutes more into a soft, silky dough.

    Hands kneading dough on a floured surface
    How it looks · Photo: Klaus Nielsen on Pexels

  3. Step 3

    Cover and leave in a warm place until about 1½ times its size, 60–75 minutes. Preheat the oven (opens in a new tab) to 220 °C with a tray inside.

    • 70 min
    • 220°C

  4. Step 4

    Divide into 6, roll each into a 12–13 cm disc about 6 mm thick and prick all over with a fork in a pattern. Rest 15 minutes on baking paper.

  5. Step 5

    Slide onto the hot tray and bake 6 minutes, brush generously with the saffron (opens in a new tab) milk (opens in a new tab), and bake 4–6 minutes more until golden-orange. Brush with ghee (opens in a new tab) as they come out.

About this dish

Origin
Lucknow (Awadh), Uttar Pradesh, India · Commonly attributedPersian in name and ancestry; strongly identified with Lucknow and also baked in Hyderabad and Pakistan.Also popular in PakistanMore food from India
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Breads & flatbreads
Cooking method
Oven-baked
Taste
sweet, aromatic / warmly spiced, buttery, rich
Diet
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredients
All labelsVegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Festive & celebration
Cook more with
All-purpose flour · Milk · Ghee · Saffron · Instant yeast · Sugar
Techniques
Baking · Kneading

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom milk, ghee
  • Contains: Wheatfrom all-purpose flour
  • Contains: Glutenfrom all-purpose flour

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

329 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 87 g · recipe makes 6

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 8%
  • Carbohydrate 54%
  • Fat 38%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g
Energy329 kcal380 kcal
Protein6.6 g7.6 g
Carbohydrate44.3 g51.2 g
Net carbohydrate42.8 g49.4 g
Sugars6.1 g7 g
Added sugars4.2 g4.8 g
Fibre1.6 g1.8 g
Fat13.9 g16 g
Saturated fat8.3 g9.6 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol35 mg40 mg
Sodium211 mg243 mg
Salt equivalent0.5 g0.6 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
108 mg
Calcium
48 mg
Iron
2.4 mg
Magnesium
15 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
119 µg
Vitamin C
0 mg
Vitamin D
0.5 µg
Vitamin B12
0.2 µg
Folate (DFE)
163 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: rose water.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Brushing saffron milk mid-bake (not at the start) gives the glossy orange colour without burning.

Common mistakes

  • Baking too long dries the bread; it should stay soft and bend without cracking.

Serve with

  • Serve with galouti or shami kebabs, nihari, or korma; or with sweet tea.

Storage

  • Keeps 2 days airtight.

Reheating

  • Warm wrapped in foil at 160 °C for 5 minutes, or on a tawa.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in steps 1, 2, 5

Baker’s notes

Customise in Bread & Bakery

Timeline and readiness cues

  1. Mix and knead · about 35 min

    Weigh everything. Knead until smooth and elastic: a small piece stretches thin enough to see light through (the windowpane test).

  2. First rise (bulk) · about 1 h 10 min

    About doubled, domed, jiggly, with bubbles on the sides. A floured finger poked in leaves a dent that fills slowly.

  3. Final proof · about 15 min

    Poke test: the dent springs back slowly and only partly. Springs back fast = needs longer; doesn't spring back = over-proofed, bake now.

  4. Bake · about 12 min at 220 °C

    Deep golden; bread sounds hollow when tapped underneath, or reads 93–96 °C inside (enriched breads 88–90 °C).

  5. Start to finish: about 2 h 12 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

The dough

The dough in baker's percentages. Flour = 100%.
IngredientRoleWeightBaker’s %
All-purpose flourFlour300 g100%
MilkOther liquid165 g54.9%
GheeFat60 g20%
SugarSugar25 g8.3%
Instant yeastYeast4 g1.3%
SaltSalt3 g1%
Ground cardamomOther1 g0.2%
Total flour
300 g
Hydration
—
With milk, eggs…
47.8%
Wholegrain
0%

Hydration = water ÷ flour × 100. Milk is about 87% water and eggs about 75%, so they’re shown separately as “with milk, eggs…”.

  • Salt 1% — on the low side (1.8–2.2% is typical for bread).
  • Fat 20% — a rich, tender dough.

If something goes wrong

  • Dense, heavy loaf

    Likely causes

    • Under-kneaded (weak gluten)
    • Under-proofed
    • Old or dead yeast/starter
    • Too much wholegrain flour without extra water

    What to do

    • Knead to the windowpane stage
    • Proof by the poke test, not the clock
    • Test yeast in warm water with sugar; feed the starter and use it at its peak
    • Add 5–10% more water for wholegrain flours and give them a rest
  • Pale crust

    Likely causes

    • Oven too cool
    • Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
    • Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)

    What to do

    • Check the oven with a thermometer
    • Brush with egg wash or milk
    • Shorten the fermentation
  • Burnt bottom

    Likely causes

    • Tray too close to the heat
    • Dark tray absorbs more heat
    • Too much sugar in the dough

    What to do

    • Bake on the middle shelf
    • Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
    • Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
  • Dough didn't rise

    Likely causes

    • Dead yeast (expired or killed by hot liquid)
    • Kitchen too cold
    • Salt in direct contact with fresh yeast
    • Starter not active

    What to do

    • Liquid should be lukewarm (no hotter than 40 °C)
    • Proof somewhere warm (an oven with just the light on)
    • Mix the salt into the flour, not onto the yeast
    • Feed the starter until it doubles in 4–8 hours
  • Tough or chewy flatbread

    Likely causes

    • Dough too stiff
    • Not rested
    • Cooked too slowly on too cool a pan

    What to do

    • Add water until the dough is soft and slightly tacky
    • Rest 20–30 minutes covered so the gluten relaxes
    • Cook on a very hot tawa or pan — quickly

Reviews & corrections

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