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Goan Poee / Poi

Goan Poee / Poi is one of the popular Goan bread having a better nutritional value as compared to the other local breads available in Goa. Poee/Poi are made with a strong whole wheat flour or you can add additional bran to it.
  • Passive
    3 hours
  • Prep
    20 minutes
  • Cook
    6-7 minutes
  • Servings
    6-7 Pc.

Ingredients

  • 1 3/4 cup Whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup All-Purpose Flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp Instant active dry yeast
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • 1 tbsp Granulated white sugar
  • 2 tsp Oil

Instructions

  • 1 I used a strong whole wheat flour (stone ground having a high bran content).
  • 2 Mix all ingredients in a bowl.
  • 3 Add warm water (not hot, hot water will kill the yeast). I used 1 cup and a little extra water to make a soft dough. Knead it well.
  • 4 Cover and keep aside for about 2 hours (or until doubled in size).
  • 5 After 2 hours, gently deflate the dough. Divide into 6-7 portions, form balls.
  • 6 Use whole wheat flour to dust rolling surface. Dip each dough ball in whole wheat flour, roll into approximately 4 inch sized discs.
  • 7 Cover and keep aside for 45 minutes. Preheat oven for 475 deg F (245-250 deg c).
  • 8 Bake for 6-7 minutes. (If the top is not so well browned , you can turn on TOP heat for 1-2 mins, please keep a check so as to not burn the tops).
  • 9 You should get nice soft pooe's with hollows inside. (See recipe notes below).

Recipe Notes

  1. I have tried baking the poee couple of times using a strong whole wheat flour only, they turn out dense and don't puff up too well.
  2. You can keep the oven temperature between 475 deg F to 500 deg F or the highest temperature that your oven setting has and bake them for lesser time (less than 6 mins)
  3. If you don’t get an empty pocket in the poee’s , next time make sure you preheat the oven very well . The oven has to be very hot enough as the empty pocket in the poee is created when the poee is being  baked , the outer surface of poee creates a wall / layer (you can say ) that seals the poee before the poee gets inflated or puffed up with the steam that’s created internally with the high heat to create a pocket.

 

99 Comments

  1. Any options for replacing sugar?

    1. Hi Alina
      Sugar is required to activate the yeast.

  2. Hi Xanti, For this recipe can I use atta and bran ….what would be the ratio? Not seen this kinda whole-wheat flour that u have user around here in Mumbai.

    1. Hi Tanya
      For 1 cup flour, use about 1/4 cup bran…or if you prefer more bran, use 1/3 bran for 1 cup flour.

  3. Hi …do you add even the yeast in the dough? I mean without activating it ?

    1. Hi shubhangi

      Activate the yeast if your using the active dry yeast .
      I use the insatant dry yeast which has finer granules compared to active dry yeast granules which need to be dissolved in water before using it .

  4. Hi Xanti!

    Your poee recipe is perfect.. Baked Poee with Coorgi Pork.

    I would have liked to share photos but do not know how to do the same. .
    If you send hi on Messenger I can share photos..

    Thanks..
    Ameet

    1. Lovely ! You can just ping me and send me on fb messenger…

  5. Hi Xanti!
    One more update I used 1tsp of instant yeast and proofed for 8 hrs also adjusted the water to make the dough soft. Used coarse powder of oats in place of Barn.. All in all one of the most perfect Poee or Poi.

    Thanks,
    Ameet

    1. That’s brilliant ameet …

  6. Hi Xanti, Delighted to find your recipe for Poee and other Goan recipes. I have been sampling poees in all Margao and yesterday I visited a bakery, only to find to my dismay, that they use refined flour, maida and roll it with bran. The commercial poees available are not wholewheat! So I am delighted to find your recipe and will try it out for sure. Thanks a lot!

    PS: Someone also told me that poees can be fermented with toddy but I am not sure if that is correct.

    1. Hi Eva
      Yes that’s true … poee are made with maida and rolled in bran commercially .
      Earlier they used to use toddy to make Goan Pao and poee … but now commercially yeast

    2. Hi Eva
      Yes they make it with maida and dust with bran on top .
      Earlier they wud make all the goan breads with toddy not now commercially

      1. If I was to make it with toddy. How much wud be required?

  7. Hi xanti can you suggest options if I don’t have bran or stone ground wheat flour basically I have ground wheat flour but it doesn’t have the bran in it .. what can I do to make it look like Poe

    1. Hi Shalini
      Do check out bran in the market / shops …
      Replace 1/4 cup flour in recipe with bran .and can dust top of poee with bran before baking .

  8. Hi Recipe seems wonderful;in goa i can get toddy can tell us the measurement for making with toddy.whats the ratio.
    Thanks

    1. Hi Sanjay
      Sorry I’m not so sure on toddy and also for how long to ferment etc … not sure on steps involved with the recipe using toddy .

  9. Hi xanti
    The recipe seems easy. You get the masala poee in Goa which I have tasted. What ingredients to add to the dough to make masala poee

    1. Hi Manita
      I have no idea on masala poee … I have never come across masala poee in Goa .
      Are you talking about the buns that are deep fried … ?
      Are you looking out for this recipe ? Check the link below that I sent you .

      https://xantilicious.com/recipe/mangalore-buns-mangalore-banana-poories/

  10. Hi Xanti,
    Tried the Poees., added about 1/2 cup of wheat germ. Turned out great! Looking forward to breakfast tomorrow😁

    1. Thanks Doris for trying the poee recipe and for your feedback … hope you enjoyed them 😊

  11. Hi xanti, thanks for the detailed recipe of poie, will definitely try. Very healthy option

    1. Hi Brenda
      Sure do give it a try and do let me know how they turned out 😊happy baking !

  12. Hi Xanti,

    Always had a query while baking breads. Do we keep the OTG heat on both rods or only bottom. I have tried your Poa but it didnt come very soft but kids enjoyed it. Just this doubt. please help to clear it.

    1. Hi Cecelia
      Just use the BAKE option on your oven. As some ovens have both rods on or some ovens top and bottom rods work alternately … so just make use of your bake option on the oven .

  13. Thanks for this recipie , i tried this and it came out as expected , forgot the oil , but that did not seem like an issue , did not get the hollow , next time ….

    1. Thanks Gavin for trying the recipe , thanks for your feedback 😊👍🏻

  14. Hi Shant
    I tried your receipe for poe. It was not very successful. I think my oven was not very hot. Since they were not fluffed, i left them in the oven for more than 10 minutes. They cooked and a couple got burnt. Will try again in a couple of days and revert. Thanks for the Receipe.
    Please advise where I went wrong.

    1. Hi Maria
      Yes they need hot oven for baking

      1. I had the same result as Maria, but after a couple of tries I figured it must have been something to do with the yeast. Turns out I was following the main section of the recipe to the letter and not activating the yeast/sugar with a bit of water or milk before mixing it all in with flour/salt/oil.

        Once I fixed that, they turned out perfect! (A note in your recipe steps would help others who made the same mistake.

        My local village podeir is not going to be pleased when he finds out 😉

        Thank you.

        1. 👍🏻

  15. Whiles making the dough for the poies if I use 1cup whole wheat flour and 1/3 cup wheat bran Do I have to use all purpose flour too and if so what will be the proportion.

    1. Hi Ann
      You can use 1/2 qty wheat and 1/2 qty maida .

  16. Hi Xanti,
    Thank you for sharing your recipes, tried the poie recipe it tasted good only needed your advice whether when we roll them do we have to keep them thick or thin as some of them didn’t open up and they were crisp..
    Please do advice.
    Thank you once again.

  17. Hi xanti .can we use bread flour instead of whole wheat flour?

    Also second option can I use my normal Chappati atta for making the poe?

    1. Hi Mitchelle
      Make sure to use half maida and half wheat flour as the poee don’t puff up too well if you use wheat flour only
      I have not tried bread flour

  18. Hi Xanti

    I tried your poise recipe turned out perfect puffy and soft your receipt is awesome
    Thanks for sharing it
    God Bless You

    1. Thanks rumilda for your trying the poee and for your feedback 😊👍🏻

  19. Tried the recipe. Tasted great. Why did some of the poees not become hollow.

    1. Hi Melanus
      Some poee not becoming hollow may also depend on the oven heat at certain areas . For poee to puff up you need very hot and even heat throughout the oven .

  20. Is it possible to bake them on top of the stove? So many videos on youtube that bake bread and pav on top of the stove. Please advise……..also can they be baked in the convection Oven+Grill?

    1. Hi Olinda
      I have not tried baking breads on stove tops so cannot guide you on this ,if you have watched videos on it , probably it works fine and you should give it a try and see if it works for you .
      An OTG (oven toast grill ) works fine

  21. Hi Xanti,
    Would like to try the poee recipe. If I want to use fresh yeast, what would be the measurement
    Thanks.
    Sunita Fernandes

    1. Hi sunita
      I have not tried using fresh yeast so cannot guide you on the same .
      Well , maybe just google and check the replacement ratio of fresh yeast against dry yeast

  22. Thanks Xanti, the Poe turned out well, I didn’t want to use all purpose flour and used coursely ground whole wheat flour instead, it did turn out a bit sense and did not rise well except for 2 out of 7 Poe’s puffed up well

  23. Hi Xantil great recipe will definitely try it out thank you so much

    1. Your most welcome freida
      Do try it out and share your feedback 😊

  24. Thanks Xanti for keeping the memory of Goan poee alive.

    Dear all, traditionally in Goa, all the Poee/Poi/Poie/Powee were made using freshly milled whole wheat flour, well water, bran (coono), sea salt and coconut toddy (soor). Older Goans will remember how fragrant the bread (pão) smelled and how delicious they were unlike the Goan bread of today. All natural ingredients were used where toddy (soor) was the ferment. All bread in Goa: pão; caconn; godh pão; catro pão; etc. were fermented using toddy in the good old days. The pão were made by artisan bakers (padeiros) who typically hailed from Salcete (xasti or S. Goa). After the Indian invasion and occupation of Goa things changed for the worst. Flour became expensive, toddy tapping declined and whatever toddy was produced was first targeted for producing palm feni (maad). With the continued occupation of Goa by India things spiraled downhill for most artisans, authentic Goan customs, food, traditions to name a few. The poee you get in Goa today is nothing like the traditional one: it is smaller in size, made with maida, commercial yeast, tap water, sugar and salt. For what it’s worth, the present day bakers of Goa are largely non-Goan. Also, the commercial yeast does not go well with freshly milled whole wheat flour as it takes much longer to ferment and proof. Maida on the other hand being richer in gluten proofs faster with commercial yeast. Toddy on the other hand worked well with freshly milled WWF and there was no need for added sugar. — overall a very healthy formulation. Long story short, Xanti’s recipe gives you nice poee but not the traditional ones.

    1. Hi Aldonkar
      Very well said , thanks again for all the information. 🙏

  25. hi xanti, tried the poiee recipe, its baked well but its hollow. the maximum temperature in my oven is 230 fegree c and I preheated for 1 hour. wat better can I do ?

    1. Hi brunella
      Poee are supposed to be hollow ! Not thick inside like breads

  26. I have this recipe of poie
    2 cups maida, 2 cups wheat flour, yeast 2 1/4 tsp, salt 1 1/2 tsp, sugar 1/2 tsp n warm water 2 cups. I tried the recipe but the poies don’t turn to have the hollow in them, they become thick like pav. Why is that ? Rosie

    1. Sorry Rosie
      I Won’t be able to guide you on others recipes , you may contact the recipe creator for any doubts on their recipes.

  27. Hi Xanti,
    I have tryed couple of your recipes, followed it to the tee🙂,it has turned out yum.. I do have a question though I have a gas oven however only the top burner works can I still make poie?

    1. Hi MaZril
      To bake any breads you need top and bottom heat.

  28. Hi Xanti
    How would I amend it if I wanted to make the sweet poee?

    1. Hi Astrid
      I guess your talking about the Goan sweet Bol
      Made with coconut and cardamom , Sugar ?

  29. Hi Xanti Your recipes are excellent and easy to follow. Thank you. Can one make the Poee with Atta instead?

    1. Hi Clara
      Yes you can

  30. Hello.,
    Your recipe is fantastic, I tried your recipe today they have come out too good. Loved the aroma and the taste. My family enjoyed the poees. I had some wheat, I ground it in the blender and strained the floor and the bran separately. Hos can I post a picture to you? Thanks

    1. Hi pooja
      Thanks for sharing your feedback…
      Yes you may fb message me the picture

  31. Tried your recipe. Turned out very nice. Thank you Xanti Pinto.

  32. Hi Xanti
    Thank you find your wonderful recipe I’ve made them twice and they are perfect. I wanted to make full whole wheat but I checked your tip and found you had tried too. I put 3/4 cup of bran and they are perfect. God bless you. My family is so happy. We are in NewZeland so this is such a great treat for us.

    1. Thanks Lorna for your feedback 😊glad to know that your family enjoyed the same 😊

  33. Awesome… It was soft n delicious. My daughter made some nice fillings too. Thanks a ton. God bless.

    1. Thanks Franz for sharing your feedback 😊

  34. Xanti I tried this recipe according to the instructions and ensured that the oven was hot (gas mask max) – however some of the poies did not fluff up and have pocket. Pls advice. Wud like to try this recipe again

  35. From Tony D’Souza, England.

    Instead of Sugar, try GRANULAR Canderel
    OR
    One of the other sweeteners good for Diabetics BUT it is the GRANULAR type that makes the difference.

    Double up the quantity of regular sugar to begin with and then try varying the amount of sweetener to suit each one’s taste.

    1. Thanks for the info and the tip😊👍🏻

  36. Where in Panjim can I get bran ..

    1. Hi Gina
      I’m not sure as I’m based in the US

  37. Hello Xanti
    Can i use wheatabix as i couldn’t find bran any where?

    1. Hello
      Yes as long as It’s like granular texture (like bran )

  38. Xanti now I keep making bread. Once I made the dough just like bread and flattened it like poi but instead of baking I fried it it gave me same look like poi. This way I saw in one video and tried. Just sharing for info.

    1. Thanks for sharing the info 👍🏻

  39. Hi xanti, I am a big fan.. just tried your chicken cafreal and it turned finger licking good. Will try poie tomorrow. Could you please tell me the proportion of dry yeast, is it the same as the one mentioned in the recipe? And can mix the sugar in warm water and activate and add the mixture to the flour right?

    1. Thanks for your feedback Marilyn
      Yes for dry yeast activate first then use

  40. Hello Xanti,

    I tried this recipe of yours .Voila!! It was perfect.I felt so great when my daughter said they were exactly the ones we get in Goa.
    I also followed ur Goan stew recipe for Father’s day lunch.
    Next is the Goan pao.
    God bless you for all your efforts.

    1. Thanks tania for trying the poee recipe , glad that your daughter liked them 😊
      Sure do give a try to the Pao recipe and do let me know how they turned out

  41. Hi Xanti, thank you for sharing your recipes. In relation to the other ingredients listed, could you give me the flour quantities in grams please? Thank you very much!

    1. Hi Ernie
      Please use online converters available to convert ingredients form cups to grams measure or vice versa.
      There are a couple of online Ingredients measure converters Available:

  42. Hi Xanti,
    Thank you for this recipe. My poee were quite flat compared to the commercial ones, a few had the hollow centre as well. I realise that you didn’t add wheat bran in your recipe , but you gave an option to add it in your comments, hence I did the same. I kneaded it by hand and it was pretty good for my first time. Thanks so much. Will send you a pic on FB messenger.

    1. Hi merlyn
      I have used whole wheat flour and all purpose flour …as mentioned the wheat flour that I have used already has a high content of bran in it already . So didn’t use more bran To it.
      Commercially they use only all purpose flour (maida ) and only dust bran on top that’s the reason why they puff up so well …
      You can try the recipe with all maida if you wish to .

  43. I have wheat bran so how do I corporate it instead of whole wheat flour?? And what wud be quantity if I include it?? Please help

    1. Hi sharon
      For 1 cup wheat flour replace 1/4 cup from that flour with 1/4 cup bran

  44. Hi xanti,
    Tried your poee recipe for the first time and it came out good. Thanks for the recipe.

    1. Thanks Bessy for your feedback… happy to know the Poee turned out good 😊

  45. Thanks Xanti for the receipe, made then this evening. They have come out really nice.

    1. Thanks Stan for sharing your feedback 😊

  46. Mine have become proper but they don’t have the pocket it’s more like pita bread , what could be the issue ?

    1. Hi Anisha
      Make sure the oven is pretty hot (high temp ) as the high temp causes the pocket to be formed .

  47. Hi xanti, just needed some information about whole wheat flour. Is chapathi atta same as whole wheat flour? The whole wheat flour which you have used is of a different texture whereas the one I used gave me a different texture and colour too. The bread was dense too. On my packet (the one I used) it is mentioned as whole wheat flour which I use to make chapatis. Do you use some other kind of whole wheat flour or is there some other name for it? Please help.

    1. Hi Eliza
      I have used whole wheat flour with a higher content of bran. Not tried with chapati (wheat flour ) flour.
      Try and look for whole wheat flour not the chapati flour.

      1. Thankyou so much for your reply.. Will try and search for the required flour.

  48. Cannot thank you enough for your blog Xanti. Every recipe is perfect and reminds me of my childhood in Goa. It’s a great guide to keeping the Goan cuisine going and teaching the next generation what Goan food is all about. Pois turned out great. Have made them twice already.

  49. Hey hello, we lived on your Goan pau thru the Lockdown here in Pune. And made trays full for neighbors and friends. Thanks so much !!! Everyone keeps asking for them even now!!
    Wanted to make poiee but only have active dry not instant dry yeast. Whats the quantity needed ?? I remember you needed to use more for active dry and water and sugar. Thanks
    Raadhika

    1. Hi radhika
      Thanks for sharing your feedback 😊glad to hear that .
      Well , use the same qty of yeast mentioned in the recipe.

  50. Hi ma’am, I tried poie yesterday but it did not puff, I followed your instructions but still. I used 1 and 3/4 cup normal wheat flour and 1 Cup maida…. Where I went wrong I don’t know. Please do tell me thank you✨🌼

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