Forbidden treat-Kavuni Arisi Payasam (Black Rice pudding)

Kavuni Arisi Payasam or Black Rice Pudding is a specialty of the Chettinad region of Tamil Nadu. This gorgeous deep violet hued sweet, is a prominent preparation of most festive fares of the Chettiars.

Fast Food- Orange glazed baby Sweet Potatoes and Plantain

I don’t usually observe any religious fasts. The popular local fasting food-Sabudana does not agree with me much. But I like to explore the traditional fasting recipes, that use alternative grains and vegetables. I like Sweet potatoes and I keep substituting them for potatoes. They are usually available in the market only during these religious fasting days. With all the ongoing festivities and fasts, Sweet Potatoes are abundantly available now.

While growing up, my mom often made these ‘Ratalyache Kaap’ (pan fried Sweet Potatoes with jaggery). I don’t have a sweet tooth and I find them too sweet for my taste….and hence my little twist to the Ratalyache Kaap –Orange glazed kaap. The addition of a  tangy citrusy burst, rock salt and chilli flakes beautifully balance the sweetness. I have been experimenting with green,unripe plantains and hence I tossed in a cooked unripe plantain along with the Sweet Potatoes. Date syrup adds a rich, molasses like taste to the kaap.The pomegranate and pumpkin seeds are added just to give it more freshness and crunch. You can use any other seeds or nuts that are ‘allowed’. I have used baby Sweet Potatoes because they looked cute and they cook quickly. In case you don’t find them, you can use the regular ones and alter the cooking time.

I have realized that the best way to update the blog regularly, is to participate in online food events :).The deadlines provide the necessary push for me to post recipes on time 🙂

The theme this month @TheHub is ‘Sweet Recipes & Fasting Recipes’ that are usually made during these 9 holy days of Navratri. Orange glazed Sweet Potatoes and Plantains is my entry to The KitchenAid India Navratri Challenge for The Hub @ Archana’s Kitchen.

That also reminds me, to let you know that I was invited to contribute recipes at Archana’s Kitchen, which I gladly accepted and you can now find my recipes on Archanas kitchen here

Here’s a quick and easy recipe for Orange glazed baby Sweet Potatoes and Plantain

Serves-2

Ingredients

7-8 baby Sweet potatoes, washed thoroughly and sliced  (Do not peel)

1 large green, unripe plantain

Juice and zest of 1 large orange

2 tbsp Date syrup

½ tsp grated jaggery

Rock salt to taste

¼ tsp Chilli flakes/black pepper powder (optional)

2 tbsp Ghee

Pomegranate seeds and Pumpkin seeds for garnish (or any other seeds/ nuts)

Method

Cook the plantain with the skin in a pressure pan with salted water, for 1 whistle.

Cool and peel the skin and slice.

In a non- stick pan, heat the Ghee

Add the sliced baby Sweet Potatoes

Stir to coat the slices with Ghee.

Cook covered for 2-3 minutes on low flame.

Meanwhile, whisk together the orange juice,zest,Date syrup,jaggery and rock salt.

Add this to the Sweet potatoes and cook uncovered on medium flame, till  the liquid thickens.

After about 3-4 minutes of cooking, add the sliced plantain and mix so that the orange glaze coats all the slices.

Sprinkle the chilli flakes or pepper powder if using.

Serve hot or cold garnished with Pomegranate and Pumpkin seeds

Chatpata Jimmykand

Jimmykand cubes are coated with a spicy-sweet-sour sauce, satisfying all the chatpata cravings that this awesome rainy weather demands

The Misal Pav burger!

The hot Summer, Exams, work, Summer camps  and a rather long recipe delayed this post. Did I mention the heat? It’s still hot but finally I am back with The Misal Pav Burger recipe.

As I said in my earlier post, the idea for this burger kept hovering in my head for a long  time. I kept thinking of various combinations to make the patty, the sauce and the toppings. Finally when I baked the Kummelweck rolls, I decided to go ahead with whatever ingredients I had in my pantry. Moth beans or Matki are a staple in our house. Matki sprouts are usually found in my fridge, since everyone loves the Usal (curry) made with it.

The burger patty here, is made using sprouted Matki and potato+breadcrumbs as a binder. I have found a new shop in Nasik -Aarogyam, which sells Nagli/Whole wheat and sprouted wheat bread. So this time the Patty has Nagli breadcrumbs. You can use whole wheat or white breadcrumbs too. Mom made fresh Kanda Lasoon Masala, so the patty was spiced with my Mom’s homemade fiery love 🙂

Raw mangoes are were in season and I made a shortcut Methamba (Mango Chutney). My brother got me a bottle of Roopak’s Aachari masala, along with other spices. I cooked the raw mangoes and spiced them with this Readymade Aachari masala. The masala is awesome by the way 🙂

The other element that I added to the burger was the fiery Masala Chutney. Masala Pav, is a favourite street food here- a bun or the Bombay Pav is served with a spicy Onion-Tomato masala chutney made using Pav Bhaji masala. I substituted the Pav Bhaji masala with the Kanda Lasoon masala. I was apprehensive when I put together all the elements of this Misal Pav burger , but it turned out so good that the son gave it ’the Best Burger ever’ thumbs up!

The Misal Pav burger recipe

Makes about 5-6 burgers

Ingredients:

5-6 burger buns or Laadi pav

~2-3 Tomatoes Sliced

1 large onions sliced

1 cucumber sliced

Few sprigs fresh coriander leaves

For the Patty:

1 cup sprouted moth/matki beans cooked in salted water (just cooked, not mushy)

1 potato cooked,peeled and mashed

¼  cup bread crumbs or as required

2-3 tbsps Chopped coriander

1 small onion chopped

3-4 garlic pods chopped

2 tbsp crushed roasted peanuts

1 tsp green chili paste or red chili powder to taste

1-2 tsp Kanda Lasoon masala

Salt to taste

Oil for shallow frying

For the Mango Chutney

1 raw mango cubed

3 tbsp grated jaggery or more to taste

1-2 tsp Aachari masala

Salt to taste

2-3 tsp oil

For the Onion-Tomato chutney

1 onion chopped

1 tomato chopped

2-3 garlic cloves sliced

2 tsp Kanda lasoon masala

½ -1 tsp red chilli powder

3-4 tsp oil

Salt to taste

Method:

For the Patty

Mix all the ingredients for the patty except the oil.

Make ~ 5-6 balls of the mixture and flatten into a patty

Shallow fry in hot oil in a nonstick pan  till browned on both sides

For the Mango chutney:

Heat oil in a pan.

Add the chopped mangoes, jaggery and salt. Cook for 5 minutes or till the mangoes are just cooked.

Add the Achari masala and cook for 1-2 more minutes.

Take off the heat and cool.

For the spicy chutney

Heat oil in a small pan.

Add the garlic and onion and sauté for 1-2 minutes

Add the tomatoes and cook for 2-3 minutes more

Season with salt and spices

To assemble the burger:

Cut the burger buns in half.

Add 1-2 tsps of the spicy chutney.

Place slices of tomato, Cucumber,onion and coriander leaves

Place the patty on the salad.

Top with the tangy Mango chutney and then top with the other half of the bun

Serve immediately

A Plum post!

The thing that I like most about summers is the bounty of colorful fruits that it offers. Not just mangoes but Jamuns, Litchis,peaches apricots, cherries, plums we have been savoring them all! The lad is a fresh fruit lover and loves snacking on them. The little lady of our house on the other hand is a mango addict but refuses to eat any other fruit. The only way to feed her fruits other than mangoes and bananas is to sneak them in shakes or smoothies.

The gorgeous weather (yes finally it’s raining here!) has increased the frequency of the kids’ hunger pangs. That also means my mind is constantly thinking of recipes to satiate the ever hungry kids with ‘different’ yet wholesome food. (I wonder how my mother managed when we were growing up?)

Litchis went into salads and Granitas when it was warmer. Peaches/apricots in crisps and parfaits.

Plums  were a bit tricky to sneak in -since the boy loves tart fruits but no sweets for him. The daughter wont eat tart fruits but loved her sweets.

I had some leftover coconut milk from a Thai curry made earlier. On a whim I decided to make Sol Kadhi sans the Sol-The kokum. So you can call this ‘Plum Kadhi’ instead. The end result was as appetizing as the quintessential Maharashtrian favourite Sol Kadhi (have blogged about it here earlier).

Plum Kadhi recipe

Makes ~ 4 cups

Ingredients

1  1/2  cups Coconut milk

~ 2  1/2 cups water

2 Plums pitted and chopped

¼ tsp green chilli paste

¼ tsp garlic paste

Black Salt to taste

Cumin powder and coriander or mint leaves for garnishing

Method

Blend all the ingredients except cumin and coriander/mint leaves together.

Chill and Garnish with cumin powder/coriander/mint leaves.

 

To satisfy the little on I made Plum Karanji-handpies. I chose to bake instead of deep fry the local favourite sweet Karanji with a Plum twist. A  layered cover (also called as Satha/Sathyachya karanjya in Marathi) wherein I substituted half the quantity of  all purpose flour with whole wheat flour and filled it with a sweet and sour plum filling. The end result was a stunning (specially when cut), crisp karanji with an unsual  sweet -sour  taste- almost a cross between a karanji and a hand pie and hence they are Plum Karanji-handpies !

Plum Karanji recipe

Makes ~ 6 Karanjis

Ingredients

For the cover

¾ cup All purpose flour

¾ cup Whole wheat flour

3 tsp fine semolina

4 tbsp ghee melted

2 tsp icing sugar

Pinch of salt

~ ½ cup milk or enough to knead a tight dough

 For the filling

7-8 Crisp plums, pitted and chopped

3 tbsp scrapped fresh coconut

2 tbsp crushed/powdered cashewnuts

¼ tsp clove powder

¼ tsp cinnamon powder

~ 6 tbsp powdered jaggery (or to taste)

 For layering

4 tsp ghee

2 tsp Cornflour

Cinnamon sugar for dusting (optional)

Method:

For the filling:

In a pan add the plum, coconut and jaggery. Cook on a low flame  till the liquid evaporates (~ 4-5 minutes)

Add the cashewnut powder and the spices.

Mix well and cool completely.

 For the layering mixture:

Whisk the ghee  a few times till it becomes fluffy.

Add cornflour and whisk again.

 For the Cover

In the bowl of the food processor add all the cover ingredients except the milk. Pulse 1-2 times

Add the milk slowly till a firm dough is formed. Knead into a ball.

Cover and keep aside for half an hour.

Halfway through the waiting time heat the oven to 180 deg C.

After half hour, cut the dough into 4 equal parts.

Form a ball of 1 dough piece and roll out into a thin circular disc ~ 6 inch diameter

Keep aside, covered.

Roll out the 2^nd dough ball to a thin circular disc like a chapati.

Spread about a tsp of the ghee cornflour mixture evenly on the rolled out dough.

Cover this with the rolled out chapatti no 1.

Repeat the with the 3^rd and 4^th dough ball. Total you have 4 rolled out chapatti like discs layered with the ghee-cornflour mixture.

Put a tsp of the cornflour-ghee mixture on top of the 4^th layer.

Make a tight roll of the layered chapattis, like a Swiss roll.

Trim both the edges and cut the rest of the roll into 6 pieces approximately 1 inch each.

Cover the other cut pieces till you roll out and fill the first one

With the cut side down roll out each piece into a circle like a poori

Place 1 tsp of the plum filling in the centre of the poori

Cover one side of the poori with the other into a semicircle-karanji shape.

Seal the ends using a fork or a fluted cutter

Place on a greased baking tray and bake till golden in color (~ 15 mins)

Dust with Cinnamon sugar mixture (optional)

Serve hot

 

With just 10 days to go for the first Indian Food Bloggers Meet ,the IFBM FB page is abuzz with all the upcoming excitement.There are several contests for participating bloggers being held as a run-up to the actual meet.

I am sending the ‘Plum Kadhi‘ and the ‘Plum Karanji Handpies‘ to the KitchenAid Plum contest

Tomato Saar

Tomato Saar is a quintessential Maharashtrian preparation, also a ‘must have’ dish for most of our festive fares.

Tomato is paired with coconut and then tempered with a few spices to make a sweet-spicy-tangy ‘soup’ usually as an accompaniment to steamed rice, although it can also be served like a soup on its own.

Every Maharashtrian household has a ‘unique’ recipe for Tomato Saar.  This recipe is my mom’s and I have followed exactly as she makes it. (I am surprised that after all these years I have missed blogging about it here on My Foodcourt!)

In other news, after my earlier rant about the camera, the DSLR is finally home and being played with. I am still discovering the unlimited features, so you will soon see a lot of my ‘discoveries’ with the same either here on the blog or on the FB page here.

Back to my mom’s recipe for Tomato Saar:

(This makes about 13-14 cups of saar)

Ingredients

9-10 medium sized ripe red tomatoes

3/4^th  cup fresh grated coconut

2 ½ tsp grated jaggery (or more according to sweetness desired)

½ tsp red chilli powder (optional)

Salt to taste

For the tempering:

2 tsp Ghee/oil (homemade ghee tastes the best)

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp cumene seeds

1/4 tsp asafetida (a pinch)

1-2 dry red chillies broken into pieces

10-12 curry leaves torn into pieces with hand

Chopped coriander leaves for garnishing

Method:

Cook the tomatoes in a pressure pan until soft and they lose their ‘rawness’ (one whistle and then 5 mins on sim)

Meanwhile grind the coconut to a fine paste using little water.

Once the tomatoes are cooked, cool and remove skin and chop off the head.

Grind the tomatoes along with the coconut to a smooth paste. The coconut and tomatoes should blend together.

You can sieve the paste through a mesh at this stage. I like to skip this step and directly use the paste as it is.

Add sufficient water to the paste to bring it to a soupy consistency.

Add the jaggery,salt and chilli powder and bring it to a boil.

In a small pan/kadai, heat the ghee/oil.

Add the mustard seeds.

Add the cumene seeds once the mustard seeds splutter.

Switch off the gas and add the asafetida, curry leaves and the red chillies.

Add this tempering to the saar.

Garnish with fresh chopped coriander leaves and serve with hot rice or just as it is like a soup.

5 years of Blogging and My Mom’s Puran Poli with Katachi Amti

Puran Poli is a quintessential Maharashtrian delicacy and you may wonder how it has not featured on My foodcourt in the past 5 years. Yes, My Foodcourt turned 5 this August! I have been neck deep in work, kids and the daily grind. August and now September just zoomed past me and I just realized that it’s been fabulous 5 years of blogging; sharing and interacting with my virtual friends! Its late but we are celebrating nevertheless 🙂

Many festivals in Maharashtra like Holi, Gudi Padwa, Gauri-Ganapati Puja,Dassera  feature the Puran Poli as its star attraction, as far as the festival food is concerned. The skills of a good Marathi cook are gauged by the way he/she can make the Puran Poli. My dad is a very good cook and to explain effectively his cooking skills I just say that he can make good Puran Poli’s and Bhakris! I don’t have to say anything else, it’s understood that he is indeed a very good cook 🙂

Regular readers of this blog know that I don’t have a weakness for sweets, in fact far from that and maybe that’s the reason why Puran Poli has not been featured on My Foodcourt.  My mom makes one of the best Puran Polis and even I cannot resist eating her Puran Poli. She uses some fresh coconut and Khoya/Khawa/Mawa in addition to the usual Chana dal for the filling to enhance the richness and flavor. The proportion of jaggery and sugar is just apt for my taste buds.

I got a chance to capture the Puran Poli making process this time when I stayed over at my parents place during the Gauri- Ganapati festival. The consistency of the Puran/stuffing, the dough and the skill of rolling them out determine the resultant nature of the Puran Poli. With a little bit of practice you can make decent Puran Polis. The amount of effort put into making Puran Poli is worth every bit.

My Mom made it for many people (~40 Puran Polis) and hence the proportions appear in kg. You can scale it to your requirement. She made the Puran a day in advance, so she didn’t have too much work the next day. Also the left over Puran can be stored in the freezer in a sealed bag/container and used as and when required.

The Puran Poli is usually served with Katachi Amti , made from the leftover stock from cooking the Chana Dal. The stock is spiced up with different masalas to balance the sweetness of the Puran Poli.

Note: This is an indulgent sweet and needs all the oil, ghee, sweetness and richness that is mentioned below. So make this when you are not too conscious of the calories being consumed 🙂

Here’s celebrating 5 years of My Foodcourt with my Mom’s Puran Poli recipe:

My Mom’s Puran Poli recipe

For the Puran (Stuffing)

1 kg Chana Dal

½ tsp Turmeric

¾ kg Jaggery

3/4^th  Katori Sugar (my mom uses a katori/Vati to measure for her measurements)

200 gms Khoya/ Khawa/Mawa ( you can use Pedhas)

½  medium sized freshly grated coconut

Nutmeg powder ½ tsp (optional)

For the covering Dough:

½ kg Wheat Flour

1 tbsp All purpose flour

Pinch of salt

Oil as required

Rice Flour for dusting the Puran Poli

Method:

For the Puran (Stuffing)

Cook Chana Dal with twice amount of water, with turmeric in a pressure cooker till very soft but not mashed. (about 2 whistles and ~15 mins on low flame thereafter.)

Meanwhile roast the Khoya in a pan on low heat till slightly pink/very light brown.

Grind the Coconut in the mixer to a fine paste without adding water.

Drain and remove water from the cooked Dal and reserve the water.

Heat a kadhai and add the dal and on a low flame dry out all the moisture from the Dal.

Add the jaggery, sugar, coconut paste, roasted Khoya to the dal.

Cook and stir till the mixture is completely dry. (take care not to burn the mixture)

Add the nutmeg powder mix well.

Remove the mixture from the heat and pass it through a Puran press/ Food Mill.

Keep aside till you are ready with the covering dough. This filling can be made 1-2 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

For the Covering Dough:

Sift the wheat flour and the all purpose flour and pinch of salt through a fine mesh sieve.

Add oil (2-3 tbsp) and water and knead into a soft elastic dough. (You may need to add more water/ oil to get very soft dough)

Keep the dough covered for about an hour.

After an hour add about 3/4^th Katori  oil, salt and little water to make it more soft.

Take a lemon sized ball of the dough. Flatten it using the finger tips with the help of the Rice flour

Take a bigger ball of the Puran/stuffing mixture.

Place it on the flattened dough,seal and cover it with the dough such that the Puran gets stuffed inside the dough.

Roll out the stuffed dough using the Rice flour for dusting into a round chapatti (as thin as possible), taking care that the Puran/stuffing does not come out and the chapatti does not stick to the surface.

Heat a non-stick tava/griddle.

Once rolled out, use the rolling pin to transfer the Puran poli to the  tava.

Cook on both sides till golden brown.

Remove from the tava.

Serve hot Puran Poli’s with a generous drizzle of hot melted ghee and Katachi Amti (recipe below).

 

Katachi Amti Recipe:

Stock/water left over from cooking the Chana dal for Puran (above) add water if required to make it thinner.

3-4 cloves

4-5 Black pepper corns

1-2 tsp Mustard seeds

1-2 tsp cumene seeds

7-8 curry leaves torn into pieces with hand

1 tsp grated jaggery

1 tsp tamarind pulp

1 tsp Maharshtrian Kala Masala or Garam Masala

~4-5 tbsp chopped fresh Coriander leaves

Salt to taste

2 tbsp oil

Method:

Heat the oil in a deep pan.

Add the mustard seeds.

Once they splutter, add the cloves and peppercorns fry 1-2 second and then add the cumene seeds.

Add the curry leaves and the coriander leaves.

Add the Kat/stock .

Add the jaggery, tamarind pulp, Masala and season with salt. (you can adjust the proportion of jaggery and tamarind to your taste.)

Bring it to a boil and serve hot with Puran Poli.

Stay Tuned for a fabulous Giveaway coming soon on MyFoodcourt!

 

 

 

 

Almond Powder

Saturday mornings are special for us. It’s the only time we get to be  together, without having to rush for work/school. Though it is my day off, ‘getting up late or sleeping in’ luxury is not for me. The son ensures that. He loves to sleep in on weekdays, when we have to rush for school/work but on a Saturday he is up and shining at 6. Last Saturday was also the same and he insisted to go on a morning walk! He is mighty impressed by some superhero on TV and believes this is the only way to build up muscles!

I had planned Dosas for our post walk brunch but was not in the mood for elaborate chutney or Sambar to go with it. Wanted something quick and simple. I saw this recipe for Almond powder a few days ago at Talimpu. I had a pack of almonds which was threatening to get rancid and waiting to be used up! The recipe itself looked quick and simple and used all the day –to-day ingredients.

We enjoyed the delicate, nutty flavour of the lightly spiced powder on the hot dosa; a good variation from the usual Chutney powder. Thanks Raji for this lovely idea

I tweaked the original recipe to suit our taste. I did not use the recommended oil at all and added a pinch of jaggery powder while grinding.

Here’s the recipe:

~18-20 Almonds

4 Red chillies

½ tsp Cumene seeds

1” piece of tamarind

Salt to taste

Pinch of jaggery powder

(You can change the proportions to suit your taste)

Dry roast Almonds till you get a nutty aroma.

Similarly dry roast the Chillies and cumene seeds.

Add the other ingredients and grind together to a fine powder.

Sprinkle this on hot dosa (on the dosa tava itself) and top with Ghee/clarified butter if you like.

 Since I have used ‘Almonds waiting to be used up’ in this recipe the Almond Powder travels all the way to St.Louis for Blog Bites#4

Bendekay (Bhindi/Okra) Gojju

Thank you all of you for your wishes, I am feeling much better now.

South Indian food was restricted to Idli-Sambar-Dosa- chutney- Rasam that was till I got married.

After marriage I learnt so many wonderful recipes from my mother-in-law, not just idli-dosa etc.. but some really nice curries, rice and Rotis.

Ajay’s family hails from Bangalore ;Iyengars settled in Karnataka for generations together (and now he is settled in Maharashtra). It’s a fine blend of Tamilian + Kannadiga cuisine, and now my addition- +Maharashtrian cuisine. So we have some very hybrid recipes cooked in our kitchen!

This is a nice recipe for Bendekay(Bhindi/Okra) Gojju; of course my mother-in-law’s recipe.

Bhindi/ okra is cooked in tamarind pulp along with jaggery and some rasam powder (Malkapudi). It thus has all three tastes; sweet, sour and spicy. This recipe is especially good when you have less amount of Bhindi and more amount of people eating it or when the Bhindi is not very fresh and you need to dress it up! J

 

Bendekay(Bhindi/Okra) Gojju my second entry to Asha’s RCI Karnataka. 

__________________________________________________________ 

Bendekay (Bhindi/Okra) Gojju recipe _____________________________________________________ ½ kg Bhindi/okra/ Ladies finger – washed, towel dried, ends removed and chopped into small round discs.~ 1 tbsp tamarind pulp

2 tbsp crushed jaggery

 2 tsp Rasam powder (Malkapudi)

¼ tsp asafoetida (hing) crushed

7-8 fresh curry leaves

½ tsp cumene seeds

½ tsp mustard seeds

¼ tsp turmeric powder

2 tsp oil

Salt to taste

Heat oil in a pan.

Do the tadka mustard seeds- cumene seeds- turmeric powder and then the curry leaves and asafoetida.

Add the Bhindi and fry nicely. 

Cook for a few minutes and then add the tamarind pulp, jaggery, salt and the Rasam (Malkapudi) powder.

Mix nicely and add little water if the pulp is too thick.

Cook uncovered till the Bhindi is cooked nicely.

Serve hot with Rice of Roti.

 

Weekend Chaating-From Chaat Street

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Chaat– just the mere mention of the word makes my mouth water. You can’t walk past a ‘Chaatwala’ without sensitizing your taste buds. The last thing on your mind when you enjoy Chaat on the roadside is Hygiene or Health food-That you remember the next day! I have been a ‘Chaat’ person as long as I can remember. When I was small I would argue with my Mom as to why we can’t offer ‘Prasad’(offering to God) of Pani Puri/Bhel Puri to God? Didn’t Gods love it too? J

As I said in my last posts it getting hotter day by day here..temperature soaring to 40-41^oC (not usual for us here ,that too in April) People are enjoying Chaat’s and Icecreams on the road side to beat the heat!

We had some guests yesterday; one of our family friend’s daughter is getting married. So I made some Chaat to celebrate her engagement.Once in a while you can indulge (I do this often!) in these spicy, mouthwatering chaats and since they are made at home…you need not count the plates!

Basic ingredients for chaat: 

Chaats will not be chaats without these chutneys:

1. Green Chutney : Mint-Coriander-green chilly chutney

2. Sweet sour Chutney : Dates –Tamarind chutney 

Other optional chutney

3. Red Chutney: Red chilly-Garlic chutney

These Chutneys can be stocked up in the fridge and will stay good almost for a week.This chutney is required for Sev Puri,Ragda pattice etc..

 

Other ingredients common to most of the Chaats are:

Onions –finely chopped

Tomatoes- finely chopped

Fresh coriander leaves – finely chopped

Raw green Mango –peeled and finely chopped

Potatoes boiled peeles and chopped

Lemon Juice

Sev

Once you have these basic ingredients you can make your own permutation-combination and make chaats of your choice.

Green chutney:

1 bunch Pudina (Mint ) leaves washed and roughly chopped

1 small bunch fresh Green coriander leaves washed and roughly chopped

5-7 Green chillies roughly chopped – you can change the proportion as per your taste

¼ tsp salt or salt as required

½ tsp lemon juice 

Grind Pudina leaves, Coriander leaves and Green chillies adding the some salt and lime juice to a smooth fine paste. Don’t add too much water. Add water as and when required. 

Dates -Tamarind (DT) Chutney:

½ cup Dates deseeded and chopped

¼ cup tamarind pieces water 

Boil Dates and tamarind in 1 cup of water for 15 minutes.Cool and blend to a smooth paste in the mixer. Some people add cumene powder,jaggery,red chilli powder etc. to this basic chutney. 

Red Chutney:

5-6 Dry Red Chillies

3-4 garlic podsPinch of salt 

Soak the red chillies in warm water for 15 minutes. Blend together the soaked red chillies and Garlic with salt to a fine paste. You have everthing ready now..what are you waiting for start ‘assemling’ the Chaats!

 

Bhel Puri:

2 cups Churmura/Murmura/Puffed Rice

1 Cup Farsam mixture (Assorted savory mixture)

½ cup onion chopped

½ cup tomatoes chopped

½ cup boiled potatoes chopped

¼ cup raw green mango peeled and finely chopped

½ tsp Red chilli powder (optional)

5-6 flat Puris (The ones you use for Sev Puri)

½ tsp turmeric powder

¼ cup green chutney (Add a little water to the above chutney and make it to a watery consistency)

½ cup DT Chutney (Add a little water to the above chutney and make it to a watery consistency)

2 tsp Red Chutney

Pinch of salt 

For garnishing:

Chopped fresh Coriander leaves

Thin yellow Nylon Sev

1 flat Puri

 

For the Churmura:

Take a wok or a deep pan. Heat a tsp of oil. Add the turmeric and then the Churmura. Mix properly so that the turmeric coats the Churmura nicely. Cool and store in an airtight container. This is my son’s favourite munching snack! This can be made in bulk and stored so that you can use it whenever you want. 

Mix the Churmura along with the Onions,tomatoes,potatoes,mango pieces, in a big vessel. Add the Red chilly powder if you want your Bhel to be really spicy. Crush the puris with your hand and add to the mixture. Add the green chutney , DT Chutney, Red Chutney(optional) and mix nicely. Adjust the salt if required. Once you mix all the ingredients immediately add to the serving plate. Garnish with Chopped coriander leaves and Sev. Serve immediately. Use the Flat Puri as a spoon! It tastes much better! Bhel actually means ‘a mixture’ so you can use your imagination and mix any other ingredient you want. I sometimes also add boiled sprouted green moong beans and Cucumber to the Bhel.

 

Sev Puri: 

This needs some patience since you need to assemble all the ingredients on each Puri.

For 6 puris (that is one plate)

1small Onion chopped

1small Tomatoe chopped

1Potatoes boiled and chopped

Green chutney (use a thick paste of the chutney’s so that they don’t run out of the puri)

DT Chutney

Chaat Masala or Pani Puri masala

Red Chutney

Pinch of salt  So keep as many Flat Puris as you want in a plate (preferably the serving plate0 . Now on each puri place few pieces boiled mashed potato. Top it with chopped onion pieces , chopped tomatoes. Add a spoonful of Green Chutney, then a spoonful of DT chutney and ½ a spoon of Red Chutney. Sprinkle a pinch of salt and a pinch of Chaat Masala or Pani puri masala (optional)Generously add the chopped coriander leaves and Sev. Serve these crisp, mouthwatering puris immediately.You will be surprised how fast the Sev Puris perish considering the amount of time you have taken to assemble them!

 

Pani Puri:  

As the name suggests these are Puris filled with ‘Pani’ (water). These are also called as ‘Gol Gappas’ in
North India.This beats all the Chaats when it comes to my favourite Chaat! And it does not need many ingredients.You get special round hollow puffed puris specially to make Pani Puri. 

   12-15 Pani Puris

1 cup Green chutney (The consistency should be watery for both the chutneys since the Puris are to be dipped in it)

1 cup DT Chutney

¼ cup boiled sprouted green moong beans

¼ cup potato boiled mashed

1 tsp chaat masala 3-4 tsp Panu Puri masala  Add the Pani Puri masala to the watery Green ChutneyKeep the Puris in a Plate. Serve the chutneys, moong sprouts in wide mouthed bowls. Add the chaat masala to the potato and keep it in another bowl alongside the chutneys. 

To eat: Make a small hole in the centre of each puri with the nail of your thumb. These puris are  quite delicate so be careful while breaking them-you want the whole puri intact except a small hole. Add the ¼  spoon moong beans , ¼  spoon mashed potato to all the Puris. Now you get rewarded for your patience. Without thinking twice dip the first puri in the Green chutney(remember it is spicy) fill the puri as much as you want, then proceed to the DT chutney fill the puri and put it straight in your mouth-full puri. Repeat for other puris.

Enjoy the spicy mouthwatering Pani Puris!Bliss personified!