FOOD

‘Chaat’ show!

You can combine the delightful flavours of street food with hygienic cooking methods when you try out these spicy snacks at home, says HARSHA PADIA

Basic Chaat Masala
Ingredients: 1/2 tsp asafoetida, 1/2 tsp dry ginger powder, 1 tbsp black salt, 1 tbsp roasted jeera powder, 1 tsp amchur powder, 1 tsp dry pudina powder.
Method: Dry grind all the ingredients together. Store in an air-tight container.

Samosas
Ingredients: 2 cups maida, 2 tbsp fine soji, 2 tbsp ghee, 1/2 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tsp salt, Oil for frying. 
For the filling: 300 gm boiled potatoes, 1/2 cup coriander leaves, 1 tsp chaat masala, 1 tsp ajwain, 1 tbsp oil, 1/2 cup pudina, 1 tbsp ginger-green chilli-garlic paste.
Method: Grind pudina, ginger-chilli-garlic paste and ajwain. Heat oil, fry paste for 1 minute. Add mashed potatoes, coriander leaves, amchur powder and salt. Mix well and allow to cool.
For the samosas: Sieve maida, add lemon juice, salt and ghee. Mix well and make a stiff dough by adding water. Rest the dough for an hour. Roll out balls of the dough into thick oval shape, cut it into two halves, shape like cone. Stuff above filling and make neat triangles by sealing the edges with a little water. Deep fry in oil on a slow flame.

Sweet chutney
Ingredients: 50 gms tamarind, 100 gm jaggery, 1/2 tsp black salt, 1 tsp jeera powder, 1 tsp chilli powder. 
Method: Soak tamarind in cup of water for an hour, make a thick extract of the pulp. Add jaggery and cook on a slow flame till it becomes thick. Add black salt, chilli powder and jeera powder.

Green chutney
Ingredients: 10-15 green chillies, 1/2 cup pudina, 1 cup coriander leaves, 1 tbsp roasted peanuts, 1/2 tsp lemon juice, 1/2 tsp salt.
Method: Grind all ingredients together with a little water.
Garlic chutney
Ingredients: One pod garlic, 1 cup red chillies and salt.
Method: Soak chillies for two hours in half cup of water. Grind them with garlic and salt.

Pani puri
Ingredients: For the puris: 1/2 kg medium soji, 1/2 tsp salt.
For the filling: 1 cup sprouted moong, 250 gms boiled potato, salt to taste, 1 tsp chilli powder, 1 tsp chaat masala. Mix everything together.
Ingredients for the ‘pani’: 1 cup pudina, 1/2 cup coriander leaves, 1/2 inch ginger, 5 green chillies, 1 tbsp roasted jeera, 2 tsp amchur powder, 1 tsp pepper, 2 tbsp sweet chutney, 2 tsp black salt, 1 litre water.
Method for the puris: Sieve soji, add salt and make soft dough. Rest the dough for an hour, then roll it into small puris and deep fry on a low flame.
Method for ‘pani’: Grind all ingredients together and add water.
After puris are cool, puncture each puri in the centre; fill with stuffing and serve with pani, sweet chutney and green chutney.

Bhel puri
Ingredients: 100 gms puffed rice, 1 tbsp peanuts, 1/2 tsp oil, 1/2 tsp turmeric powder, 1/2 tsp garlic chutney, 2 tsp sweet chutney, 1 tsp green chutney, 1 tbsp coriander leaves.
Method: Heat oil and add peanuts. Fry for 2 minutes. Add salt and turmeric powder, allow to cool. Mix in all the ingredients and garnish with coriander leaves.
Optional: Dice 1 tomato and 1/2 cucumber, grate 1 carrot and mix into bhel for additional flavour.

Pav bhaji
For the Bhaji: 3 tbsp butter, 250 gms boiled and mashed potatoes, 200 gms chopped tomatoes, 100 gms boiled peas, 75 gms cauliflower, 1/2 cup chopped capsicum, 1 tbsp Pav Bhaji masala, 1 tbsp garlic ginger, chilli paste, 1/2 cup coriander leaves, 2 tsp chilli powder, 1 tsp dhania powder and salt.
Method: Heat butter. Add ginger-garlic-chilli paste, fry for 2 minutes, add chopped onions add dhania powder, chilli powder and Pav Bhaji masala. Then add all the vegetables and salt. Mash the bhaji well. Serve with buttered roasted pav.

Aloo chat
Ingredients: 250 gms boiled potatoes, one chopped onion, 1 tsp ginger chilli paste, 1 tsp chaat masala, 1/2 tsp amchur powder, 1 tsp red chilli powder, 1/2 cup coriander leaves, salt to taste.
Method: Cut potatoes into cubes. Mix them with all the ingredients above and garnish with coriander leaves.

Papadi chat
Ingredients: 1/2 cup boiled chopped potatoes, 1/2 cup thick curds, 20 flat puris, 1 tsp chaat masala, 1/2 cup boiled kabuli channa, 1 tsp sweet chutney, 1 tsp green chutney, 1/2 tsp garlic chutney, 1 tbs chopped onions, coriander leaves for garnishing, salt to taste.
Method: Dip puris in curds. Arrange 5-6 puris on a plate, add kabuli channa, potatoes, all the chutneys. Sprinkle chaat masala and salt. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Ragada patties
Ingredients: For ragada: 250 gm boiled peas, 1 boiled potato, 2 tsp garam masala, 1/2 tsp turmeric powder, 1/2 tsp cinnamon-cloves powder, salt to taste.
For patties: 250 gm boiled and mashed potatoes, 1 tbsp corn flour, 1/2 tsp turmeric powder, 1 tsp ginger chilli paste, 1/2 cup coriander leaves, salt to taste. Oil for frying
Method: Mash potatoes, mix with boiled peas, add garam masala, cinnamon-cloves powder turmeric powder and salt. Cook for 5 minutes.
Method for patties: Mix all ingredients into a dough. Divide into 12 balls, shape them like cutlets and shallow fry on a tawa. Serve with chutneys and chopped onions.