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Aloo chaat

This is a very simple recipe of aloo chaat or potato chaat. Aloo chaat is very popular among chaat and street food lovers.

Recipe of aloo chaat

3-4 aloo (potatoes)

1 tsp chaat masala

2 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp roasted cumin powder

Green coriander chutney- to taste

Sweet tamarind chutney- to taste

Salt to taste

1. Pressure cook aloo for 1 whistle. Turn the heat to low and cook for 2 more minutes. Turn off the heat and let the pressure drop down before opening the lid of the cooker.

2. Peel the aloo and dice them into 3/4 inch cubes.

3. Heat oil in a non-stick tava (griddle) and fry potatoes till brown from all sides. Take out in a bowl.

4. Add salt, red chilli powder, cumin powder and chaat masala. Pour coriander chutney and tamarind chutney over the aloo chaat and enjoy!

Aloo bonda

Aloo bonda is a famous Indian deep fried savory snack. It’s crispy on outside and soft inside. Aloo bonda or potato bonda is liked by adults and kids alike. In South India, this snack is called aloo bonda and in Mumbai, it is known as batata vada.

Recipe of aloo bonda

4 (potatoes) aloo - boiled, peeled and mashed

1 1/2 cups besan (gram flour/ chickpea flour)

1 tbsp oil + for deep frying

2 onions- chopped

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

2 green chillies- chopped

Salt to taste

Few curry leaves

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

Coriander leaves- chopped

1. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. When they pop, add green chillies, curry leaves and onion. Fry till onion turns translucent.

2. Add aloo, turmeric powder and salt.

3. Cook for 2 minutes and add coriander leaves. Mix and turn off the heat. Remove in a bowl and let it cool.

4. Make lemon sized balls out of the potato mixture.

5. Now for the batter, mix besan, red chilli powder and salt. Add water, mixing with other hand to get smooth, lump free batter of dropping consistency.

6. Heat oil in a kadhai/wok. Dip the aloo balls in the batter and deep fry in the oil. Fry till golden brown.

7. Drain on an absorbent paper and serve alu bonda hot with tomato ketchup or some chutney.

Bread pakora

Bread pakora is one of my favorite fritters. I wonder why I didn’t post it earlier.  Bread pakora is a famous street food in India and is available at street vendors with their assortment of chutneys. You can watch the whole process of their making at these vendors.

Recipe of bread pakora/ pakoda

6 bread slices

1 cup besan (gram flour/ chickpea flour)

1/2 cup boiled and mashed potatoes

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

Salt to taste

1 inch piece ginger- chopped

2 green chillies- finely chopped

1/4 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp amchoor (dried mango powder)

Oil to deep fry

1. Mix salt and red chilli powder to besan. Add water little by little so as to prepare a lump free batter. Batter consistency should be thick pakora (fritters) batter like.

2. Mix salt, garam masala, green chillies, amchoor and ginger in mashed potato.

3. Cut each bread slice into 2 triangular pieces to get 12 triangles.

4. Divide potato mixture into 6 portions. Place potato mixture on 1 bread slice and cover it with another.

5. Heat oil in a kadhai/wok or a frying pan. When the oil is sufficiently hot, turn the heat to medium. Dip each potato stuffed bread in besan batter and deep fry in oil. Fry bread pakoda from both sides till golden brown.

6. Drain on an absorbent paper and serve bread pakora hot with chutney or tomato sauce.

peanut sundal

Peanut sundal is a street food of South India. It is famous on the beach of Chennai. I love peanut in any form and find it very filling. Peanuts are full of proteins and healthy fatty acids. Try this peanut sundal, I am sure you will like it.

Recipe of peanut sundal

2 cups raw peanuts (groundnuts/moongphali)

4-5 curry leaves

A pinch of hing (asafoetida)

2-3 green chillies- chopped

Salt to taste

1 onion - chopped

1 tbsp oil

1 tbsp lemon juice

1/4 tsp rai (small mustard seeds)

1. Pressure cook peanuts to 2 whistles. Drain and set aside.

2. Heat oil in a kadhai/wok. Add rai and curry leaves. Fry for 1/2 a minute.

3. Add hing, green chillies and onion and fry for 1 minute.

4. Add peanuts, salt and lemon juice. Stir-fry for 2 minutes. Serve peanut sundal hot.

Misal pav is a famous street food of Maharashtra. Cooked sprouted dals also called ‘usal’ is served with chopped onion, sev, farsan on top of it along with pav bread is called misal pav or missal pav. It’s a very tasty food and if you don’t add sev or farsan over it, it’s a low calorie, healthy food.

Recipe of misal pav

2 cups sprouted moong dal (green gram) and moth dal (matki/ brown gram)

2 onions- chopped

2 green chillies- slit

1 tsp ginger-garlic paste

1/2 cup farsan

Coriander leaves- chopped

1/2 tsp rai (small mustard seeds)

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

1/2 tsp garam masala powder

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp cumin powder

Few curry leaves

1 tbsp oil

A pinch of hing (asafoetida)

Lemon juice

Lemon cut into slices

6-8 pav

1. Heat oil in a pan and add rai. When it splutters, add hing. Add curry leaves and half of the chopped onions. Sauté till onion turn light pink.

2. Add ginger-garlic paste and green chillies. Saute for 1 minute.

3. Add sprouted dals. Add coriander, turmeric, red chilli and cumin powders. Mix well.

4. Add 3 cups of water and salt. Bring it to boil.

5. Add garam masala and cook covered for 10-12 minutes.

6. To serve the misal pav, place ladleful of cooked dal or usal in a bowl. Sprinkle remaining onion, farsan over the dal. Pour lemon juice and coriander leaves over it.

7. Serve it with pav and lemon slices.

Ragda patties

Ragda patties are a famous chaat item of Mumbai. It is known as aloo tikki ki chaat in Northern India. In one of my earlier blog posts, I have given the recipe of preparing aloo tikki or patties and now have given its link below. You can also put chopped onion and green coriander leaves over the ragda patties.

Recipe of ragda patties (pattice)

Ingredients of ragda

1 cup safed matar (dry white peas/ white watana)

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

A pinch of hing (asafoetida)

Salt to taste

Recipe of aloo tikki (patties)

Rest of the ingredients

1 tsp chaat masala

Green chutney

Sweet tamarind (imli) chutney

Beaten curd

1. To prepare ragda, wash and soak white peas overnight or for at least 6 hours. Drain.

2. Place soaked white matar along with water, salt, turmeric powder and hing. Pressure cook peas till soft. Mash them a little. Keep ragda warm.

3. Prepare aloo tikki or patties as given.

4. Place pattice in a plate and place warm ragda over it.

5. Spoon green chutney, sweet tamarind chutney and curd over the ragda pattice. Sprinkle chaat masala over it. Serve ragda patties hot and immediately.

Bombay bread sandwich

As the name suggests, Bombay bread sandwich is popular in Bombay now called Mumbai. This sandwich is also sold by street vendors in Bombay. It’s a spicy sandwich and healthy one at that. You can skip the butter if want, it still tastes delicious. I have also tried its toasted version but personally I prefer it untoasted and preferences vary, of course.

Recipe of (Mumbai) Bombay bread sandwich

Serves 2

4 slices of bread

1 boiled potato- cut into roundels

Few slices of onion, tomato and cucumber

Butter- as needed

Green (dhania pudina) chutney- as needed

1. Remove edges of bread slices.

2. Take 1 slice of bread and butter it. Spread green chutney over the butter.

3. Place potato roundels over it. Arrange cucumber, onion and tomato slices on it.

4. Take another bread slice and apply butter on it. Apply chutney over the butter.

5. Now, place this 2nd bread slice above the 1st, chutney side down. Similarly make other sandwich with rest of the slices. Serve this sandwich as it is or lightly toast it.

Jal Jeera

Jal jeera or cumin water is a great thirst quencher in summers. It also acts as an appetizer and a great way to start your meal. Because of some of its ingredients, jal jeera also has a rehydrating effect on the body. Jal jeera also act as filling for pani puri or gol gappa. If you are making pani puri at home, this recipe can be used as pani of pani puri.

Recipe of jal jeera (pani of pani puri)

2 tsp roasted jeera (cumin seeds)

A small bunch of mint leaves (pudina)

A small bunch of coriander leaves (cilantro)

1/2 cup tamarind pulp (tamarind or imli soaked in warm water and pulp extracted)

2-3 green chillies

1/2 tsp black salt

Salt to taste

A pinch of sugar

6 cups of water

1. Blend all the above ingredients except water in a blender to a paste.

2. Mix with cold water.

3. Strain through a wire strainer. Adjust spices and salt.

4. Chill in the refrigerator. Serve jal jeera chilled.

Matar ghugni

There are types of ghugni like chana (chickpea) ghugni and matar ghugni. Earlier I made a blogpost of chana ghugni. This is my version of matar ghoogni. For those of you who don’t know about it, it’s a favorite evening snack in Bengal, Bihar, Assam and Orissa. Ghugni is also a chaat item in Eastern India.

Recipe of matar ghugni

2 cups matar (green peas)

1 onion- chopped

1 tomato- diced

1 inch ginger- grated

1 tsp fennel seeds (saunf)

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

1/2 tsp black pepper powder

1/4 tsp garam masala powder

1/2 tsp coriander powder

2 tsp lemon juice

1 tbsp oil

1. Heat oil in a kadhai/wok or a pan. Add fennel seeds and after few seconds add onion.

2. Fry onion till light pink. Add ginger and all the spices and salt. Fry for 2 minutes.

3. Add tomato and cook till tomato pulp out and softens.

4. Add matar and give it a mix. Cook stirring till matar begins to shine.

5. Lower heat, sprinkle some water and cook covered till matar is tender.

6. Uncover and increase heat so that all moisture evaporates. Turn off heat, add lime juice and garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve matar ghoogni hot with either puri or luchi. You can even enjoy a bowlful as a snack.

Healthy Bytes (Nutrition Info.) - Matar or green peas are a good source of vitamin K thus they are important in maintaining bone health. Matar support energy producing systems of the body thus help you if are often sluggish and fatigued.

Ghugni

Ghugni is a Bengali version of chole or ragda. Here I have used chickpeas but green peas or matar is also used for making ghugni. In Bengal, Bihar, Orissa and Assam, ghugni is usually eaten as an evening snack. It is also a popular chaat and street food.

Recipe of ghugni/ ghoogni

1 cup kabuli chana (chickpeas/ garbanzo beans)

1 onion- chopped

1 tomato- chopped

1 bay leaf (tej patta)

1 black cardamom

1 green cardamom

2-3 cloves (laung)

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

1/2 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp ginger-garlic paste

1 1/2 tbsp oil

Salt to taste

1 onion- cut into rings for garnish

1. Soak the kabuli chana overnight. Drain.

2. Pressure cook chana with water for 25-30 minutes.

3. Heat oil in a kadhai/ wok. Add bay leaf, cloves, cumin seeds and cardamoms. Let them splutter.

4. Add onion and sauté till light brown.

5. Add ginger-garlic paste and sauté for 1 minute.

6. Add tomato and rest of the spices and salt. Cook till oil begins to separate.

7. Crush a handful of chana and add along with rest of the boiled chana.

8. Boil on a high heat for 3-4 minutes. Lower heat and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Cook till you get the desired gravy consistency.

9.  Garnish with onion rings and serve ghugni hot with either roti, luchi, poori or rice.