Papdi chat

I love chat and living in Buffalo there is not much of an option but to make it at home. We recently tried a Papdi Chat kit that was not really good. So I decided to do it properly, taking the recipe from www.showmethecurry.com.

Difficulty level: Easy
Preparation time: 20 min
Makes: 2-3 servings

Ingredients:

Papdi: 40

Potato: 1 medium, cooked, peeled and diced

Tomato: 1/2 medium, finely chopped

Chickpeas/ garbanzo beans: 1/4 cup, cooked or canned

Onion: 1/4 medium, finely chopped

Yoghurt: 3/4 cup, well beaten

Roasted cumin powder: to garnish

Chat masala: to garnish

Salt, red chillipowder: to taste

Mint chutney, tamarind chutney: to taste

Thin sev: 1/2 cup

Add salt (to taste) to the well-beaten yoghurt and mix well and keep aside.

Arrange the papdi on a platter. Sprinkle potatoes, tomatoes & chickpeas on top. Drizzle yoghurt evenly on top. Sprinkle roasted cumin powder, chat masala and red chilli powder to taste. Drizzle tamarind chutney and mint chutney to taste. Sprinkle thin sev to finish it off. Serve immediately.

Corn & pepper Salad

We once had a salad from a chat place in California. It was a really simple, yet tasty one. Even my kids (who are usually not very fond of salads) loved it. So, I decided to re-create it at home.

When I made this for some friends of my husband's from work though, I skipped the chat masala and lime juice.

Difficulty level: Easy

Preparation time: 15 min

Cooking time: Nil

Makes: 8- 10 servings

Ingredients:

Cooked corn: 2 cups

Bell pepper: 1 big, diced to the same size as corn kernels

Salt, pepper: to taste

Chat masala: 1 tsp

Lime juice: 3/4 tsp

Mix everything well, and serve warm or cold.

Dahi puri

This used to be my favourite dish when I was pregnant. Every week I used to go, religiously, to Milan chats & sweets in Chicago, to eat this. I had thought it is tough to prepare. When I realised it's not, took the recipe from Tarala Dalal, and got started.

The yoghurt has to be fresh, chilled and of the right consistency- not too thick nor too thin. If yours is not fresh, add a few tablespoons of milk to cut down the sharp acidic taste.
Add a couple of tablespoons of water to the tamarind paste, if it is too thick. This will ensure the uniform spreading of the chutney inside the puris, and obviously this tastes better.

I tried variations to the original and here are my favourites. I liked cooked (with some salt and turmeric powder) black chana (കടല) instead of the sprouts. Also, I liked chat masala (as garnish), instead of cumin powder.

So you can try for yourself to find out your favourite.

Difficulty level: Easy
Preparation time: 25 min
Makes: 2- 3 servings

Ingredients:


Puris: 40
Sprouts: 2/3 cup
Potatoes: cooked and cubed, 2/3 cup
Tamarind chutney: 1 cup
Yoghurt: 3 cups
Salt to taste

For garnishing:
Sev: 1/2 cup
Chilli powder:2 tsp
Cumin powder: 2 tsp
Cilantro: chopped, 2 tbsp

Add the salt to the yoghurt and mix well. Add a couple of tbsps of water to the tamarind chutney, if it is too thick.

Crack holes on top of the puris and arrange on a serving platter. Fill it with sprouts, potatoes, tamarind chutney and top with yoghurt. Sprinkle sev, chilli powder and cumin powder.
Garnish with cilantro and serve immediately. The longer it stays the more soggy it gets, and less appealing.