Bhel-Puri

Bhel-Puri is one of our favorite evening tea-time snacks. Cannot emphasise on how much both of us love chats, pani puri, masala puri, jhal moori. Its nice because Bhel-Puri has a distinct flavour of its own and has crunch, sweetness, spice, tanginess and all the goodness of the world. I usually prefer having all the chutneys done and ready and use them as and when we require. We are regular Chat, Pani-Puri and Bhel-Puri eaters. I feel this is the quickest, fastest and easiest snack to make provided your pantry is well stocked and has everything required. My favorite chat items are:

# Sev Puri - My favorite place to eat would be at Panjim and Mapusa, Goa from the local cart sellers. You would find plenty around Miramar Beach, Panjim - Goa.

# Pani-Puri - My favorite place to eat would be at Karthik's, Bangalore. They serve the most tastiest Pani-Puri's I have eaten + at Elco Arcade, Bandra (West). Elco's Pani-Puri also serves the Puri's with chilled Mineral water :)

# Bhel Puri - My favorite place to eat would be at Goregaon (West) market and at Khao Galli near Zaaveri Bazaar - Mumbai.

# Masala Puri - My favorite place to eat would be at Ratbeeri, Udupi sold by a lone chat seller in that area. His stall is perched in a cosy corner neat Woodlands Hotel, Udupi.

Mom makes Pani-Puri's Puri which is almost 200 of them in a row at home. I happily sit in the kitchen and keep munching these crispy lovely puri's. I have the recipe will make some time soon.

Recipe adapted from my mom's style of Bhel-Puri with few changes

Serves ~ 4 individuals

Ingredients:

Puffed Rice - 4-5 cups

Sev - 1 cup

Paapdi and Gaathiya mix - 1 cup

Cashewnuts (chopped) - 1/3 cup

Tomatoes (chopped) - 1

Onions (finely chopped) - 1

Potatoes (boiled and diced) - 2

Lime Juice - 2 teaspoon

Red Chilli Powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Chat Masala - 1/2 teaspoon

Coriander leaves - for garnishing - 4 sprigs (chopped)

Salt to taste

For Green Chutney:

Coriander leaves - 8 springs (chopped)

Green Chillies - 2

Mint leaves (optional) - 3-4 sprigs (chopped)

Grind these to a fine paste.

For Imli-Khajoor-Gur Chutney:

Tamarind juice - 1/3 cup

Jaggery - 1 tablespoon

Cumin seeds powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Dates juice - 6-7 teaspoon

Mix all to form a fine paste

Method:

Take a large mixing bowl and mix in the dry ingredients first - Puffed Rice, Paapdi, Gaathiya, Sev. Add in the chutneys both green and brown and all the powders. Add the tomatoes, potatoes and onions. Toss well. The Puffed Rice should be crisp and nice. It adds to the flavour (you could microwave it for 20 seconds for extra crispness). Garnish with Paapdi and Coriander leaves. Serve with Cardamom Tea.