Chaat Attack - A Burst of 'Desi n Firangi' Flavors

As they say, 'time flies', and it truly does. With memories of past left behind and a glorious future awaiting, the present finds its way amidst the two, balancing them and nurturing itself. At times when I look back, the glimpses of the old posts drive me nostalgic, urging me to leave everything aside and get back in full swing to the magic and charm of writing. The day sooner would arrive when this fascination of mine would find its way ahead of just dreams and thoughts, and when 'time' would give me 'time' to express my love for cooking in form of words again.

The last three years were years of panoptic learning. Though I could not write much, but heaps of knowledge and oodles of experience brought forward another meaning of 'cooking' to me. From a doctor, I turned into a blogger, then a mommy blogger, and then a Caterer. Amsterdam showered its love on me with bountiful challenges. I chose not to just sit back and write, but to take a step further and make this blog 'go live'. With passion of cooking running in my nerves, the brain decided to take the challenge up, where everything would have to be managed alone and in a given time frame. Stress Management and Time Management were the two special attributes that I learnt the most in these two years. And now when I see my old blogs, yes, I feel time flies. The only thing that kept missing from all the fire and passion was 'innovation'. I was sticking to authentic Indian way of cooking with the set recipes as that was what everyone in this foreign land was looking for. Appreciation, love, admiration, encouragement and blessings were all the way and they stirred up the ardor in me to learn more Indian recipes in just the perfect Indian way. My predilection for Indian desserts/sweets and Chaats made catering even easier and interesting for me. I started experimenting on halwas that I had just tasted in royal weddings in Udaipur and soon the fingers, brain and taste buds learnt to replicate them. In winters, I came up with Moong Daal Halwa(Fudge), Badam Halwa, Akhrot/Walnut Halwa, Anjeer Halwa and Gaund Urad Halwa, but still the soul of creativity was missing somewhere.

An year back, some magic happened. As if the fairy godmother of Cindrella had heard my words and came to cast the spell on me; it was unbelievable. The Indian Ladies Event Group in Amsterdam came up with a cooking competition titled 'Mallika-e-Kitchen' with 'starters' being the theme. Thoughts were stormed and innovation found its soul in my cooking finally. The first click for me was 'Chaat', but Chaat had to be really different this time. After hours of rigorous cerebration, the cerebrum finally figured what and how should come on the serving plate. All I knew was that it would be a blend and burst of both 'desi' and 'firangi' flavors. I named it 'Chaat Attack' and won second prize with blessings and love of all food lovers. The platter had five different elements to it, all of which have been mentioned here. At first I decided to put them all straight in a single post, but then thought of showering the magic gradually in installments, so here I go with the first element of the Chaat Attack and the rest shall follow in rhythm. Get ready to dive in the tangy zesty flavors of this desi videshi chaat. :)

CHAAT ATTACK -

1. Firangi Aloo Matar Chaat (Potato Cups with Peas Filling)
2. Strawberry Shots (Pani Puri/Crispy Puffed Bread with Strawberry Lemonade)
3. Rasam Shots (Pani Puri/Crispy Puffed Bread with South Indian Rasam/Tangy Curry)
4. Pizza Chaat in Baked Tart
5. Cone Chana(Chickpea) Chaat






1. FIRANGI ALOO MATAR CHAAT (Potato Cups with Peas Filling)

Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 4

For the Aloo Katori/Potato Cup - 

Ingredients:
1) Boiled Potato (3 medium sized)
2) Corn Flour: 1 tbs
3) Salt as per taste
4)Turmeric: 1/2 tsp
5) Oil: for deep frying



Method:

1. Boil 3 medium sized potatoes and mash them well.
2. Add turmeric powder, salt and corn flour to the mashed potatoes and divide the mixture is four equal portions.
3. Take the first portion and shape it like a cup/katori using your palm and fingers. 
4. Heat oil in a frying pan/wok/kadai. Turn the flame to medium and carefully slide the aloo katori/potato cup in the oil. I usually keep it on the sieved ladle and immerse the ladle in oil. For the first one minute, I let the aloo katori/potato cup sit on the ladle and then I slide it into the oil. 
5. Fry till the katori/cup turns golden brown. Turn it and let the other side brown as well.
6. Take it out on a kitchen roll to remove the extra oil. 
7. Repeat the same for all the katoris/bowls.

For the Matar/Peas Filling -

Ingredients:

1. Boiled Dried Peas - 150 gms

2. Ginger garlic paste: 1 tsp

3. Finely chopped green chillies: 2

4. Turmeric Powder: 1/2 tsp

5. Coriander Powder: 2 tsp

6. Red Chilli Powder: 1/2 tsp

7. Cumin seeds: 1/4 tsp

8. Salt to taste

9. Chana/Chhola Masala: 1 tsp

10. Asafoetida: a pinch

11. Oil

Method:

1. Soak dried peas overnight and then boil them in the morning taking 2-3 whistles. (The cooking time may vary based on the quality and type of peas used)
2. Take oil in a frying pan and heat it. 
3. Add cumin seeds and asafoetida to it followed by chopped green chillies and ginger garlic paste. 
4. Now add all the spices and immediately add the boiled peas. Cook this for 3-5 minutes.

For the Dressing:

1. Cherry Tomatoes: 4

2. Cream Cheese - 100 gms

3. Mayonnaise/Hung Yogurt: 1 tbs

4. Dried Mint Leaves: 1/4 tsp

5. Grated Cucumber: 2 tbs

6. Green Mint Coriander Chutney

7. Yellow and Red Bell Pepper for decoration

Method:

1. Finely slice the bottom of the cherry tomatoes to make them sit. 
2. Now slice the top and scoop/spoon them to remove all the seeds from within.
3. Prepare Filling Mixture A by adding 4 tbs cream cheese, 1 tbs mayonnaise/yogurt,  and grated cucumber. Fill this mixture in a plastic cone/icing cone.
4. Prepare Filling Mixture B by adding 4 tbs cream cheese with dried mint leaves and fill this in a plastic cone/icing cone.
5. Slice the bell peppers in shapes you adore.

Assembling the Dish:

1. Take the Aloo Katori/Potato Cup and layer it with the Filling Mixture B.
2. Now top this with the matar/peas mix.
3. Smear the peas with the green chutney on top.
4. Take the cherry tomato and fill it with the Filling Mixture A. Place it over the green chutney.
5. Now embellish the cherry tomato with designed/sliced bell peppers.

Suggestions:

1. The deep fried potato cups be replaced by boiled n baked potato jackets as well. You can boil the potato, cut it into half, spoon out the centre and bake in an oven.
2. Instead of corn flour, you can also use bread crumbs in the potato bowl for that extra crisp.
3. Do not store the potato cups in a closed container else they will turn soggy. It is always better to consume them fresh, when on plate.
4. You can also make a peas curry using tomatoes and onions. This could be a gravy variation to the regular dry peas.
5. If the potato cups are breaking while frying, that indicates that the binding corn flour has to be increased. 
6. You can also make shallow fried aloo tikkis/potato patties and use them in a similar way by forming different layers with different elements. :)

Chatpati Palak Patta Chaat (Spinach Fritters)

How many of you count on calories before picking up the kitchen ladles and jars for trying out a new recipe? Well, for sure I'm not the one. I hardly think about the calories, the fat content, the sugars and carbs when I'm in a mood to try out a recipe. Though I'm a doctor and this is quite contradictory to how my behavior should be, but who says doctors don't have diabetes or hypertension. Jokes apart, I believe in eating good, and good here means something that is soul-satisfying.
Now this recipe here on this page is pretty close to my heart and tongue both, because it has been reigning these two for years. How can I forget the first time I saw this and had love at first sight. (My hubby was surely jealous about this! :P) That was the first time ever I had heard of something like that, I mean a 'Chaat' with 'Palak'!! Since then, I've been wanting hard to make this but don't know what was keeping me aback. Finally when I made this a couple of days back (You know how lazy am I not to post things on time!), I was almost on cloud nine, before even tasting it and getting remarks from my better loving half. As usual he said 'acchha hai', with his mind completely engrossed in some stupid cricket match, and hardly giving his taste buds the chance to relish something as great as this. Anyway, men are finally men, so I moved forward with my own bowl and skipped my dinner that evening because of this chatpati chaat (I'm sure many of you can do that! ;))



CHATPATI PALAK PATTA CHAAT

Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Makes 10 Servings

Info Meter:

• Spinach is an excellent source of many vitamins and minerals, especially folic acid.
• Spinach is not only great for women, children and growing teens, but it can slow the age related decline in brain function and has anti-inflammatory properties.
• During the First World War, wine was fortified with spinach juice and given to French soldiers weakened by hemorrhaging.
• It is always advisable to cook the spinach than consuming raw spinach.

Ingredients:
For Palak Pakoda/Fritters:
1. Palak Patta/ Spinach Leaves: 10
2. Besan/Gram/Chickpea Flour: 1 cup
3. Water: 1 cup + 2 tbs
4. Salt: 1 tbs or as per taste
5. Turmeric Powder: 1/2 tsp
6. Jeera/Cumin Powder: 1/2 tsp
7. Red Chilli Powder: 1 tsp
8. Coriander Powder: 2 tsp
9. Garam Masala: 1/4 tsp (optional)
10. Asafoetida/ heeng: a pinch
11. Oil: for deep frying

For Chaat:
1. Spicy Green Chutney
2. Sweet Tamarind/Imli Chutney
3. Bhel Ki Sev
4. Anaar/ Pomegranate Seeds



Method:
For Palak Pakoda/ Fritters:

1. Clean the palak/spinach leaves with water and pat them dry. Be careful not to break them.
2. If the leaves are too big, cut them into two halves each.
3. Now prepare the batter by adding the besan/gram flour with all the spices and water.
4. Add water slowly and keep mixing continuously so as to avoid formation of lumps.
5. When the batter reaches ketchup-like consistency, stop any further addition of water.
6. Heat some oil in a pan.
7. Check if it is properly heated by dropping a small portion of the batter and notice if it immediately rises up and starts floating. If so, the oil is ready.
8. Now carefully take one leaf/patta at a time in your palm. Coat it with the batter on both the sides and slide it smoothly in the hot oil.
9. Flip over after a minute and see that both are sides are well fried and are golden brown.
10. Take it out and drain any excess oil on a kitchen tissue. 
11. Fry the leaves one by one after coating them with the batter.
12. Do not keep them aside for cooling as this chaat is enjoyed hot and crisp.

Assembling The Chaat:

1. Now take one crisp spinach leaf/ palak patta and smear it lightly with spicy green chutney and tamarind/imli chutney.
2. Shower some pomegranate/ anaar pearls over it and finally ornament with bhel ki sev.
3. Serve immediately else the leaves will so soggy and soft.

Suggestions:

1. You can also add 2 tbs of rice flour to the batter to make the fritters even crispier.
2. Adjust spices as per your taste.
3. This dish is not meant for storing and keeping, rather make it and finish it at one go.
4. It always tastes heaven when served immediately so that the leaves stay crisp.
5. You can also add chopped onions and tomato to the chaat while assembling.
6. If the batter is too thick, the leaves will have a softer and thicker coat, but if it too runny, the batter will all scatter in the pan, so make sure the consistency is right.

Desi Chatpata Mango Salsa

 

Aeonian blogging for months and then a sudden breach that kept me on a lazy halt for around 2 months....gosh, this was so awkward and undesirable!! Once you lose the pace for going, you naturally go dumb and otiose, and so was I during the past couple of days. The beginning was great, being at mom's place and hogging on those yummilicious desi plates full of love and spice, but then came a phase of indolence in which my cooking and baking got lost somewhere..... but now I feel rejuvenated in travelling back to those glorious days of culinary practice again. To begin with, I could not think any better than jumping on the king of fruits, which also happens to be the star ingredient of this month's 'Cooking Made Easy Series' of mine: Mango

Of all the recipes I received so far for this event, I found 'Mango Salsa' the most tempting and easiest and thought of replicating it with a few changes to make it typically khatta meetha and Indian, so here comes the Desi Chatpata Mango Salsa.

DESI CHATPATA MANGO SALSA

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

1. Ripe Mango: 1 

2. Onion: 1

3. Tomato: 1

4. Salt: 1 tsp or as per taste

5. Olive Oil: 1 tbs

6. Honey: 1 tbs

7. Lemon Juice: 1 tsp

8. Chat Masala: 1 tsp
9. Black Pepper Powder: 1/2 tsp

Method:

1. Peel off the mango and cube it in small pieces.
2. Chop the tomato and onion finely. 
3. Transfer them to a bowl and add olive oil, honey, salt, lemon juice and chat masala to it. 
4. Give a flip and serve immediately with chips, papad, biryani or anything you wish.

Suggestions:

1. You can use any variety of mango here, but I prefer the tangy yet sweet ones, like the 'Raspuri' or 'Kesar Aam'.
2. You could also add bell pepper and jalapeno, though I found it good even without them. 
3. Addition of honey is a choice. You could skip this if you don't like honey or don't wish the salsa to be sweet.
4. Red Chilli Powder can be added for an extra kick.
5. Always add salt and spices just before serving, else the salsa will start giving up juices and will turn slightly watery.
6. Dried herbs like mint, parsley, basil or oregano can be sprinkled for that over-the-top flavor and aroma. 
7. This can even be served in tarts or small canepes.  

Submitting this to:

 My ongoing event: Cooking Made Easy With Mango,

99 day festival - Mango Mania,

Bon Vivant Fruit Recipes,

Let's Cook With Fruits by Radhika,

Summer Spunk by Anusha

Ragda Patties/ Aloo Tikki Matar Chaat

 

The journey to childhood is a dream I often see, with wide open eyes on a sunny day, chewing some nuts, flipping old pictures and virtually behaving like a kid again. Have you ever walked, rather jumped in a hopping fashion like frogs when you were a kiddo? I used to do that and sometimes even now I feel like giving some bumpy jumps and run around the house like a kid. Now, with my little one around, it's not difficult to try all that since I teach her funny things and we play together, from 'Ringa ringa roses' to ' I Meena, Super Cello' , and she just loves all that. She would wake up in the bed clapping on my hands and calling, 'Mumma, I Meena....' and I simply adore those nights and this beautiful time blessed with her.

Now, when my child soul has been awakened by these breezy thoughts, I want to go back to the times in old eightees (80's) when all we cousins used to bang our gang in summer holidays and then my nani who used to give 2 Rs to each kid every day re-livens in my flash-back memories. We would add all the money and walk ahead for a new story everyday, counting the coins and then finger-pointing the hit list menu for that day. I can still smell the Pani Puri and Aloo Chaat we used to relish on the street sides and I can't get my mind off the 'Gota/ Burf ka Gola' and the special Falooda; also the tangy tongue-tickling 'imli' and 'kokam', and not forgetting the 'Soda' with the crackling sound of the glass ball that used to tickle on opening the bottle....aaaah... I really really wish, from beneath my heart, that I could live those days again, and I'm so upset that the next generation will certainly miss all this because our pure souls have disappeared somewhere in this mad flashy crowd. But grazing against the wind, I would surely love her to at least feel a morsel of that, and this is what pushes me to recall and try every tit-bit I enjoyed then. I promise ( and I really mean it!), I'll brighten my space with all these recipes some or the other day because I just don't want to miss on any of them. :)

Since I want to start with a chatar-patar chatpat snack, I can't think of anything better than Aloo Tikki Chaat aka Ragda Patties...very famous on the stall of 'Chhotu Bhai' at 'Sukhadia Circle' but I love even the small street corner stalls which serve them with a vibrant spicy tinge. I always used to ask the stall-boy to add in some more Mint Chutney because I love this herb to its core and now replicating that recipe is surely not an easy job, but I almost reached there with a heart throb. 

RAGDA PATTIES/ ALOO TIKKI MATAR CHAAT

Preparation Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 20 minutes ( excluding the Matar and Aloo boiling part)

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

For Patties/ Tikki:

1. Potatoes/ Aloo: 6 (boiled, peeled and mashed)

2. Mix veggies ( I used the frozen ones): Carrots, cauliflower, beans, peas and corns - (optional)

3. Turmeric Powder: 1 tsp

4. Salt: 2 tsp or as per taste

5. Green Chillies: 2 ( finely chopped) - optional

6. Coriander Powder: 1 tbs

7. Cumin Powder: 1 tsp

8. Red Chilli Powder: 1 tsp

9. Garam Masala: 1 tsp

10. Bread Crumbs: 1/4 cup or corn flour: 3 tbs

11. Oil/Ghee: for deep/shallow frying

For Ragda/Matar:

1. Yellow dried peas/ Sookha Matar: 1 and a half cups

2. Onions: 2 (finely chopped)

3. Tomatoes: 3 (finely chopped)

4. Ginger garlic paste: 1 tbs (optional)

5. Green Chillies: 2 (finely chopped)

6. Turmeric Powder: 1 tsp

7. Red Chilli Powder: 1 tsp or more

8. Cumin Powder: 1 tsp

9. Coriander Powder: 2 tbs

10. Salt: 2 tsp or as per taste

11. Garam Masala: 1 and a half tsp (If you want it hotter and spicier, add in a little more)

For the final garnish:

1. Chopped onions:2

2. Chopped tomatoes: 2 (optional)

3. Green Coriander Mint Chutney

4. Tamarind Chutney

5. Chopped Coriander leaves

6. Bhel Sev/ Namkeen ( I used 'taar-fini/ soot-fini' here in place of sev)

7. Yogurt/ curd with spices and salt

Method:

For making Patties:

1. Boil the potatoes, peel them off and mash them really well.
2. Steam/microwave/ boil the mix veggies for 5-10 minutes on the other hand.
3. Now take the mashed potatoes. steamed soft veggies, all the spices, salt and bread crumbs/corn flour together and make a soft dough. Do not add any water.
4. Divide the dough in eight or ten equal portions and make flat patties by pressing round balls between your palms. 
5. Since I avoid deep frying the patties, I prefer the shallow-frying method. Take a non stick pan/ skillet (tawa) and pour some oil/ghee on it. Spread it evenly on the skillet/pan. 
6. When the oil/ghee gets enough heated, place the tikkis/patties on the skillet/pan and let them cook for 5 minutes on medium heat.
7. Press a little with a wooden spatula and wait till it turns golden brown on the bottom.
8. Now flip over and pour in some oil/ghee from the sides. Again wait for this side to go golden brown.
9. Keep pressing in between with the spatula because this will help flattening the patty and it will fry evenly.
10. When fully done, take out on a tissue paper and remove all excess oil.
11. The patties are ready to be served.

For the Ragda/Peas Curry/Matar:

1. Soak the yellow dried peas overnight. Next day pressure cook them for around 20 minutes with 1 tbs salt and 1 tsp turmeric.
2. They should become soft and slightly mushy which will help getting a better gravy.
3. Now take oil in a pan and heat it. When optimally hot, throw in the chopped onions.
4. Cook till they go golden brown. Now add in ginger garlic paste (optional) and green chillies  followed by the chopped tomatoes.
5. Cook for 3-5 minutes till they go soft.
6. Push in all the spices (leave 1/2 tsp garam masala to be added towards the end) and remaining salt and cook for 2 minutes till the oil separates.
7. Now add the boiled peas to it and simmer for 10 minutes. Add water if required to get a thin gravy consistency. The gravy should not be thick for Ragda else the chaat will taste very dry.
8. Sprinkle the saved 1/2 tsp garam masala, give a stir and cover the pan to secure the aroma from fusing out. 

Assembling and Presentation:

1. Take a wide bowl/plate/saucer. make 2 tikkis/patties to sit at the bottom.
2. Spoon in some steaming hot ragda/peas gravy ( about 3-4 big spoons).
3. Throw in the chopped onion and tomato.
4. Add yogurt/ curd followed by the green chutney and tamarind chutney.
5. Ornament with chopped coriander leaves and Bhel Sev/Namkeen.
6. I had my Ragda Patties with a 'twist' here. I unfortunately did not have any Bhel Sev so I gave it a slightly different form by adding super crispy 'Taar Fini/ Soot Fini' to the dish. The taste was perfect and the texture fantastic!

 Suggestions:

1. If you wish, you could roll the patties in some corn flour water and then cover them with bread crumbs for extra crispiness, but I prefer skipping this step because I like the Patties just their way.
2. The street side Aloo Tikki generally doesn't have mix veggies, but I admire this healthier version, so it's pretty optional for you to adopt this or not.
3. In place of dried yellow peas, you can also use green peas but then do not pressure cook them for long. 
4. If you wish you can puree the tomatoes and grind the onion paste instead of using the chopped ones.
5. Spices are a matter of taste buds and your stomach response, so use them the way that suits them both. You can always go spicier by adding more green chillies, red chilli powder and garam masala.
6. The deep frying option for patties is always open for people who love sinful delights. 
7. Don't forget, the chutneys are also not bland, they too have chilly in them. 

GREEN CHUTNEY:

Ingredients:

1. Coriander leaves: 1 bunch

2. Mint Leaves: 1 bunch

3. Green Chillies: 1 or 2 ( depending on your taste)

4. Garlic pods: 4

5. Cumin seeds: 1 tsp

6. Cumin Powder: 1/2 tsp

7. Red Chilli Powder: 1/4 tsp (optional)

8. Salt: 1 tsp or as per taste

9. Lemon juice: 1 tbs ( optional)

10. water: for mixing/blending

Method:

1. Take all the ingredients together, leaving behind lemon juice, and grind them into a smooth chutney. 
2. Be sure you wash the leaves properly before use because they have a lot of mud and dirt in them.
3. I generally microwave leaves post washing for about 1-2 minutes to let off all microorganisms, but that is purely optional.
4. At last, drop in the lemon juice (especially if you want the chutney for any further use, like with parathas or sandwiches). I generally add lemon juice after using it for Radga Patties because I avoid putting lemon together with tamarind in the final dish. 
5. The chutney can be refrigerated and reused for 3-4 days. If you wish a longer storage, fill the chutney in an ice tray and freeze into cubes. Then transfer the cubes in a zip-lock or an air tight container and keep in the deep freezer for as long as you want ( 1-2 months).  

TAMARIND/ IMLI CHUTNEY:

Ingredients:

1. Tamarind/ imli paste: 3 tbs ( you can also use the dried imlis here soaked in hot water and then strained)

2. Water: 6 tbs

3. Sugar: 7-8 tbs sugar ( depending on how sweet you want)

4. Black salt: 1/4 tsp

5. Salt: 1 tsp

6. Cumin Powder/ Jeera: 1/2 tsp

7. Fennel Seeds/ Saunf: 1/4 tsp

8. Dried Mint Leaves ( powdered): 1 tsp

Method:

1. If you are using dried tamarind/imli, then soak it in hot/warm water for 10 minutes and then mix it well/blend it. Strain it through a sieve to exclude all coarse impurities. 
2. Take the thick tamarind paste/ strained tamarind paste in a wok/pan. Add sugar, water and take a boil. Do not overheat else the chutney will become sticky on cooling.
3. If you want the chutney slightly runny, add in a little more water before boiling.
4. Push in all the spices followed by the mint herb. 
5. Let it cool and serve as required. 
6. This can also be refrigerated for about 10-15 days, even more.

The recipe flies off to:

Walk Through Memory Lane  by Gayatri

Celebrating Street Foods by Tomato Blues