Bhel Puri

One of my favorite chaat is Bhel Puri. The best ones I've found are sold by street vendors at their stalls.  It is a very famous push cart food in India. It is similar in style to America's food trucks.  Bhel has been very famous in the Gujarati community for centuries. It is eaten as a snack, sometimes as an appetizer and sometimes as a main meal. In any form, Bhel is always appreciated by any guest and host, too. It is a medley with an array of flavors to tantalize the taste buds including sweet, sour, crunch and rich aromas.

Cooking Time: Varies
Assembly Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Level:  Easy
Recipe Type: Vegan
For Jain Recipe: Omit potatoes & onion & add cubed apple and/or cucumber

Ingredients:

1/2	lb.	Mamara (rice krisipes) available at Indian store
		(Bhel mixture is readily available at Indian stores)
1/4	lb.	Thin Sev (crunchy noodles available in Indian store)
3	TBsp	Roasted Peanuts
2	Small	Potatoes, cubed
1	Small	Onion, cubed
		Green Sauces (also ready-made available)
		Date Sauce
		Garlic Sauce
	Few	Cilantro Leaves, chopped
		Lemon Wedges, optional
1	Small	Raw Mango, cubed

Directions: 

1. Mix all the ingredients very well. 
2. Garnish with thin sev, cilantro and onions.

Let me know what you think by leaving a comment! I love to hear from my readers!

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This Week's Healthy Tip

Popular North Indian Chaats (Snacks) & Their Health Benefits 

From fitho.com:

Aloo Chaat: Crisp brown deep fried potato pieces served with, chaat masala and a mixture of sweet and tangy chutney. Potatoes are healthy, but deep frying them makes them unhealthy. So, clearly this chaat is not something you can indulge in, when you’re trying to watch your weight. If you want to make it healthier, you can pan fry or bake the potatoes with less oil, but it still doesn’t make aloo chat healthy  . So follow the golden rule ‘mind the portion size’ while eating aloo chaat.

Calories: Approximately 350 calories (based on serving size)

Bhel Puri:  Made from puffed rice (murmura, muri) with mash boiled potatoes, sev (yes, they are fried) with, tomatoes, onions along with tangy tamarind sauce and spicy coriander sauce. Bhel Puri is a healthy option in chat and and a good snack if you’re watching your waistline.
Calories: Approximately 200-250 calories (based on serving size)

Pani Puri:  Called by varied names across India- Puchka, Gol Gappa, Bataashaa, Gup Shup, is a round hollow fried crispy shell, and filled with water mixture of tamarind, chili, chaat masala, potato, onion and boiled chole (chickpeas).
Yes, the shell is fried, but the filling is mostly healthy, so this one is on our approved list of chats.
Calories: 150-180 calories for 4-5 medium sizes pieces.

Papri Chaat: A mixture of crispy fried dough wafers made from refined wheat flour, chick peas, boiled potatoes and yoghurt, tamarind chutney which is garnished with sev. This chaat is a borderline case. Its got the benefits of the boiled vegetables, and the benefits of yoghurt nutrition, but the base (papri) is fried and made from refined flour, which has a high glycemic index and is loaded with calories and fat.
Calories: Approximately 300 calories for a medium size serving.

A really healthy chat is yellow matar chat or a fruit chat. As you can see, with most chats, there is a part of it that’s unhealthy. Now, you know what is unhealthy, and what to avoid. So, next time you’re at a chat stall, you won’t be left wondering about the nutrition. If you like to indulge occasionally, its alright.  Just make sure you eat healthy most of the time and you get your exercise in!

Pani Puri - Gol Gappa

Pani Puri with Potatoes, Mung Beans, Chickpeas and Date Sauce

I grew up in India. The thing I miss most are the tasty bites of food from the street vendors which are famously called "chaat."  Here, I've had the chance to eat seven course meals many times. I've been to fancy Italian Restaurants and have savored the food of many different ethnicities.  But still today my taste for chaat remains the same. I have inherited this from my mother and I think I will pass it on to my daughter, too.

At the top of the list is Pani Puri or famously known as Gol Goppa.  It is medley of sweet tastes with little sour touch with spices which tantalize the taste buds.  Chaat is pushcart food which is very likely originated in Northern India.

Cooking Preparation Time: 45 Minutes
Cooking Level: Easy   
Recipe Type: Vegan
Serves: 6            

Ingredients:

2    Medium Potatoes, boiled and smashed Red Chickpeas, soaked and boiled with salt 1    Cup Sprouted Mung Beans 2    Tsp Fresh Ginger Paste 2    Tsp Fresh Green Chili Paste 2    Cups Fresh Mint Leaves, washed and plucked Fresh Cilantro Salt to Taste Pepper to Taste 1    Tsp Black Salt or Kala Namak 2    TBsp Sugar 2    TBsp Fresh Lemon Juice Tamarind & Date Sauce (Recipe on Blog) Roast & Grind in Coffee Mill: 2    Tsp Cumin Seeds 2    Cloves 2    Cinnamon Sticks 2    Tsp Fennel Seeds, roasted

How to Prepare:

1. Boil two potatoes and mash them.
2. Season with salt, pepper, red chili and cilantro. Set aside.
3. One cup of mung bean sprouts that has been boiled with salt.
4. One cup red chickpeas boiled with salt. (optional)
5. Pani means "water with spices" which is the main taste. To make pani for pani puri: blend fresh mint with green chili, ginger paste, sugar, lemon juice, black salt, 2 tsp of grounded powder of cumin seeds and regular table salt.  Set aside. Refrigerate for couple of hours.
6. Microwave puris for 30-40 seconds.
7. Crack open puris and fill with mung beans, potatoes and red chickpeas.
8. Dip stuffed puris into water and eat it right away otherwise it will get soggy.
9. Yum! Delicious!

Pani Puri or Gol Gappa

Chaat is a Hindi word for delicacy or possibly pakrit for devouring with relish whatever it is it is always fun to eat with friends.