Healthy Bhel Puri

Bhel Puri is a pretty addictive yet simple Indian street snack or beach snack of Mumbai beaches. It's a type of chat containing crispy puffed rice, spiced fried lentils-peanuts-chickpea flour noodles mixture along with some veggies, seasonings and some sweet n sour condiments. Everything is well mixed to serve immediately. Bhel Puri has a crunchy-creamy texture with the perfect balance of sweet, tangy and spicy condiments that is hard to resist. There are many styles of Bhel Puri and it can be made with just a few things on hand as per personal preference. No need to buy the the pre-packaged Bhel Mix. It's super easy to make at home with staple pantry ingredients. 

Puffed rice is a pantry staple and sometimes I buy spiced fried lentils-peanuts-chickpea flour noodles mixture to mix with puffed rice without adding anything else to munch on. As a special treat I make this this healthy version that I learned from one of my Marathi friends. Original version has more fried stuff but this version has little bit of spiced fried lentils-peanuts-chickpea flour noodles mixture just for enough crunch, mostly puffed rice along with boiled potatoes, boiled black chickpeas, chopped onion, chopped tomatoes, chilies, chili powder, homemade chat masala(my version) and two fresh chutneys. Leave out the fried stuff and use the fresh roasted peanuts. It's a very forgiving recipe and everyone loves it! This recipe serves up to 5 people and I make each serving individually to avoid sogginess. Chutneys can be made ahead of time and stays fresh in the refrigerator.

Ingredients~

(US customary units)

4 cups puffed rice

1 cup fried lentils-peanuts-chickpea flour noodles mixture

1/8 cup dry roasted desiccated coconut(optional)

1 cup boiled potato, cut into small pieces

1/2 cup boiled black chick peas

1/2 cup chopped tomato

1/2 cup chopped cucumber

1/2 cup chopped red onion

Chat masala

Red chili powder

coriander chutney

tamarind chutney

Green chilies

Lime wedges

A few coriander leaves

Tamarind Chutney~
1/4 cup seedless tamarind, tightly packed 
1 cup water
1/8 teaspoon red chili powder
1/8 tsp black salt 
1/2 cup jaggery or sugar as per taste

~Boil the tamarind, sugar and water in a medium sauce pan, then simmer over low heat until the mixture turns a medium thick consistency. Turn off the heat, cool it completely and sieve it through a strainer by pressing with a back of a spoon. Keep it aside.

Coriander-Mint Chutney~
1/4 cup fresh coriander/cilantro leaves with thin stalks, washed and cleaned
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, washed and cleaned
1-2 green chilies or as per heat tolerance
1/2 Cup Water
2 tsp lime or lemon juice or as per taste
1/8 tsp salt or as per taste

~Blend together coriander/mint leaves, green chilies to make a smooth consistency as much as possible. Mix with lemon/lime juice and salt. Store in a glass container.

Chat Masala~
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp coriander seeds
1/4 tsp red chili powder

1/2 tsp amchur/dry mango powder
1/4 tsp black salt

~Dry roast the cumin and coriander seeds till light brown and fragrant. Let it cool completely. Grind to a smooth powder. Mix with black salt and chili powder. Taste and adjust as per taste preference.

Method~

Dry roast puffed rice without changing its color for about 3-4 minutes on medium heat. Season boiled potatoes with little chat masala. Mix puffed rice with fried lentils-peanuts-chickpea flour noodles mixture, little boiled potatoes, boiled black chickpeas,  onions, tomato cucumber, toasted coconut(optional) chaat masala, chili powder, tamarind chutney and coriander-mint chutney all together as per your liking.  Serve immediately as is or with tea. Enjoy!

Happy Cooking!