Kutcchi Dabeli

You all probably know from many of my previous posts that we friends have regular tea get-togethers on Fridays. It gives the kids a chance to have a great time on the last day of the school week and it gives us ladies an excuse to meet and chat and eat tasty snacks. Well this week it was my turn and my choice of snack was this ever -popular Kutcchi Dabeli. For those of you who aren't familiar with Kutcchi Dabeli ,it is a Gujarati snack ,it's name being derived from the place Kutch in Gujarat. But it is a very very popular street food in Maharashtra and is probably just one place below Vada-Pav which tops the best-seller list of street-food.

Very surprisingly though I never ate Kutcchi Dabeli when I was in college. Never even once. I ate it the first time here in England when a friend made it . I just loved it and have ever since wondered why I never ate it earlier. I mean if it tastes so good at home it must be great when eaten on the road-side, right?? Well I definitely will find out the next time I am in Pune ,which unfortunately is not so soon. So till then I will keep making it at home.

Now Kutcchi Dabeli needs a special Masala /Spice Mix which is easily available back home, but not here in UK. The most popular brand is Siddhi Masala , so I had my sister bring me a few packs of that when she last visited. But it can be substituted with cumin-coriander powder and garam masala which is also a blend of the same spices just probably in different proportions.
So now on to the actual process :

Ingredients for approx 12 Dabelis:
12 soft rolls /buns
1 kg potatoes boiled ,peeled and mashed,
1 pack of Dabeli Masala (100 gms) OR
2 tblspns each of coriander and cumin powder, 2 tblspns of garam masala, 1 tblspn of chilly powder,
Salt to taste (you don't need any salt if you are using the dabeli masala . It has everything in it.)
Date and Tamarind Chutney,
Red chilly and garlic chutney (blend red chillies, garlic salt and sugar together in a blender with a little water)

For the garnish:
Seeds of one or two pomegranate,
Sev,
2 finely chopped onion,
Salted/spicy peanuts
Finely chopped coriander

Method:

• Boil and mash the potatoes and keep aside,
• In a pan heat 4 to 5 tbslpns of oil , add to that the mashed potatoes and all of the 100 gms of dabeli masala or the alternative spice powders with the salt. (Remember no salt if using the Dabeli Masala) and mix it all well. Your filling is ready.
• Spread out this filling evenly on to a large plate and garnish generously with all the garnishings as you see in the pic. It looks very pretty.

To serve:

Split a bun in half and spoon both the chutneys in it first, then put about 2 tblspnfuls of potato filling on top .

• Put some more salted nuts and sev if you wish.
• Top again with date and tamarind chutney and close with the top part of the bun.
• Butter the bun on both sides and brown it nicely on a tawa/flat pan.
• Serve hot

S.P.D.P

Have you heard of the abbreviation S.P.D.P before? Well if you are from Pune or have lived in Pune for a while you are sure to know what I am talking about. It's the most popular dish in the most popular cafe in Pune. The dish is Sev Potato Dahi Puri , a tantalising combo of crisp puris filled with boiled potato, beaten yogurt, sweet and sour tamarind chutney, hot chilly and mint sauce, finely chopped onions and tomatoes all topped with more yogurt and crispy sev. In short it is heavenly.

The cafe is of course Vaishali on Ferguson College Road . For those of you who don't know Pune so well Vaishali is the most popular hangout for people of all ages in Pune. Mostly frequented by college going teenagers, it is also a favourite with ladies who come there in groups maybe for theie kitty parties or just to catch up on the latest with their friends , with people who come there for steaming hot idlis and delicious coffee after a session of tennis or badminton in the morning , and of course with pensioners who come there to relax and enjoy the youthful atmosphere . It is considered a great achievement to get a table in Vaishali as soon as you get there. Normally you need to wait at least 10 to 15 mins unless you are fortunate to know a waiter there who will be kind to procure a table for you at once.

So coming back to S.P.D.P it is a dish I have eaten umpteen times at Vaishali and have of course replicated it at home on many occasions too. I made it a few days back and could barely spare a few puris to take a picture of the dish. In my family we are notorious for devouring all kinds of chaat items in a matter of minutes

Making this in the UK requires a bit of planning as the puris are available only at the Indian grocers (you can make them at home but I find that a bit tedious ) and you must have plenty of coriander ,mint and chillies at hand not to mention tamarind and palm sugar or demerara sugar for the chutney .

So you need:
1box of Pani Puris or flat Puris (whichever you prefer, it is easier with the pani puris as they are puffed and therefore easier to fill )
2 large potatoes boiled and coarsely mashed,
3 to 4 cups of sprouted moong beans (this is optional but I recommend it , soak green moong lentils one day earlier and then wrap them up the next morning in a thin cloth till they sprout )
1 large onion finely chopped,
1 large tomato finely chopped,
Sweet and sour tamarind chutney (recipe given below)
Chilly and mint sauce (recipe below)
2 cups beaten yogurt (add a little sugar and salt to this)
Chilly powder to sprinkle on top
Chaat masala to sprinkle on top (available at Indian stores)
Fine Sev (available at Indian stores)
Fresh coriander for garnishing

Whew!! thats quite a list.

Prepare ahead:
Tamarind Sauce or chutney
Boil a handful of tamarind fruit in water till the tamarind goes all soft and pulpy, let it cool a bit, then check to see that there are no seeds in the pulp, remove seeds if you find any. Strain this boiled tamarind so that you have a smooth pulp left ,
Add double the quantity of palmsugar (jaggery) to the pulp, 1 tspn chilly powder, 1 tspn salt, 1/2 tspn each of cumin and coriander powder and blend it all together in a blender. Give it a taste and adjust seasoning. If you find it too sour add more jaggery and blend again.
Your tamarind sauce is ready

For the mint and chilly sauce:
Blend together a handful of mint leaves, 3 green chillies, and a handful of coriander with 2 to 3 tspns of lemon juice and a tspn og salt. Add a little amount of water while blending but keep it to a minimum as we do not want a very runny sauce.

Now the assembling:
To serve place 6 puris on a plate. Make a hole on the top of each one them to put in the different fillings.
First put in the boiled potato bits, then come the sprouted moong beans, now the onion and tomato, , next add the yogurt and the two sauces, and finally top it all with plenty of sev, another lashing of yogurt and season with chaat masala ,chilly powder and salt. Garnish with corainder and serve.

Don't get discouraged by all the prepping that is involved. The final product is worth every bit of effort it takes

Spicy Chana Chaat {Click: Beans & Lentils}

My Entry to Click:Beans& Lentils for the month of May is this lip-smacking and very moreish Spicy Chana Chaat. I could not decide whether to picture raw lentils and beans or something cooked. But this dish made the decision easier. It's a great side or starter with a casual evening meal with friends.

Toss together cooked chana (chick peas), boiled and cubed potato, chaat masala, slices of raw mango, salt ,chilly powder, lemon juice and plenty of fresh chopped coriander. Serve it as a starter or a side and watch it disappear in minutes.

I clicked this pic with my
Sony DSC-P73

Pocket Chaat

This recipe has been at the back of my mind for months now. Since the first time I read it in Tarla Dalal's book which is aptly called "Chaat" I knew I would definitely make this. I liked the name, I liked the picture and I liked the fact that there was broccoli in it. But for one reason or the other it kept taking a back seat. Sometimes I did not have the pita bread ,sometimes the broccoli and otherwise it was the cheese that was missing in my fridge. Finally last week I managed to assemble all the ingredients (as few as they are) and got down to making the dish.

After having tasted it I was very happy that the recipe and the picture in Tarla Dalal's book all live up to the impression they created in my mind. Have it as a tea-time snack , or at supper-time ,or while entertaining friends its a sure shot hit everytime. According to the book this recipe is inspired by the middle eastern Falafal, but is a much simpler version.

I used the recommended Broccoli for the Tikkis but you can substitute it with any other veggie of your choice.

For the cheese and broccoli tikkis:
1 cup finely chopped broccolli
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 green chillies, chopped
2 tablespoons cornflour
3/4 cup grated cheese
1 cup dried bread crumbs
1 tablespoon oil
salt to taste
oil for shallow frying

Procedure for the tikkis:

1.Saute the onions and garlic for a few minutes

2. Add the chopped broccoli and salt to it and fry further for 4 to 5 minutes till the broccoli is almost cooked,

3.Remove from the fire and add the corflour and cheese and mix well,

4. Allow to cool slightly and then make the tikkis

5. Roll the tikkis into bread crumbs and shallow fry.

Accompaniments:
Freash Garlic Chutney and
A crispy salad of 1 medium onion finely sliced,1 tomato, thinly sliced, some shredded lettuce, some coarsely grated carrots

For the fresh garlic chutney:

1 cup garlic cloves

1 tblspn chilli powder,

juice of 1/2 a lemon

salt to taste

Blend all the above into a a chutney. Add a little water if neccessary.

To assemble the dish:

Cut the pitta into half and warm each half in the toaster for about 20 secs. Once it had warmed the pita will open up and create pockets for you to fill. Smear each pita pocket from the inside with the garlic chutney. I also smeared hummus. Put in one Tikki in each pocket and top with the crispy salad. Top up with more chutney if you like and dig in.

Yum Yum Yum!!!!