Thursday, November 20, 2008

BOMBAY BHEL



There is nothing like the spicy, tangy, lip smacking street food of India. My mouth simply starts to salivate the minute I think about the "puchkaas"  (as they call them) of kolkata (elsewhere known as golguppas, mini puffed crackers filled with spicy water, mashed potatoes and spices), or the tikki chana and dahi bhalle of delhi, or off course the bhel, vada pao and pao bhaji of bombay.
I have been lucky enough to taste all of these right from where they belong. Well, its actually impossible not to taste street food growing up in India. Each city has its own speciality.
After moving to the US, I literally crave for these tastes and how much ever you try you can not get the same taste like you do back in India. You use exactly the same ingredients, exactly the same method, but alas......something is always missing. Maybe the whole feel of standing on the roadside and eating from a paper plate with people all around you.......

Well before I get nostalgic let me get down to my recipe. Bhel. This is a snack, street food item made out of puffed rice or murmura or muri. Its mixed with boiled potatoes, spices, chutneys, and lemon juice. Make it as hot as you want and you got yourself a tasty bowl of India right in your hands, awakening your senses and your taste buds.

This is my recipe for RECIPE MARATHON DAY 20

You will need
  • boiled potatoes (diced)-1 cup
  • onion diced- 1/2 cup
  • coriander chopped- 1/2 cup
  • muri/murmura/puffed rice-2 cups
  • nylon sev (available at any indian grocery)- 1/2 cup
  • papdi (thin fried crackers, available at indian grocery)- 4-5
  • green chutney- 1/4th cup (make it at home or use store bought ones)
  • tamarind chutney-1/4th cup (make it at home or use store bought ones)
  • green chillies (chopped)-1 tsp
  • peanuts-1/2 cup
  • salt - to taste
  • red chilly powder-1/2 tsp
  • lemon juice- 1 tsp (or more, depending on your taste)
puffed rice


this is what sev looks like


chopped  coriander, onion and potatoes.

You have to 
  1. take a bowl. add the murmura, potatoes, onions and the spices. mix it all up.
  2. crush the papdi and add to the above mixture. 
  3. mix in the chutneys and the peanut. taste. adjust flavouring if you need it more sour or spicy.
  4. put it on a plate, sprinkle some nylon sev and garnish with coriander. 
  5. indulge.......


note: you can keep everything ready, but mix everything only at the time of eating, as it tends to get soggy.

whats smelling so good in all the other marathon kitchens

19 comments:

Pavani said...

looks yummy n i cant stop by hands going into ur bowl

Uj said...

yummy..I love bhel :)

Unknown said...

Wow I love such snacks:) I have never prepared these yummies till now, I always end up missing some major ingredient needed :(

Usha said...

Just looking at it makes me crave for it...:-)

Divya Kudua said...

Hmmm..yummy yummy bhelpuri...have never tried making them at home..always buy it from the local chatwala..;-)...great step by step instructions and pictorial!!

Medhaa said...

you are tempting me, bhel looks yummy

Priya Suresh said...

Yummy bhel...delicious..makes me hunger...

CurryLeaf said...

Lovely pass it over please,would love it any time of the day.

Uma said...

delicious! looks so mouth-watering.

Srikitchen said...

wow delicious and yum
join in the sweet event going in my blog

Unknown said...

Drool....love street foods.Miss them so so much.

ranji said...

DROOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLL...thast exactly what am doing seeing ur pics :)...love bhel..good one :)

karuna said...

thanks a lot everyone for such yummy notes.

raaji said...

nice one......miss this one here....

Andhra Flavors said...

looks great with fresh color.

Srivalli said...

karuna...congrats on your 100th post..sorry haven't been able to visit...but your recent posts are all so lovely as usual!

Anonymous said...

cool blog! the frittata looks amazing! can't wait to try it :)

Yolanda said...

delicious! looks so mouth-watering.

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