Aloo Chaat

Chaat which literally means 'to lick or taste' in Hindi is a very popular Indian street food. Chaat is a generic name for a tangy and spicy mix, whose ingredients can be quite varied. It can be tangy, spicy, sweet, salty, crunchy and soft all at the same time. Some common chaats include pani puri, bhel puri, sev puri, dahi puri and papdi chaat.

I had some extra potatoes sitting in the pantry so I boiled them yesterday and was planning on making aloo tikki (potato pancakes) for breakfast. Instead, I thought I would try something a bit different.

2 potatoes, boiled, peeled and cubed
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
2-3 green chilies, chopped
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp chaat masala
Pinch of garam masala
Pinch of turmeric
Pinch of asafoetida
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp sugar
2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 onion for garnish
1/2 tomato for garnish
Chopped cilantro for garnish
Sev for garnish

1. Boil potatoes in pressure cooker. When they cool down, peel and chop them into cubes.
2. Heat oil in skillet. Add cumin seeds and let crackle.
3. Then add the green chilies, asafoetida, and turmeric.
4. Sautee for few seconds and then add the boiled potatoes followed by red chili powder, salt, sugar, chaat masala, and garam masala.
5. Mix well so that all the potatoes are evenly coated with the spices. Before taking off heat, add the lemon juice.
6. Serve hot or cold with garnish as follows: Spiced potatoes topped with sev first, then onion-tomato-cilantro mixture.

* Chaats would not be chaats without cilantro chutney and tamarind chutney. I did not have these chutneys on hand so did without them. If you have, you would mix the potatoes with the chutneys first, then top with sev followed by the mixture.