Papdi chaat
- Preparation and cooking time
- Prep:
- Cook:
- Plus 1 hr resting time
- Easy
- Makes around 50 papdis
Ingredients
For the papdi
- 150g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- 150g wholewheat flour (chapati flour)
- 50g fine semolina
- 2 tsp carom seeds (ajwain seeds)
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp ghee
- vegetable oil, for deep-frying
For the topping
- 400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 150g boiled potatoes, roughly cut into 2cm cubes
- 2 tsp chaat masala
- 1 green chilli, finely chopped
- ½ tsp black salt (or use regular salt)
- 2 tsp rapeseed oil
- tamarind sauce
- 1 pomegranate
- 1 medium red onion, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp finely chopped coriander
- 4 tbsp nylon sev (gram noodles)
- raita (recipe below)
- green chutney (recipe below)
For the raita
- 200g Greek-style yogurt
- 2 tsp lime juice
- ½ tsp chilli powder
- ½ tsp sugar
- ½ tsp roasted cumin powder
For the green chutney
- 2 tbsp raw red-skinned peanuts
- small bunch of coriander, leaves washed and roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp mint leaves, roughly chopped
- 1 large garlic clove
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1½ tsp sugar
- 2 green chillies, roughly chopped
Method
- STEP 1
For the papdi, put both the flours, semolina, carom seeds, cumin seeds and 1 tsp salt in a mixing bowl. Gently mix the dry ingredients with your fingers, then mix in the ghee until you have a breadcrumb-like texture. Gradually mix in up to 10 tbsp lukewarm water, 2 tbsp at a time, until you form a dough and there are no bits left on the sides of the bowl. Turn out onto a clean work surface and knead a few times to form a soft dough. Put the dough back in the bowl and cover with a damp tea towel. Rest for 1 hr.
- STEP 2
Divide the dough into six equal balls. Flatten with the palm of your hand, then put on a lightly floured work surface. Roll out into a circle approximately 2mm in thickness. Using a 5cm cookie cutter, cut out as many circles as possible. Put each on a floured work surface to stop it from sticking. Repeat with the other five balls of dough. Once all the papdis have been cut out, take a fork and gently prick them about three times. This stops the papdi from puffing up.
- STEP 3
Half-fill a wok or karai with veg oil and heat until one papdi dropped in bubbles and rises to the top. Gently lower a few more into the oil, taking care not to add too many at once. Try to fry them as horizontally as possible to get flat papdis. Cook for a few minutes until golden. They can also be baked: put on baking sheet lined with baking parchment and cook in the oven at 180C/160C fan/gas 4 for 25 mins, turning halfway through, until golden. Once the papdis have been cooked, leave to cool to room temperature.
- STEP 4
Meanwhile, put all the raita ingredients in a small mixing bowl along with ½ tsp salt and mix well to combine. Keep chilled until ready to use. Will keep chilled for a day.
- STEP 5
To make the green chutney, heat a small frying pan over a medium heat. Add the raw peanuts and toast them for around 3-4 mins, ensuring they don’t burn. Take off the heat and leave to cool for a few minutes, then tip into a blender with the coriander, mint, garlic, lemon juice, 1½ tsp salt, the sugar, chillies and 3 tbsp water. Blitz to a thick paste. Check for seasoning and add more salt and pepper, if necessary.
- STEP 6
To assemble the papdi chaat, put the following topping ingredients into a bowl: chickpeas, potatoes, chaat masala, chopped chilli, black salt and oil. Fold the ingredients together, making sure everything is well mixed and occasionally mash the potato and chickpea with a fork so it all binds together. Set aside.
- STEP 7
On a large serving dish or plate, lay out the papdi quite close to each other to cover the base of the dish. Generously add the chickpea and potato mixture on top of the papdis. Drizzle over the tamarind sauce and repeat with the raita. With a teaspoon, add half spoonfuls of the green chutney around the topping. Sprinkle over the pomegranate seeds, onions and coriander over. Generously sprinkle the gram noodles over the dish and serve. Serve straightaway.
