Bhel Puri Chaat is one of the most popular street-style chaat recipes made of puffed rice, vegetables, green chutney, tangy sweet tamarind sauce, and a few Indian spices. It can be found on any chat street in India.
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What is Bhel Puri?
Bhel Puri (or Bhel Poori) is a popular Indian savory snack made by tossing crispy puffed rice, vegetables like onion, potatoes, crushed papdis (crunchy savory wafers), roasted peanuts, sweet, spicy, and tangy chutneys, and a few Indian spices and finally garnished with coriander leaves and sev.
This is a Mumbai-style bhel recipe. Bhel Puri Chaat is very addictive and loved by all age groups. It is very easy to prepare snack at home.
Other popular variants in other regions of India are Jhalmuri (Kolkata and Orissa), Churumuri (Karnataka), etc. It is often served over roadside stalls in the streets of India.
There are two types of Bhel Puri Chaat recipe.
- 'Geeli' Bhel Puri: "Geeli" means wet. It is made with 2-3 kinds of chutneys that are wet and add tons of flavor.
- 'Sukha' Bhel Puri: "Sukha" means dry. A dry green chutney is used here.
You’ll Love This Bhel Recipe
- It gets ready in under 15 minutes (if the chutneys are ready)
- Spicy, tangy, and sweet
- Delicious and addictive
- Adjust according to your taste buds.
- It can be prepared without chutneys.
- Perfect evening snack
Ingredients for Bhel Puri Recipe
You will need the following ingredients to make street-style Bhel Poori at home.
- Puffed rice: Also known as 'Murmura', 'Mamra', 'Kurmura' is the key ingredient. Buy the regular variety. It is easily available in any Indian grocery store. The Kolhapuri murmura is not good for making bhel.
- Vegetables: Onions, tomatoes, and boiled potatoes.
- Papdi: It is a thin, savory, crunchy wafer available in Indian grocery stores. You can also make them at home.
- Sev: Thin sev (or nylon sev) is used. You can buy a packet from the store.
- Peanuts: Dry roast the peanuts before adding them. They add a nice crunch.
- Spices: Roasted cumin powder, chaat masala, red chili powder, and black salt are the common seasoning used for bhel puri chaat.
- Lime juice: Freshly squeezed lime/lemon juice tastes the best.
- Pomegranate: for garnish and is optional.
- Chutneys: Traditionally, 3 types of chutneys are used to make bhel.
- Coriander mint chutney: It is made from coriander (cilantro), mint, green chilies, and lemon juice. It adds a bright, refreshing, tangy, and spicy flavor.
- Tamarind date chutney: Also known as imli ki chutney or meethi chutney. It is made from tamarind, date, jaggery, and ginger powder. It adds a sweet and tangy taste.
- Red garlic chutney: It adds spiciness with garlicky flavor. It is made from soaked red chilies, garlic, and salt. Adding this chutney is optional. I did not use it in this recipe.
You can prepare these chutneys ahead of time and refrigerate them. You can also buy these chutneys from an Indian grocery store.
How to Make Bhel Puri Chaat
Roasting Puffed Rice
Firstly dry roast the puffed rice in a pan on low heat until they become crispy and crunchy (It takes about 2-3 minutes). Cool them completely.
Making Bhel Puri
Add roasted puffed rice, boiled potato, onion, tomatoes, coriander leaves, crushed papdi, roasted peanuts, roasted jeera, chaat masala, red chili powder, and black salt. Toss everything well.
Add green coriander mint chutney, tamarind chutney (imli ki chutney) along with fresh lime juice.
Quickly mix everything well, and add more chutneys if required. Finally, garnish with more nylon sev, papdi, and coriander leaves.
Serve bhel puri chat immediately.
Serving Suggestions
Bhel Poori tastes best when served immediately after assembling, as it will get soggy over time.
You can serve bhel puri on its own as an appetizer, as it's packed with many flavors spicy, sweet, and tangy, or pair it with masala chai for the evening snack time.
Make-Ahead & Storage
Make-Ahead: You can prep all the ingredients, like chutneys, boiled potatoes, and roasting peanuts, chop veggies a day before, and store them in the fridge. Assemble the bhel just before serving.
Store: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator and is best if consumed within a day as it gets soggy and not crispy.
Tips to Make the Best Bhel Puri Chaat
- Roasting Puffed Rice: Dry roast the puffed rice in a pan until they become crisp. Cool completely before using it to make the bhel puri.
- Fresh Ingredients: Always use fresh and crispy papdi's, sev. Papdis, and sev go rancid very fast, even before their expiration date, so make sure to check them before using.
- Homemade Chutney: Using homemade chutney adds more flavor and depth to the chaat, so avoid using store-bought chutneys if possible. You can prepare a big batch and freeze them.
- Serve immediately: Keep all the ingredients ready, when you are ready to serve, toss the ingredients for preparing bhel and serve immediately. This helps to prevent the bhel poori chaat from getting soggy.
- Thick Consistency Chutney: Do not add chutney in the beginning as it can make the bhel soggy, so add it in the last little by little until you get the desired taste. Also, make sure the chutneys are thick and not too runny.
- Scaling: This recipe can be easily doubled or tripled.
Variations
- Ready Bhel Mix: Use the ready-made bhel mix (that includes papdi and sev without the chutney). You can use that in place of plain murmura, papdi, and sev mixture. It is readily available in Indian grocery stores. I prefer Surati bhel mix.
- Sprouted moong: You can also add steamed/parboiled Sprouted moong beans to add nutritional value.
- Veggies: You may add chopped cucumber, grated carrots, or beetroot. If mangoes are in season, add diced raw mango for a tangy taste.
- Spicing: Adjust spices, and chutneys in the bhel according to your liking.
- No onions: If you want to make a no-onion version, skip them in the bhel.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, Bhel is a healthy snack. Puffed rice is low in calories and keeps you full for a longer duration. The other ingredients added are also quite healthy. To make it healthier, add moong sprouts, veggies like shredded carrots, and beets.
To make a Jain Bhel Puri, skip adding onions and boiled potatoes. Also, make sure to use Jain-friendly chutneys without garlic or ginger in them.
To make dry bhel puri, simply skip adding chutneys to this recipe. Add all the remaining ingredients as mentioned in the recipe.
No. Generally, papdi (crispy puris) which is made of flour, is added to the bhel. Skip papdi to make it gluten-free.
Yes, bhel puri is vegan.
No, It will turn soggy. You can prep all the chutneys, boil potatoes, and roast the peanuts and other ingredients ahead of time and just toss everything when you are ready to serve for the best taste.
You can store the leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. However, it is recommended to consume within a day as it gets soggy.
More Indian Chaat Ideas
More Appetizer/Snack Recipes
- Makhana Chivda
- Vegetable Rice Cutlet
- Gobi Manchurian
- Masala French Fries
- Maddur Vada
- Barbeque Nation Style Cajun Potatoes
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Bhel Puri Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups puffed Rice/Murmura/Bhel/Mandakki
- ¼ cup boiled potato chopped
- 2 tablespoons onion finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons tomato chopped
- 2 tablespoons coriander Leaves finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons peanuts roasted
- ½ teaspoon chat masala
- 2 tablespoon tamarind Imli Chutney *Recipe below
- 2 tablespoon coriander-Mint Chutney *Recipe below
- 8-10 papdi
- ¼ cup nylon sev
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- ½ teaspoon red chilli powder
- salt as needed
Tamarind Chutney Recipe
- ½ cup seedless tamarind (imli)
- 2 cups water
- ½ cup jaggery (gud)
- ½ teaspoon fennel powder (saunf powder)
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder (jeera powder)
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder (lal mirch powder)
- ½ teaspoon dry ginger powder
- salt to taste
Instructions
Roasting Puffed Rice
- Firstly dry roast the puffed rice in a pan on low heat until they become crispy and crunchy (It takes about 2-3 minutes). Cool them completely.
Making Bhel Puri
- Add roasted puffed rice, boiled potato, onion, tomatoes, coriander leaves, crushed papdi, roasted peanuts, roasted jeera, chaat masala, red chili powder and black salt. Toss everything well.
- Add green coriander mint chutney, tamarind chutney (imli ki chutney) along with fresh lime juice.
- Quickly mix everything well, add more chutneys if required. Finally, garnish with more nylon sev, papdi, and coriander leaves.
- Serve bhel puri chat immediately.
Tamarind Chutney
- In a large kadai take equal proportion of tamarind and jaggery.Further pour 2 cups of water. Mix and boil the mixture for at-least 10 minutes.Also add fennel powder, cumin powder, red chili powder, dry ginger powder and salt to taste.Mix and mash tamarind.Furthermore, simmer the mixture for 2 minutes.Later allow the mixture to cool completely.Now transfer the tamarind mixture to the mixer and blend smooth puree.Further strain the puree.And transfer the prepared tamarind chutney into airtight jar and store it in the refrigerator.
Video
Notes
Tips to make the Best Bhel Puri Chaat
- Roasting Puffed Rice: Dry roast the puffed rice in a pan until they become crisp. Cool completely before using it to make the bhel puri.
- Fresh Ingredients: Always use fresh and crispy papdi's, sev. Papdis, and sev go rancid very fast, even before their expiration date, so make sure to check them before using.
- Homemade Chutney: Using homemade chutney adds more flavor and depth to the chaat, so avoid using store-bought chutneys if possible. You can prepare a big batch and freeze them.
- Serve immediately: Keep all the ingredients ready, when you are ready to serve, toss the ingredients for preparing bhel and serve immediately. This helps to prevent the bhel poori chaat from getting soggy.
- Thick Consistency Chutney: Do not add chutney in the beginning as it can make the bhel soggy, so add it in the last little by little until you get the desired taste. Also, make sure the chutneys are thick and not too runny.
- Scaling: This recipe can be easily doubled or tripled.
Variations
- Ready Bhel Mix: Use the ready-made bhel mix (that includes papdi and sev without the chutney). You can use that in place of plain murmura, papdi, and sev mixture. It is readily available in Indian grocery stores. I prefer Surati bhel mix.
- Sprouted moong: You can also add steamed/parboiled Sprouted moong beans to add nutritional value.
- Veggies: You may add chopped cucumber, grated carrots, or beetroot. If mangoes are in season, add diced raw mango for a tangy taste.
- Spicing: Adjust spices, and chutneys in the bhel according to your liking.
- No onions: If you want to make a no-onion version, skip them in the bhel.
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