Bhel Puri

Bhel Puri (Mumbai Street-Style Puffed Rice Snack)

A tangy, crunchy, sweet-and-sour Mumbai street snack built on puffed rice, two chutneys, raw onion, tomato, boiled potato and crisp sev. It must be tossed and eaten within minutes so the puffed rice stays crisp.

Prep

20 min

Cook

15 min

Total

35 min

Serves

4

Difficulty

Easy

Recipe ingredients

• •150 g (5¼ oz (about 5 cups)) puffed rice (mamra), the freshest you can find; stale puffed rice turns chewy
• •1 medium red onion, finely chopped
• •1 medium tomato, finely chopped, deseeded if watery
• •1 small (1 small (about 90 g / 3 oz)) potato, boiled until fork-tender, peeled and diced
• •30 g (1 oz (about 1 cup)) sev, thin nylon sev is traditional; bhujia sev works but is heavier
• •15 g (¼ cup packed) fresh coriander leaves, chopped
• •10 g (¼ cup packed) fresh mint leaves, optional, chopped
• •1 whole green chilli, finely chopped; adjust to taste
• •1 tsp chaat masala
• •0.5 tsp (½ tsp) roasted cumin powder
• •0.25 tsp (¼ tsp) red chilli powder (Kashmiri), for colour and mild heat
• •1 pinch black salt (kala namak)
• •1 tbsp lemon juice, from about ½ lemon
• •60 ml (¼ cup) tamarind chutney (imli ki chutney), sweet-sour; see note below for quick homemade version
• •45 ml (3 tbsp) green mint-coriander chutney, see note below for quick homemade version
• •30 g (1 oz (about ¼ cup)) roasted peanuts, optional, crushed, for extra crunch
• •1 tbsp neutral oil, to toast peanuts if using raw

Steps

1. 1 If making tamarind chutney: simmer 60 g (¼ cup) seedless tamarind pulp with 90 ml (⅓ cup) water for 5 minutes until soft, strain, then add 40 g (3 tbsp) jaggery or brown sugar, ½ tsp roasted cumin powder, ½ tsp chilli powder and ½ tsp salt; simmer 4–5 minutes until syrupy. Cool before using.
2. 2 If making mint-coriander chutney: blend 30 g (1 cup packed) coriander, 15 g (½ cup packed) mint, 1 green chilli, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tsp sugar, ½ tsp salt and 30–45 ml (2–3 tbsp) water to a thick pourable paste.
3. 3 Boil the potato in salted water until a knife slides in with no resistance (internal temperature above 95 °C / 200 °F, about 12 minutes for a small potato). Drain, cool and dice.
4. 4 If using raw peanuts, toast them in 1 tbsp oil over medium heat for 3–4 minutes until golden and fragrant, then crush roughly. Set aside.
5. 5 In a large dry mixing bowl, combine the puffed rice, chopped onion, tomato, diced potato, green chilli, coriander and mint (if using).
6. 6 Sprinkle over the chaat masala, roasted cumin, chilli powder, black salt and the lemon juice. Toss gently so the puffed rice does not crush.
7. 7 Add the tamarind chutney and mint-coriander chutney. Toss again until every grain of puffed rice is lightly coated; the mixture should look glossy, not wet. Add the crushed peanuts if using.
8. 8 Add the sev last and give one quick toss so it stays crunchy. Serve immediately in paper cones or bowls; bhel puri does not keep — the puffed rice softens within 10–15 minutes.