I am a big fan of masala puri. I posted a recipe for a version of masala puri some 3 years ago. Many of the readers said they want the one available in Bangalore. Of course every street vendor who serves masala puri has their own recipe for it. Every one has a unique taste. I am one of those people, who enjoy all the different varieties of chaats. I am sure most of you do too.
A few days ago, one of my readers, Suman , left a comment with this recipe. She said she had got it from one of the chaat vendor in Vijaynagar in Bangalore. When I read it first time, I was sure it would taste great. It took all my will power, not to jump and try it immediately. Her comment could not have come at a better time. I was missing India and all my favorite food there. So finally gave it a try yesterday. Thanks a lot Suman, I greatly appreciate it.
While the first masala puri recipe is more like a chaat with its different chutneys, this one is more like the one we get in Bangalore. We love both. Choose the one you like.
I did not have all the spices mentioned by Suman – like Marathi Moggu and Javatri(mace) . So I left them out(I will still mention an approx amount of these below as I don’t want to miss them next time when I have them). I also reduced the amount of spices to suit our taste. I used desiccated coconut instead of fresh coconut as that is what I had on hand. Check out Suman’s recipe here . Below is how I made it.
Pictorial: Dry roast the spices. Grind the spices with coconut and red chillies.
Add cooked dal and grind to a smooth paste.
Cook the paste.
Add the cooked peas.
Cook for few minutes.
Chop onions, coriander leaves. Grate carrots.
Take few puris on a plate.
Crush puris.
Spread a big spoonful of peas curry on top.
Garnish with onions, carrots and coriander leaves.
Spread some sev on top and serve immediately.
Masala Puri - 2
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup dry green peas soaked overnight and pressure cooked (do not use fresh peas)
- 1/2 cup toor dal cooked till soft with a pinch of turmeric
- Grated carrot
- Finely chopped onion
- Puris I used store bought
- Sev
- Finely chopped coriander leaves
- 1 tbl spn coconut
- 1 tea spn sugar
- 1 and 1/2 tea spn red chilli powder
- Salt
- Dry Spices :
- 4 cloves
- 1 " cinnamon
- 1 tea spn coriander seeds
- 1 tea spn cumin seeds
- 1/4 tea spn peppercorns
- A small piece of nutmeg jayikayi
- 1 mace japatre/javatri
- 2-3 marathi moggu
Instructions
- Dry roast all the spices (I did this to help in grinding, was not in original recipe).
- Grind the spices with coconut, red chilli powder to a smooth paste. Add the toor dal and grind (I did not want to sieve it to get a smooth paste, so I just ground it).
- Take the ground paste in a vessel and add little water to thin it slightly(do not make it too watery).
- Add salt, sugar and cook for a while. Now add the cooked peas and cook till it comes to required consistency. The gravy should not be too thick or too thin. It should be semi liquid.
- In a serving plate, take few puris and crush them. Spread a about 1-2 ladle full of gravy. Spread some carrot, onion, coriander leaves and sev. Serve immediately.
- The gravy should be hot to enjoy the actual taste of it. Add the toppings according to your liking.
Masala Puri - 2
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup dry green peas soaked overnight and pressure cooked (do not use fresh peas)
- 1/2 cup toor dal cooked till soft with a pinch of turmeric
- Grated carrot
- Finely chopped onion
- Puris I used store bought
- Sev
- Finely chopped coriander leaves
- 1 tbl spn coconut
- 1 tea spn sugar
- 1 and 1/2 tea spn red chilli powder
- Salt
- Dry Spices :
- 4 cloves
- 1 " cinnamon
- 1 tea spn coriander seeds
- 1 tea spn cumin seeds
- 1/4 tea spn peppercorns
- A small piece of nutmeg jayikayi
- 1 mace japatre/javatri
- 2-3 marathi moggu
Instructions
- Dry roast all the spices (I did this to help in grinding, was not in original recipe).
- Grind the spices with coconut, red chilli powder to a smooth paste. Add the toor dal and grind (I did not want to sieve it to get a smooth paste, so I just ground it).
- Take the ground paste in a vessel and add little water to thin it slightly(do not make it too watery).
- Add salt, sugar and cook for a while. Now add the cooked peas and cook till it comes to required consistency. The gravy should not be too thick or too thin. It should be semi liquid.
- In a serving plate, take few puris and crush them. Spread a about 1-2 ladle full of gravy. Spread some carrot, onion, coriander leaves and sev. Serve immediately.
- The gravy should be hot to enjoy the actual taste of it. Add the toppings according to your liking.
This is inspired by the sambar rice that is served in some of the restaurants in South India. But this is my no means the recipe used by restaurants. I wanted to actually make a sambar and rice, but then thought of making a one pot dish. Instead of toor dal which is normally used for sambars, I used masoor dal. Unlike the version available in restaurants, which is kind of semi-solid, I made it more like a pulav. I also used my favorite green, spinach, to make it fiber rich. Served it with a dollop of ghee. It was a hearty meal. Add more water to make it semi-solid.
Ingredients: 1 and 1/2 cups basmati rice 1/2 cup masoor dal 3 tea spns sambar powder 1 tea spn red chilli powder A pinch asafoetida A pinch turmeric 1 tea spn mustard seeds 4-5 curry leaves 1/2 tea spn tamarind extract 1/2 cup onion 1/2 cup tomato 1 cup spinach (optional) 2 cups vegetables – cauliflower, yellow bellpepper(capsicum), carrot, potato Oil Salt
Method: Wash together rice and dal. Keep aside. Heat oil and add mustard seeds. When they start popping, add curry leaves, asafoetida. Add onion and fry for a few minutes. Add all the vegetables, spinach(optional) and tomato. Fry for a min. Add rice and dal, turmeric, salt, red chilli powder, sambar powder, tamarind, salt. Mix everything. Pour in 5 cups of water and let it cook on medium heat. If required, add more water. When most of heat is absorbed, reduce the heat to low and let it cook for about 10mins. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot topped with a dollop of ghee.
Serves : 4-5 Preparation time : 45mins
Pictorial:
