Dahi Bhalla

I have not yet come across an Indian who does not dote on Chaat.

Dahi Bhallas,sevpuri dahipuri,samosas,bhel ,aloo tikki,chaat Papri  all are classified under the family of chaat which  is essentially a street food of India. The trend is changing with hygiene becoming the primary concern of one and all . Now people enjoy chaat in the luxury and comfort of five stars and top notch restaurants. You might still find some very authentic chaat walas still selling chaat the old traditional way from the carts and you will find them using Aquafina in place of tap water and mostly they will wear gloves.I wonder if they ever  discard the gloves after every use or continue with one pair ;)

North of India has some very popular chaat places. The one that instantly comes to my mind is," The Chaat " in Kanpur/India. It started as a very tiny place/shack but while we were there in the year 1999 it had already taken over a large space . What I distinctly remember is they would start to sell the chaat at 4 in the evening and by 8 in the night they were completely sold out. I used to love The Chaat's dahi bhallas, they would just melt in your mouth and the curd was beaten so well and had just the right amount of sweetness.Their dahi bhalla was fried with a cashew and a raisin in the centre. It is so funny,I would  quickly  take big bites to  get to the centre to check if by any chance they had failed to fry it with the cashew & the raisin,but they never did. This recipe I will share with my readers is inspired by ,"The Chaat".

Ingredients:
Urad Dhuli Hui/ Split black Gram hulled(washed): 1 cup
Curd: 3 cups
Sugar: 3 tbsp
cashews: 10 in number
Salt: 1/4 of  a tsp
Ajwain/carom seeds: 1/4 tsp
Fruit salt/Eno : 1/4 tsp
juice of lemon: 1 tsp
Oil: to deep fry in a pan

garnish: 1/4 tsp roasted jeera powder,1/4 tsp chaat masala,2 tbsp patla sev, 3 tbsp tamarind date chutney

Method:
Soak the daal for 5 -6 hours. Grind the daal to a fine paste with very little water, about 2 tbsp. Add salt,ajwain/carom,fruit salt/eno,lemon juice and run the mixer for a couple minutes more. Transfer the contents from the mixer to a bowl.

Take a frying pan and heat the oil,make golf sized balls with a cashew in the centre and fry them till golden brown. remove from the pan and put them in a big bowl with warm water. let them sit in the water till they are soft to the touch. Remove from water and press between the palms to remove excess water. Arrange them on a plate.

Take  the curd and beat till smooth and creamy.Add sugar and mix well. Pour this on the dahi Bhalla's. Then garnish the dahi bhalla's with chaat masala,roasted cumin powder and patla sev and top it with tamarind date chutney. Refrigerate for some time. Enjoy with family & friends.They are sure to be a hit.Mine just fly away from the table just seconds after I put them on the table :)

Bhalla's frying in the pan

remove from water & press them

Add curd and garnish

Batter

Bhalla's in soaking in the water