Craving Chaat When Stuck at Home? 10 Recipes for Mouth-Watering Indian Snacks Items to Make in Your Kitchen and Easy Tips on Indian Cooking (2020)

Ingredients:

• 2 potatoes boiled and peeled
• 2 tbsp oil, ½ finely chopped onion (small sized)
• ½ tsp degi mirch powder
• salt to taste
• ¼ tsp jeera powder roasted
• ½ tsp chaat powder
• 2 tbsp green chutney
• 2 tbsp imli chutney
• ¼ cup sev, 2 tsp curd
• 1 tsp chopped coriander leaves, 2 tsp anar.

Method:

• Begin by pressure cooking the potatoes for 2 whistles and then peel off the skin. Continue with cutting the potatoes into cubes and then pan fry them in 2 tbsp of oil.
• Avoid over-mixing the potatoes as they may break. Saute the potatoes till they turn golden brown and then transfer them into a bowl. Continue the process by adding the chopped onions, chilli powder, jeera powder, chat masala and salt to the bowl. Next, add the green and imli chutneys and mix it all up without breaking the potatoes.
• Transfer the chaat to a serving dish and garnish with a generous quantity of Sev, and a garnish of curd, chopped dhaniya and anar.

Ingredients:

• For the Dough – 2 cups of maida
• a tsp of ajwain
• ¼ tsp salt
• 4 tbsp and 1 tsp oil
• 6 tbsps of water.

For the Filling –

• 500 gms medium sized potatoes
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 tsp jeera
• 1 tsp saunf
• 2 tsp crushed dhaniya seeds
• 1 tsp finely chopped ginger
• 1 chopped green chilly
• ¼ tsp hing
• ½ cup + 2 tbsp matar
• 1 tsp dhaniya powder
• ½ tsp garam masala
• ½ tsp amchur
• ¼ red chilli powder
• salt to taste.

Method of making:

• Begin by making the dough in a large bowl and add ajwain & salt to the maida and mix well. Next, add oil and start kneading the dough for the next 3-4 minutes till the mix in perfect to form a shape. Avoid over kneading the dough, and cover it with a moist cloth, set aside for about 40 minutes.


• Begin your filling work by boiling the potatoes to 8-9 whistles on high heat and once the steam evaporates, peel the skin off and mash them all. Next, heat a pan with 2 tbsps of oil on medium heat, add the cumin seeds, fennel seeds and crushed coriander seeds. Once they start spluttering, add the chopped chilli, ginger and hing and stir it all for a minute.


• Next, add the potatoes and green peas to the pan and stir everything into a mix well, add the dhaniya powder, garam masala, amchur, red chilli powder and salt and blend it well. Remove the pan from heat and let the filling cool down.


• Once the dough is ready, give it a quick knead and then divide it into 7 equal parts of round dough balls. Whilst you work on one piece at a time, ensure the other pieces are covered with the moist cloth to avoid the dough from drying out.


• Roll the dough ball into an oval shape, about 6” in diameter and then cut it into 2 halves. Take one part, apply some water on the straight edge and bring two ends of the straight edge together, pinching them to form a cone. Now, fill the samosa with a tbsp. or two of the filling, continue by applying water all around the cone’s circumference to seal it, pinch the opposite side now to form a plate kind of base, pinch the edges and seal your samosa. Repeat this process with the remaining dough.


• Now heat some oil in a deep pan on low heat and when it’s hot, drop the samosas into the oil, frying them deeply for about 10-12 minutes or until they turn light brown in colour. Then, you should increase the heat to medium flame and continue frying till the samosas turn a good shade of brown.


• You should cook 4-5 samosas at a time and each batch would take about 20 minutes in all. Once you’re done with one batch, lower the heat and once the oil temperature drops, add the second batch and repeat the process. Serve them with mint or sweet tamarind chutneys.

Ingredients:

• To be pressure cooked:
• 2 potatoes (peeled and cubed)
• ¼ cup cubed carrot
• ¼ chopped beans
• ¼ cup sweet corn
• ½ cup peas
• ½ cup beetroot
• ¼ tsp salt.


• For Cutlet:
• ¼ cup breadcrumbs
• ½ tsp degi mirch powder
• ¼ tsp jeera powder
• ¼ tsp garam masala
• ½ tsp amchur
• a tsp of ginger garlic paste
• 2 tbsp finely chopped coriander
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 cup crushed cornflakes
• oil for deep frying.


• For batter:
• 3 tbsp corn flour
• 2 tbsp maida
• ¼ tsp crushed pepper
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¼ cup water.

Method of making:

• Begin by mashing the cooked vegetables completely and then add breadcrumbs to the mix with chilli powder, cumin powder, garam masala, ginger-garlic paste, chopped dhaniya and salt. Now knead it all into a fine dough.


• Next, prepare the cornflour batter by mixing the cornflour, maida, pepper and salt with water and mix it all into a smooth and lump-free batter. Move onto the next step by taking a ball-sized vegetable mix and rolling it into cylindrical shaped forms.


• Dip the veg cylinders into the batter and coat them with crushed corn flakes and then deep fry them in hot oil for about 15-20 minutes or till then turn golden brown and crisp, stirring them occasionally on medium flame. Serve them hot with tomato ketchup.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup chana dal or Bengal gram
• salt to taste, 1” dalchini
• 1-2 red chillies
• ¾ tsp jeera
• ¾ tsp saunf
• a medium sized onion
• finely chopped
• some mint leaves
• a sprig of chopped curry leaves
• 1 ½ tsp ginger garlic paste
• 1-2 chopped green chillies
• a pinch of haldi
• oil for deep frying.

Method:

• Add the dal to a bowl and wash it a few times, leaving it aside soaked in ample water for about 2 hours. After a couple of hours, drain all water. Next, blend some cinnamon, red chilli, jeera, saunf coarsely in a blender and set aside with about 2 tbsp of soaked chana dal.


• Now add the drained chana dal and salt to the same blender and blend until it turns into a coarse mix. Move onto the next step and add some uncrushed chana dal to the dough and mix it all up with finely chopped pudina, curry leaves, onion and the spice powder you just prepared. Also add the green chillies and ginger-garlic paste, salt to taste (if needed additionally).


• Take some dough and check it for binding consistency, make a ball and flatten it to shape it to a vada. Now, heat some oil in a deep pan on medium flame. Divide your dough into 10 parts and make the small vadas, fry them one by one in hot oil with a batch of about 3-4 vedas, till they turn golden and crisp on each side. Absorb excess oil off the vadas by keeping them on kitchen tissues when you take them out of the oil and then once they are ready to serve, serve with some homemade chutney or ketchup.

Ingredients:

• A medium potato
• 2 cups besan
• 8-10 palak leaves
• 8-10 carom leaves
• some paneer cubes
• onion slices
• 2 tbsp rice flour
• salt to taste
• ¼ tsp haldi
• ½ tsp red chilli powder
• ½ tsp dhaniya powder
• ½ tsp cumin powder
• a pinch of hing
• a pinch of baking soda
• oil for deep frying.

Method:

• For batter, put the besan in a mixing bowl and add the rice flour, salt, haldi, red chilli powder, jeera powder, dhaniya powder and hing and to it add a tbsp. of hot oil with ample water and whisk the whole mix into a thick and smooth lump-free batter. Finish up by adding baking soda and whisk again and let the batter rest for a few minutes.


• Heat some oil in a deep pan, take some salted water and slice the potatoes into the water. Now dip each slice in the batter and fry it in the hot oil till it turns crispy and golden. Drain excess oil on a kitchen tissue.


• Continue the process by dipping the carom leaves, or onion slices, paneer in the same batter and repeat the frying steps. When you dip the spinach leaves, thin the batter a bit by adding some water. Serve your assorted pakodas with imli or mint chutney.

Ingredients:

• For the stuffed bread pakoda filling, you’d need 2 medium sized potatoes pressure cooked, then peeled and grated
• gram flour/besan
• fresh herbs like 2 tbsp chopped pudina
• 1 tbsp chopped dhaniya, ginger, garlic
• green chillies, ground dhaniya powder
• ¼ tsp red chilli powder, black pepper powder
• ¼ tsp garam masala, ½ tsp amchur and salt to taste.

Method:

• Begin by mixing the mashed potatoes with the herbs and spices according to taste and then keep aside. Take a mixing bowl and add a cup of besan, ½ cup water, ½ tsp ajwain, ¼ tsp red chilli powder, a pinch of Haldi, garam masala and a pinch of hing with salt to taste and a pinch or two of baking soda. Mix it all well into a smooth and lump-free batter.


• Next add 1-2 tsp of hot oil to the batter, mix well and then whisk briskly for a couple of minutes to get in some air in the batter. Now, on a chopping board, slice some bread pieces into a rectangle or triangle shape, then add 2-3 tbsp of the mashed potato mix to the slice and cover with another slice making it into a sandwich (pressed slightly).


• Now heat some oil for deep frying. Once the oil is hot enough, take the sandwich and dip it in the batter, coating all sides evenly and then gently slide the bread sandwich into the oil. Avoid overcrowding the pan and begin frying the pakoda on medium/medium-high flame. When one side turns golden brown, turn it to the other side gently for frying and continue gently flip a few more times for frying evenly till the pakoda turns crisp and golden brown. You can serve the bread pakoda with some green chutney or tomato ketchup.

Ingredients:

• For spring roll
• 7 rice wrappers
• 1 tbsp oil
• 2 tsp finely chopped garlic
• 1 tsp finely chopped ginger
• ½ cup sliced onions
• ½ cup sliced capsicum
• a cup of thickly grated carrots
• 1 cup shredded cabbage
• ½ cup hakka noodles boiled
• 2 tsp Chinese Schezwan sauce
• 1 tsp tomato ketchup
• salt to taste


• For the flour mix
• ¼ cup maida
• 4 tbsp water
• oil for deep frying
• some Schezwan sauce

Method:

• Begin by heating the oil in a broad pan, add the ginger and garlic to it and saute for 30 seconds on high flame, next add the onions and saute for a couple of minutes.


• Now, add the capsicum, carrot, cabbage, noodles and cook on high flame for 3 minutes stirring occasionally. Switch off the flame and then add the Schezwan sauce, ketchup and salt to the mix and stir it will. Keep the mix aside.


• Now to make the spring rolls, divide the stuffing into 7 equal parts, place a rice wrapper on a clean and dry surface and place a portion of the filling in one corner of the wrapper. Roll the wrapper till 3/4th part of it and then fold it over from both ends one by one to the centre. Finish rolling it completely and then seal the edges using a bit of the maida-water mix. Continue the process with more rolls.


• Heat some oil in a deep pan and deep fry 2 rolls at a time on medium flame till then turn golden brown from all sides. Take the rolls out of the pan and place on an absorbent paper to drain excess oil and cut into 3 equal pieces with a sharp knife. Serve the rolls with Schezwan Sauce.

Ingredients:

• 3 tsp oil
• ½ tsp jeera
• ½ tsp saunf
• a pinch of hing
• 1 finely chopped chili
• ½ tsp ginger paste
• 2 roughly chopped onions
• ¼ tsp chilli powder
• ¼ tsp haldi
• ½ tsp garam masala
• ¼ tsp amchur
• ¼ tsp sugar
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ cup besan
• 2 tbsp finely chopped dhaniya.

Method:

• Begin by pinching a small lemon sized ball and flatten it, now scoop a tbsp. of the onion stuffing and place it in the centre of the flat dough and bring all the edges together to form a bundle. Close the top by pressing it gently and flattening it and continue pressing the edges like a poori.


• Heat some oil on medium flame and then fry the stuffed kachori, pressing the spoon on the kachori to puff it up. Continue turning it around a few times to fry it evenly till it turns golden brown on all sides. Serve it with imli or green chutney.

Ingredients:

• For the dough:
• 1 ½ cup maida
• ½ tsp salt
• water for kneading
• oil for greasing


• For the stuffing:
• 3 tbsp oil
• 3 finely chopped garlic cloves
• finely chopped 1” ginger
• 2 tbsp chopped spring onion
• 2 finely chopped green chillies
• a cup of grated carrot
• a cup of shredded cabbage
• ½ tsp crushed pepper
• ½ tsp salt.

Method:

• Begin preparing the stuffing by heating oil and saute the garlic, ginger and chillies in it. Then add the spring onion and saute on high flame. Continue by adding the carrots, cabbage and stir fry on high flame. Add the pepper and salt.


• Now pinch a small-sized dough for the momo and flatten it, dust some flour and start rolling with the rolling pin to a medium-sized circle (4-5” in diameter). Keep the centre part slightly thicker and now place a tbsp. of stuffing in the centre.


• Start pleating the edges slowly and gather the dough and stuffing together, press in the middle and seal the momo like a bundle. Now heat the steamer and arrange the momos in the tray without one touching the other. Continue steaming them for about 10-12 minutes or till they form a sheen. Serve hot with the spicy garlic dip.

Ingredients:

For the stuffing:

• 2 tsp butter or oil
• 1 finely chopped onion
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• ½ tsp haldi
• 1 tsp garam masala
• ½ tsp chaat masala
• 1 cup water
• 2 boiled potatoes (peeled and mashed)
• salt to taste
• 1 tbsp imli chutney
• some chopped coriander.

For the garnish:

• 2 tbsp finely chopped onions
• some masala peanuts
• some finely chopped dhaniya
• few anar seeds

• For layering: 6 pieces of pao, 6 tsp garlic chutney, ¼ finely chopped onion, 6 tsp imli chutney, 1 cup sev and some butter.

Method:

• Begin by heating some oil in a large pan and saute the onions till they turn golden brown. Add chilli powder, haldi, garam masala and chaat masala next, and saute for another minute of low flame. Next, add a cup of water with mashed potatoes and mix well. Add the imli chutney and chopped coriander and stir well. Set the mix aside.


• Cut the pao in between without breaking it apart and spread some garlic chutney on one side and imli chutney on the other side. Now, place the chopped onions, a spoon of dabeli stuffing and toast the pao with some butter on both sides. Layer with onions, masala peanuts, dhaniya and anar seeds. Roll the pao over sev, covering the edges and serve it all with some green chutney.

Here are some popular condiments which will add more flavor, spice, sweetness or sourness to the delicious dishes.

• CHUTNEY – Chutneys are savouries of fruits and vegetables that are both sweet and sour, spicy & sour or a mix of both, typically preserved with citrus juices or food vinegars. While the mango chutney is a popular one that’s used with Indian dishes, it is also good to go with some simple roast meats for sandwiches. Then there’s the spicy green chutney made of coriander/cilantro or mint, lime juice and green chillies, while the Tamarind or Imli chutney is a popular sweet and sour chutney often paired with chaats and deep-fried snacks.
• RAITA – is a yoghurt based dip that included veggies or fruits and a blend of varied spices. Paired to tone down the spice of the hot dishes, raita basically highlights the flavours of different dishes, especially South Indian rice dishes, pulao or biryanis. The most common raita recipes include cucumber and mint, carrots, apples or onion and tomato combinations.
• PICKLE – or Achaar is made of fruits and vegetables and preserved by simmering them in oil or vinegar and citrus juices. Indian pickles range from mild to hot with some sweet or sour combinations as well with the inclusion of haldi, fenugreek and hing as common spices. Some of the most popular pickles in Indian cuisine constitute the Green Mango pickle and Lime pickle.