ALOO TIKKI CHOLE CHAAT

Chaat is definitely the national snack of India, a traditional street food and something which all Indians are always home sick about. Any form of chaat is full of flavour, sweet, tangy, spicy, salty, crunchy, soft and topped with various chutneys.  Aloo Tikki Chole is a very popular street food of North India. Aloo tikki chole chaat is a crispy aloo tikki dunked under the yummy chole or chickpeas gravy. The overall texture of the chat is crisp, spicy, tangy with intense herby aroma, giving Tikki Chole Chaat the perfect burst of flavores. Aloo Tikki Is made with boiled aloo, shallow fried until golden and spices and chole are cooked in spicy and flavourful gravy or curry. This aloo tikki chole chaaat is something that is filling, looks good and tastes good too. Tikki chaat can be served with different ways, just like plain aloo tikki chaat or with ragda/ peas masala as ragda pattice or like this with chole as chole tikki chaat. As the plate is loaded with chickpeas curry, patato tikki and chutneys and sev makes it more filling and a perfect satisfying meal. If you have any leftover chole masala then it only takes 20-30 minutes to serve this delicious and refreshing chole tikki chaat.   

INGREDIENTS:

For Making Aloo Tikki:

4 Large Potatoes, bolied

1 Medium size onion, chopped finely

1 teaspoon Ginger-Garlic Paste

1 tablespoon Corn Flour [adjust]

1-2 tablespoon Fresh Coriander, chopped

Salt as needed

½ teaspoon Garam Masala

½ teaspoon Cumin Seeds Powder

1 teaspoon Coriander Powder

1 taespoon Chaat Masala

For tempering:

1 teaspoon Oil

¼ teaspoon Asafoetida

¼ teaspoon Cumin Seeds

For Making Chhole:

1- 1 ½  Cup Chickpeas  [soaked overnight and pressure cooked]

2 Large Onion, chopped finely

3-4 Tomatoes, pureed

1 teaspoon Ginger-Garlic Paste

Salt to taste

1 tablespoon Oil

1 Inch Cinnamon Stick

4-5 Cloves

2-3 Green Cardamoms

1 Bay Leaf

 ½ teaspoon Shahi Jeera

1 teaspoon Cumin Seeds

1 tablespoon Coriander Seeds

3-4 Dry Red Kashmiri Chillies [adjust according to palate]

½ teaspoon Peppercorns

1 tablespoon Kasoori Methi

½ teaspoon Garam Masala

½ teaspoon Turmeric Powder

½ teaspoon Aamchur Powder

1 tablespoon Lemon Juice

For tempering /tadka:

1 teaspoon Cumin Seeds    

¼ teaspoon Asafoetida

1 tablespoon Oil

Other Ingredients:

Various Chutneys [ like sweet date-tamarind chutney , spicy mint chutney and hot red chilli chutney]

1 medium size onion, chopped finely

1 tomato, chopped finely

2 tablespoon chopped Coriander

½ Cup Nylon Sev [fine sev]

METHOD:

For making Aloo Tikki:

STEP 1 – Pressure cook potatoes, release the pressure and peel them off and mash them and keep aside.

 STEP 2 – Heat oil in a tempering pan and crackle cumin seeds and add asafoetida. Add chopped onion and ginger-garlic paste in it and sauté well. Cook till the raw smell disappear.

STEP 3 – When the raw smell vanished and the onion turns golden brown, turn off the flame and add this to mashed potatoes and add the spices mentioned for ALOO TIKKI

STEP 4 – If you are unable to shape the dough, you can add bread slices here. Deep them in cold water, squeeze the water and crumble them in another bowl and add them to potato mixture.

STEP 5 – Add chopped coriander, corn flour, salt and chaat masala in the potato mixture

and mix it well.

STEP 6 – Now grease your hands with little oil and take a small lemon size portion in your hand

and start shaping it like a tikki.

Keep it aside and make all the tikkies with the rest of the potato mixture. Tikki should be 1 cm thick and about 3 inch in diameter.

STEP 7 – Heat a tawa with little oil

and arrange the tikkies in a single layer and shallow fry them on low-medium flame. Flip them when done from one side and drizzle some more oil.

Cook them till you get a nice golden colour. Keep them aside.

STEP 8 – Repeat the same and cook all the tikkies and drain them on a tissue paper to remove excess oil from them.

For Making Chhole / Chickpea Curry:

STEP 1 – Soak chick peas for 7-8 hours or overnight. Pressure cook them for 4-5 whistles or until the chick peas are cooked through. Release the pressure.

STEP 2 – Drain the water from the chick peas and reserve it for the gravy.

STEP 3 – Now dry roast the whole spices on low flame till you feel a nice smell. Cool them and then transfer them to a mixer pot and make a fine powder with them. Keep the powder aside.

STEP 4 – Heat a pan, add oil in it and when it get heated add half of the chopped onion in it. Saute it well on medium flame till golden brown in colour. Add ginger-garlic paste in it and cook well for 2-3 minutes.

STEP 5 – Now transfer it to a blender jar along with the powdered masala from “STEP 3”

and grind it to a fine paste with ¼ cup water. Keep it aside.

STEP 6 – Heat pan with oil, add remaining half of the chopped onion and sauté well and cook till it turns nice golden in colour. Here you can add a pinch of salt and sugar in the onion. Salt helps to speed up the cooking and sugar helps to caramelize the onion  quickly.  

STEP 7 – Next add the ground spice powder-onion paste in it and mix it well and cook on medium flame for 3-4 minutes.

Stir it continuously until the paste becomes little dry and oil starts to separate on the edges.

STEP 8 – Add tomato puree in it and mix well. Take care as the puree splutter while cooking. Stir in the mixture well and cook for 3-4 minutes.

STEP 9 – Add turmeric powder and salt to taste and add about 2-3 cups of water in it. Mix well and cover it and cook for 4-5 minutes. Stir in between and let the gravy come to a gentle boil.

STEP 10 – Add cooked chickpeas in it, add aamchur powder and mix well.

If you find the gravy is too thick, add more water in it.

Cook the curry further to get the right consistency as per your liking. Let it simmer for 6-7 minutes on low flame for all the flavours to blend harmoniously.

How to assemble and serve:

STEP 1 – Place 2-3 aloo tikki on a serving plate. Pour 1-2 ladle full chick pea curry on it.

STEP 2 – Next drizzle a spoonful of hot red chilli chutney, sweet date-tamarind chutney and spicy mint chutney.

STEP 3 – Add a spoonful of chopped onion, chopped coriander and nylon sev on it and serve straightaway.

Enjoy the lip smacking and delicious bowl of Aloo Tikki Chhole Chaat.

NOTES:* I have shared all the chutney recipes seperately in my blog. Do check:

SWEET DATE_TAMARIND CHUTNEY:
https://kalpanaslacucina.blogspot.in/2017/12/date-tamarind-meethi-chutney.html

SPICY MINT CORIANDER CHUTNEY:
https://kalpanaslacucina.blogspot.in/2017/12/mint-coriadner-spicy-chutney-for-any.html

HOT RED CHLLI CHUTNEY: 
https://kalpanaslacucina.blogspot.in/2018/01/spicy-red-chilli-chutney.html

          
           *You can store the left over tikkies in a zip-lock bag and freeze them up to 15-20 days. When needed  remove from freezer, let them come to room temperature and then shallow fry on the tawa with little oil from both sides.