Thu_Mar__7_12:01:22_PST_2019
Hello again! What started as a brief blog break somehow turned into several weeks of hibernation
We've had the kind of wet, cold, miserable weather that made me want to snuggle on the couch with a pile of good books, and I gave in and did exactly that.
Then yesterday the sun came out and I could feel the warmth soaking into me and infusing me with a burst of energy, so here I am with a couple of non-recipes, simple little things I made this weekend.
Chaat (the name given to a variety of Indian street food) is generally a gloriously messy affair. I've never thought of chaat as a particularly portable treat because of the dripping sticky chutneys, the fact that most chaats have a dozen components and that these components are often held at different temperatures and best assembled right before eating. But this past Saturday I wanted to take a snack for my trivia team and the chickpeas and potatoes in the pantry and the date tamarind chutney in the fridge persistently suggested that I should make some aloo tikki chana chaat. I've already posted the recipes for the components here. This was an experiment to see if I can convert this chaat into a portable format. It worked very well. The chaat was in good shape even after a car ride and 2 hours after I assembled it, every last one had been d evoured without any mess at all.
This is how I assembled it right before we left home: in a 9 x 13 baking dish (a Pyrex or ceramic dish would be the prettiest choice but I used my battered metal one because it has a snap-on cover), start by arranging the shallow-fried tikkis (potato patties). Some breadcrumbs in the tikki mixture really helped to give them a crisp coating. Next comes a scoop of chana, where the chana is made a little drier than usual and where you try and get the chana to fit onto the tikki. Then a dollop of thick date tamarind chutney, followed by thick yogurt whipped with salt and paprika, and minced fresh cilantro. Cover the tray and you are set. The sev goes in a separate container to be sprinkled on generously right before everyone dives in.
We've had the kind of wet, cold, miserable weather that made me want to snuggle on the couch with a pile of good books, and I gave in and did exactly that.
Then yesterday the sun came out and I could feel the warmth soaking into me and infusing me with a burst of energy, so here I am with a couple of non-recipes, simple little things I made this weekend.
Chaat (the name given to a variety of Indian street food) is generally a gloriously messy affair. I've never thought of chaat as a particularly portable treat because of the dripping sticky chutneys, the fact that most chaats have a dozen components and that these components are often held at different temperatures and best assembled right before eating. But this past Saturday I wanted to take a snack for my trivia team and the chickpeas and potatoes in the pantry and the date tamarind chutney in the fridge persistently suggested that I should make some aloo tikki chana chaat. I've already posted the recipes for the components here. This was an experiment to see if I can convert this chaat into a portable format. It worked very well. The chaat was in good shape even after a car ride and 2 hours after I assembled it, every last one had been d evoured without any mess at all.
This is how I assembled it right before we left home: in a 9 x 13 baking dish (a Pyrex or ceramic dish would be the prettiest choice but I used my battered metal one because it has a snap-on cover), start by arranging the shallow-fried tikkis (potato patties). Some breadcrumbs in the tikki mixture really helped to give them a crisp coating. Next comes a scoop of chana, where the chana is made a little drier than usual and where you try and get the chana to fit onto the tikki. Then a dollop of thick date tamarind chutney, followed by thick yogurt whipped with salt and paprika, and minced fresh cilantro. Cover the tray and you are set. The sev goes in a separate container to be sprinkled on generously right before everyone dives in.
* * *
Among the books I've reading lately were two by Marsha Mehran; they tell the story of three sisters who flee violence in their home country of Iran and seek refuge in a small town in Ireland where they open a cafe. I first heard of these books when Lavanya mentioned them in a comment on this post.
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