When you come from a vibrant city like Mumbai, it's no doubt then you would love chaats of any kind.
"Chaat” is a word used in India to describe street side snacks that are crispy-crunchy-spicy-tangy and honestly quite addictive.
I loved exploring the meandering streets of Mumbai, especially the food gully's, the place would be an explosion of colourful street vendors with the most amazing aromas swirling around each one. I specially treasure my college days, my most fond memories were always with my gang of friends, exploring a new food joint, licking our fingers in approval.
There are several restaurant's in Dubai offering the same 'Mumbai' experience, but none can match the soulful experience that Mumbai offers, despite the pollution around and other unmentionables that add to the so called 'street' taste. I love munching into homemade dry chaat once in a while and hubby is a huge fan too. So it was just out of sheer nostalgia I decided to rustle up something which is a treat for the summer months. This is a no-fuss easy to do recipe that looks very colourful. All you need is a good chaat powder to back you up (pick this up from the Indian section of your grocery), rest of the taste come from the fresh ingredients. Do give this fusion chaat recipe a try, it's going to be a crowd-pleaser when you have guests over for a meal.
Ingredients
1-1.5 cups cooked sweet corn
10 strawberries chopped fine
1 medium onion chopped fine
1 tomato chopped fine
Finely chopped green chillies (optional)
Dressing
1 tsp chaat masala
1 tsp Himalayan pink salt/ rock salt
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 pinch Kashmiri chilli powder (optional)
Coriander leaves to garnish
If you have fresh corn, remove the husk, give it a good wash and then you can either steam cook it
or boil it until it's just about tender to the bite. I usually like a bit of crunch to my corn, but feel free to cook it
till it's nice and soft.
Mix the corn, strawberries, tomato and onion in a bowl. Add all the dressing ingredients in another small bowl and whisk till well incorporated and pour this over the other ingredients when you are ready to serve. If you are prepping ahead for a party, then I suggest you leave the dressing to the very end, when you are about to serve your food. Enjoy this tangy chaat garnished with coriander leaves.
Tip- This is an kid friendly recipe, but if you really want the full fledged street taste, add the green chillies and kashmiri chilli powder to
amp up the spice level. You can even add a handful of pomegranate seeds to it, it will be a riot of textures to enjoy. Feel free to add more chaat masala if you like it really spicy.