Bhelpuri : A tongue tickling snack

Bhelpuri is a snack with almost iconic status in the western region of India, bhel puri (or bhelpuri) is a low-fat, nutritious, and delicious food. It is a chaat, which is a spicy food that is typically sold via street carts throughout the region. It is a puffed rice snack that can be eaten by the spoonful or scooped onto a flatbread or chip. It is served in paper cones which is an exciting and different method of serving.

 The mix includes crispy little curly fritters that look almost like crushed up pieces of raw ramen noodles, boiled and peeled potatoes, puffed rice, brown crumbly things, crushed up parts of a deep-fried chip like discs, diced red onions, chilies, and coriander. It is tossed into a cone-shaped piece of scrap paper. Then the vendor proceeds to add a few spoons of chili sauce and tamarind sauce over the crunchy items. Then he mixes the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients by giving the cone a little toss with a swift stir of the spoon in repeated motions until the sauce evenly coats the entire snack.

Different chutneys impart a sweet, tangy, or spicy flavor. There are two popular chutneys used: a dark brown sweet one made mainly from dates and tamarind (saunth chutney) also a green spicy chutney made from coriander, mint leaves, and green chilies. Bhelpuri offers everything – it is a Gujarati snack made popular in Mumbai by migrants to the city- it’s crispy, crunchy, soft, sweet, savory, spicy and sharp. You mix it all and eat it up immediately whilst it is still crunchy. 

Even though the recipe originated in Bombay, it has spread its wings across the Indian Subcontinent, and every place has its Bhel recipe. Bhelpuri is a versatile recipe, and you can adjust the ingredients as per your preference. You can skip papdis and add tortilla chips instead and also replace potatoes with other veggies. Spicy and tangy bhel puri along with green chilies, add the green chutney, and spice up the bhel with amchur powder, chaat masala, jal jeera masala, and lemon juice. You can also top it with pomegranate seeds and cottage cheese. 

The authentic bhelpuri has been changed and made a Mexican bhelpuri with some new ingredients. It is a fusion recipe made from a crispy tortilla chip with some bean mixture, hot sauce, salsa with shredded cheese. It is tangy and crispy bhel with a lot of ingredients.

Mexican Bhelpuri Recipe

Ingredients

• Tortilla sheets 2

For Bean Mix

• Boiled beans 1 cup
• Bell pepper 1 cup
• Boiled corn 1/2 cup
• Boiled and chopped potato 1 cup
• Cilantro 1 tbsp
• Lemon juice 2 tsp
• Salt as taste

For Salsa

• Tomato(large) 1
• Onion(small) 1
• Green chili 1
• Cilantro 1 tbsp
• Salt as taste
• Cumin Powder 1/2 tsp

For Hot Sauce

• Tomato 2
• Dried red chili 11-12
• Salt as taste
• Cumin Powder 1/2 tsp
• Oil for deep frying
• Lettuce leaf 2
• Cheese 2 tbsp
• Cilantro 1 tsp

Method

For Bean Mixture

1. Toss all the ingredients together, beans, potatoes, bell peppers, corn, cilantro, jalapeno, salt, cilantro, and lemon juice, and set aside.

For Tortilla Chips

1. Cut the tortillas into a 1/2-inch square.
2. Heat the oil in frying pan oil.
3. Fry the tortillas until they are light golden brown.

For Hot Sauce

1. Boil the chilies in about 1 cup of water, till they are soft and tender.
2. Blend all the ingredients, tomatoes, chilies, salt, and cumin seed powder.

For Salsa

1. Blend all the ingredients tomatoes, cilantro, green chili, salt, and cumin seeds powder, making into chunky.

Assembling

1. Spread lettuce in the bowl.
2. Put the bean mix over.
3. Spread some chips, then add some more bean mixture.
4. Spread some hot sauce and salsa on top.
5. Drizzle grated cheese on it.
6. Garnish it with cilantro.