Aloo Papri Chaat (wafers with potatoes, yogurt and tamarind chutney)
The word chaat refers to small savory snacks that are served all over India. Though they can be made at home, they are often eaten for lunch or a late afternoon snack in a Chaat house, or restaurant that specializes in these kinds of dishes. Because of the small portion, it is fun to go and sample a few different things in place of a large lunch. Our favorite place to go in Delhi was called Nathu’s. It is a chain around the city but we thought the best was the one located in the Bengali Market. The following recipe is for one of our favorite dishes. This can be made as a full meal or as an appetizer for a party. No matter how you serve it, the interesting combination of flavors will certainly have your guests ooohing and ahhhing.
Ingredients
2 medium potatoes
2 cups plain yogurt
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp cumin seed, toasted and crushed to a powder
1/4 bunch cilantro, chopped
1/2 tsp Indian red chili powder or cayenne
2 hot green chilies, stemmed and sliced
2 scallions, trimmed and sliced
Directions
Put potatoes into a medium pot and cover with cold, salted water. Bring to a boil and cook potatoes until tender when pierced, about 20 minutes. Drain peel and cut into 1/4” cubes.

48 crisp fried wafers (papri)
Ingredients
1 1/2 cup Wheat Flour
3 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup Oil
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Cumin seeds
1 tsp Ajwain Seeds
2 tbsp Vegetable Oil
Salt to taste
Directions
Crush the cumin seeds and the ajwain seeds coarsely in a mixer.
Mix all purpose flour, wheat flour, red chilli powder, turmeric, salt, crushed cumin and ajwain seeds together. Add water slowly until the dough comes together in a ball. Knead lightly until smooth and firm ball is formed.
Roll out even sized puris that are round and even, approximately 3 inches in diameter.
Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Deep-fry the puris using tongs to place them in the hot oil, cook each side until golden brown, about 2 minutes in total. Set aside on a plate or cookie sheet that has been lined with paper towels. Cook in batches until all are done, then cover with a paper towel and set aside.
Tamarind/Mango chutney
Ingredients
1/2 cup Dried tamarind pulp; packed or
1/2 cup Fresh lime juice; strained
1/2 cup water
3 Mangoes
1 cup Onions; in 1/4” dice
1 cup Golden raisins
1 cup Dried currants
4 tbsp Fresh ginger; minced or
3 lg garlic cloves; minced fine (for more taste)
1 Lemon; grated zest of
2 cups Light brown sugar; packed
3/4 cups Sugar
2 tbsp Mustard seed
1 tbsp Salt
1 tbsp Salt
2 tsp Dried red pepper; crushed*
2 tsp Ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp Turmeric
2 tsp Ground cloves
1/2 tsp Tumeric
1/4 tsp Ground cloves
1/4 tsp Cayenne pepper
1 1/2 cup Distilled white vinegar (For more taste)
Directions
Crumble tamarind into a small bowl and stir in 1 1/2 cups of the water; let tamarind soak for at least an hour,
Meanwhile prepare the remaining ingredients.
Or substitute the fresh lime juice plus1/2 cup of water at this point.
Peel and dice the mangoes, cutting them into small pieces for a jam-like chutney, into 1/2” or larger dice for a chunky mixture. Place the pieces in a preserving pan. Add the onions, raisins, currants, ginger, garlic, lemon zest, brown and granulated sugars, mustard seed, salt, crushed hot red pepper, cinnamon turmeric, clove, ground red pepper, white vinegar and the remaining 1 cup water; stir the mixture and let it rest until the tamarind “juice” is ready, or for up to several hours, if that is convenient.
When the tamarind pulp is very soft, strain the liquid through a sieve, pressing I it to remove all possible liquid and any pulp that will pass through. Discard the pulp remaining in the sieve. Add the liquid to the chutney mixture.
Set the pan over medium heat and bring the ingredients to a boil. Lower the heat so the mixture simmers and cook it, uncovered, stirring often, until the mango and onion pieces are translucent and the chutney has thickened to the consistency of preserves.
To assemble: Mix yogurt, sugar, cumin and salt in a bowl. Put 6 papri on each plate and pile potatoes on them equally. Spoon 1/4 cup of the yogurt then 1 tbsp of the chutney over each. Sprinkle each with cilantro, chile powder, chiles, and scallions. Serve immediately.

