Dry Bhel

Dry Bhel or Sukha Bhel (Jhal Muri in East India) is one of my favorite street food. It is a very simple chaat and is generally eaten as a snack. You can find dry Bhelpuri vendors usually at railway stations and street corners. In Dry Bhel, the chutneys are substituted with chopped green chillies, raw mangoes, chaat masala etc.

Ingredients :

For Toasting Puffed Rice :
1 large bowl Puffed rice
1 tspn Vegetable oil
1/4 tspn mustard seeds
1/4 tspn turmeric powder
A pinch of asafaetida (Hing)
Salt to taste

For Dry Bhel :
1 large bowl Toasted Puffed rice 
1/2 cup Nylon Sev or Bhelpuri Sev 
4-5 Sevpuri Puris (Fried puris or Papdi)
3-4 tbspns namkeen or Farsan (Optional)
2 tbspns roasted peanuts
1/2 boiled potato  (chopped in cubes)
1/2 onion (finely chopped)
1 green chilly (finely chopped)
1 tbspn fresh corriander leaves (finely chopped)
A pinch of Chaat masala
1 tspn raw mango (Finely chopped)
Salt to taste

For Garnishing :
Yellow bhel puri sev
Chopped fresh coriander leaves
Sevpuri puris (Papdi)

Method :

To Toast Puffed rice :
Heat oil in a large wok. Add mustard seeds. When mustard seeds crackle, add asafaetida, turmeric powder and salt in the oil. Immediately add puffed rice and saute for a minute or two minutes. This process makes puffed rice more crispy and gives it a colour.

To make Dry Bhel :
Take toasted puffed rice in a large bowl. Add Nylon sev, Namkeen and roasted peanuts. Break puris / papdi into pieces and and add to the mixture. Mix well. Now add the chopped potatoes, onions, chopped fresh corriander, raw mango and green chilli. Then sprinkle chaat masala and salt to taste. Mix well.

Pile it into a serving bowl. Garnish it with Sev, chopped coriander leaves and papdis. Serve immediately.

Notes :

1. You may replace potatoes with finely chopped tomatoes
2. Additional namkeens may be added as per your choice
3. If raw mango is not available, then it can be substituted with lemon juice
4. A dry chutney is also mixed along with the ingredients. The can be made by grinding roasted chana dal, green chillies, fresh corriander, mint leaves, garlic cloves, lemon juice and chaat masala together. This chutney can be stored for few days.

Stepwise Pictures :