Happy Holi!
"Good Morning America" tapped mompreneur Akruti Babaria, founder of Kulture Khazana, which celebrates Indian heritage and culture bringing everything from books to workshops to kids around the world, to share a vibrant dish that's perfect for any Holi celebration.
For the Hindu festival of colors, Babaria shared a popular Indian street food that she said is perfect for spring "to cool you off and bring some color to your plate."
"It is a flavor explosion of sweet-salty-spicy-sweet in every bite. With the burst of flavors, papri – the fried wheat crackers, provide the crunch for fun texture," she said. "Most of the ingredients in the recipe are easily available at your local South Asian grocery store."
Papri – You can either pick up these fried wheat crackers at a local South Asian store or make your own. Take a tortilla or a pita, cut them into squares, and fry them.
Cilantro-Mint Chutney – You can grab these frozen and in a jar at a South Asian store. To make it fresh – blend together a packed cup of cilantro, a packed cup of mint leaves, an inch of ginger, 2 cloves of garlic, 1 serrano chili, cumin seeds, and salt to taste. Add a tablespoon of lemon juice once blended.
Tamarind Chutney – This sweet and tangy chutney is easily available frozen and in a jar at a local South Asian store. To make at home – blend together a ½ cup of tamarind paste, ¼ cup of sugar, a teaspoon of red chili powder, a teaspoon of cumin powder, and a teaspoon of ginger powder.
Add salt to taste and adjust the tangy-sweet balance to your taste.
Yogurt sauce – This sauce, although sounds very easy, can make or break this recipe. Make sure your yogurt is not sour. Whisk together 1 of yogurt with 3 tablespoon of water. If you are using Greek yogurt, you will need more water. Add water little by little to ensure you get the right "sauce" consistency. Add to this ½ teaspoon of sugar and 1 teaspoon of sugar. Whisk again until salt and sugar have dissolved and you have a smooth sauce consistency.
Ingredients:
20 – 25: Papris
1/4 cup: Cilantro – mint chutney
1/4 cup: Tamarind Chutney
1/3 cup: Yogurt sauce
1 teaspoon: Chaat masala
1 teaspoon: Red Chili Powder (Optional)
2 tablespoon: Finely chopped red onions
3 tablespoon: Finely chopped boiled potato
3 tablespoon: Chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
To garnish: Pomegranate seeds
Directions
Once you have all the ingredients ready, making papri chat is all about the assembly. This is a very forgiving and flexible recipe that you can tweak according to your liking.
Step 1: On a plate arrange the papris like how you would arrange tortilla chips for nachos
Step 2: Pour the yogurt sauce over the papris
Step 3: Sprinkle boiled potatoes and onions
Step 4: Drizzle cilantro-mint chutney and tamarind chutney
Step 5: Sprinkle chaat masala and red chili powder (if you like spicy)
Step 6: Garnish with pomegranate seeds
"There you have it, your flavor explosion papri chaat. It will transport you to the streets of India without having to get on a plane," Babaria said.