Dahi Bhalla Chaat

Dahi Bhalla- Deep fried balls of urad dal (black no-skin split gram), spiced, soaked and served in dahi (yogurt). This is one of the most famous street foods of India. These hot deep fried balls are first put in cold water for about 30-40 minutes which makes them super soft and when served in yogurt,spices and chutney, they literally melt in the mouth.

These dahi bhalle were made specially for my father-in-law and I was hoping that they turn out perfect i.e... soft and delicious and they did! Everyone in the family enjoyed these dahi bhalle so very much. I still have some unsoaked one's in the refrigerator, which we can eat whenever we want.

All we gotta do is take them out and soak them in warm water about 30-40 min before adding to the yogurt and they will be ready to serve.

I am sure you can figure out the softness by this pic

These are very easy to make and not much time consuming. Ready for a recipe?

Here it is (Click here for the printable version)

Ingredients:
1 cup urad split no-skin dal 
4 cups yogurt (whisked well)
salt- to taste
red chilli powder- to taste
a pinch asafoetida
15-20 raisins
tamarind chutney (See recipe here)
1/2 tsp of  roasted cumin powder
1 tsp mango powder
fresh coriander leaves (chopped)
fresh mint leaves (chopped)
Oil- to deep fry

Method:
1. Wash and soak the urad dal in 3 cups of water overnight. Drain off the excess water the next day.
2. Grind the dal to a smooth paste. Whisk some salt, pinch of asafoetida and raisins in the batter.
3. Heat sufficient oil in a deep fry pan or kadhai. Keep the flame to medium low. Drop batter in tablespoon-fulls in the oil carefully and fry until light golden.
4. Drain onto absorbent paper. These are called "Bhalla's".
5. Now soak warm bhalla's in cold water for 30-40 min.
6. In a bowl, whisk yogurt well with some salt and cumin powder. Keep serving bowl ready.
7. Squeeze bhalla's to remove excess water out of them and arrange them in the serving bowl. Cover the bhalla completely with salted yogurt.
8. Sprinkle some red chilli powder, mango powder and cumin powder on the top.
9. Then add some tamarind chutney and finish by sprinkling some chopped coriander and mint leaves.

Enjoy the finger-licking Dahi Bhalla Chaat!