Learn the basics of Indian chaats, savory snacks that blend spices, textures and flavors, and then put the techniques to work in your own fresh fruit chaat.
At Rasika in downtown Washington, you can order a dish of baby spinach — each leaf lightly battered and quickly fried until crisp — drizzled with yogurt, tamarind and date chutney, sprinkled with minced red onions, tomatoes and cilantro. It is fragrant and pungent, warm and cooling, sweet and sour — all at once. It’s, and in addition to being a bestseller, it’s an exemplary rendition of an Indian chaat.
The genre is wonderfully broad and defined more by the flavors and textural characteristics of each dish than specific ingredients, cooking techniques or occasion. Chaats lean vegetarian, but can also be made with fish or meats. They can be entirely savory or mostly sweet, but are often a little of each. Sunderam and Chauhan agree that texture is a key element in any chaat. “There must be some crispiness,” Chauhan says.
These last lazy days of summer have me craving fruit chaats, but I don’t live in India. So I asked the experts for help on how to create a good one.“The ripeness of the fruit is essential in fruit chaats,” Chauhan says. “Then, the other elements just add to it — it’s a party in your mouth.
Often, but not always, fruit chaats are finished with a sprinkle of chaat masala. The complex and heady spice mix has no easy substitute. “It’s a little tangy, it has a little heat to it, it’s savory,” Sunderam says. Chefs often make their own blends. Most are based on amchoor, which is dried and finely ground unripe green mango that provides a pungent sourness, and kala namak, which is black salt that adds an umami flavor some describe as a little smoky or sulfurous.
This Peach and Tomato Chaat is designed with that in mind. Lime juice, fresh ginger, a touch of fresh chile and a bit of sugar or honey form a dressing with chaat masala that helps pull the juices out of the ripe fruit. If you can’t find chaat masala, you can skip it, because the honey, ginger and tamarind paste offer a similar sort of pungency. Whatever you do, don’t skip the crunchy bits. They’ll keep you coming back for more of this firework of flavors.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
What Can We Learn From Summer 2023's Biggest Box-Office Bombs?Summer 2023 had plenty of box office bombs, with the biggest flops of the season offering vivid warning signs for Hollywood.
Read more »
10 Lessons Terminator 7 Must Learn From The Franchise's Failed SequelsTerminator 7 should take some notes.
Read more »
Council Post: To Keep Up With The AI Revolution, We Need To Change How We LearnWith these changes, both workers and companies will benefit, positioning themselves to adapt to rapidly changing technologies—most of which we can’t even imagine today.
Read more »
Social media algorithms warp how people learn from each other, research showsPeople are increasingly interacting with others in social media environments where algorithms control the flow of social information they see. Algorithms determine in part which messages, which people and which ideas social media users see.
Read more »
Coastal Alabama students learn about aviation--by building a planeNext year, Satsuma City Schools will become the third school system in Mobile and Baldwin counties to implement the Tango Flight program, where students get to build their own airplane.
Read more »