Khasta (Raj) Kachori - Indian Chaat Dish


khasta kachori chaatOne of my best foodie memories of my hometown is waiting in line for a 3 rupees Khasta Kachori in a small 4 ft x 4 ft roadside food stall so I could satiate my craving for a spicy & tangy indian chaat!! Khasta Kachori, also known as Raj Kachori or Daal Kachori is a popular street-food in India. "Khasta" actually means "flaky", so this is essentially a flat disc-shaped kachori which is filled with a delicious moong dal mixture, then deep fried, and later stufed with potatoes, sev, onions and chutneys. Next to sev-puri, this is my favorite chaat, and once you try it, I bet it will become your favorite too!

Sia asked for Street Food for this edition of Coffee's MBP, and I finally got a chance to try my hand at Richa's Khasta Kachori recipe, which I had bookmarked for quite some time now. I followed her recipe to a large extent, except that I added moong dal to the filling, and used all-purpose flour for the crust. I also modified a few spices according to my taste. It looks intimidating at first, but is not that tough. With a little help from my cousin, I was able to make my Khasta Kachori; they didn't puff up as much as Richa's, but it tasted great and we absolutely loved it!! Its totally worth the effort! Believe me, this is definitely something you'd NOT want to miss!!

Ingredients

For the Crust
2 cups plain flour (maida)
1/4 cup ghee - melted
1/4 tsp soda (fruit salt)
1/2 tspn salt
about 1 cup warm water (approx) - to knead the dough

For the Filling
1/2 cup yellow moong dal (split yellow gram)
1 tspn cumin seeds (jeera)
1/4 tspn asafoetida
1 tspn ginger-green chilli paste
1 tspn chilli powder
1 tspn garam masala
1 tbsp amchur powder(dry mango powder)
2 tbsp Bengal gram flour (besan)
3 tbsp oil
salt to taste

To Serve
green cilantro chutney
khajur-imli chutney
thin yogurt
boiled potatoes - chopped finely
onions - chopped finely
chopped coriander
thin sev

Method

Make the Dough for the Crust
Mix all the ingredients and knead into a firm dough by using a little water at a time. Knead properly for at least 5 to 7 minutes, but keep it hard and firm. Remember, it should be harder than regular chapati flour, as the kachoris need to be thick and flaky. Cover with a wet muslin cloth and leave for 30 mins.

Make the Filling
Soak the moong dal in water for at least 6 hours. Then drain the water and set aside.

Heat the oil in a pan, add the jeera and asafoetida. When the seeds crackle put the soaked and drained moong dal and fry for a few seconds.

Add the green chilli-ginger paste, chilli powder, garam masala, gram flour, amchur and salt. Stir for 5-7 minutes till all the masalas are cooked properly. Pulse this mixture in a food processor to form a coarse-to-fine powder. Divide the mixture into 12 equal parts and shape each part into a ball.

Make the Kachori
Divide the dough into 12 parts. Take each part, roll into a circle of 2" diameter. Add the mixture to the center, then roll the dough over it to cover the filling. Pinch the ends together, then roll it out again gingerly to make a 2 " disc. Make sure that the filling does not spill out.

Lightly press the centre of the kachori with a thumb. Now deep fry them in hot oil over a slow flame till they puff up and turn golden brown on both sides. Drain on a tissue paper and keep aside.

khasta kachori chaat


Assemble the Kachori
Keep one kachori on a plate and a crack a hole in the centre of it. Fill it with 3 to 4 tbsp of the beaten yogurt. Add the chopped potatoes and onions, then drizzle with the green chutney, tamarind chutney, and chopped coriander. Sprinkle the sev on top.

Serve this delicious Khasta Kachori as a perfect evening snack, serve two of these and you are pretty much done with dinner! Hope you enjoy this kachori chaat as much as we did!

Related Recipes:
Hot & Spicy Samosas
Mix Dal Vadas
Sev Usal Chaat


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31 comments :

Ramya Bala said...

Wow!!!One of the recipes I was searching for...Thanks for shaing Mansi

Anonymous said...

this is perfect mansi! it is my husband's favorite dish and I will surely make it this week. your photos are delicious!:)

Jharna

amna said...

oh god! i am craving so much for chaat now!! making it from scratch, i dont think iam ready for that yet :D

Neha said...

after reading ur comment on my kachori's , was eagerly waiting for ur ones, looking real yummy, n me too earlier thought of making crust of maida, but thought Aata as healtier option...:), but maida would definately taste better....

Finla said...

I have never had them, but looks so good. Have bookmarked them.

Homemade Heaven said...

Great dish. I have just done the MEME questions and have tagged you - hope you decide to join in too.

Aparna Balasubramanian said...

Love, love, just love this. Especially the mattar variety of kachoris.

FH said...

My fave snack while I was in college from a local bakery, still remember the taste of crumbly and spicy dal inside. Looks great Mansi!:))

ST said...

WoW Manasi ,kachori looks inviting....It is mine and my husbands favorite chaat will try soon. Thanks for sharing......

@the_whisk_affair said...

wow!! great looking snack, Mansi..I am drooling!!! :-)

Sunshinemom said...

They look damn tempting! I love kachoris! Lovely
Mansi, my apologies for not keeping up my commitment. I was to send my paneer tikkas to the MM you hosted but could not due to disrupted internet connections. I should have just sent the crumpets when you suggested but I so wanted to send something special! I know you might say it doesn't really matter but I hate not keeping my word, so horribly bugged at myself:(

Anonymous said...

Hey Mansi,this is not done...it's been just few days since i pledged a NO TO HIGH CALORIE FOOD,and see what u did to me:-(
I will now have to rush to chaat waala to satisfy my craving for this sinful pleasure....I even can't wait to make them in my kitchen
Wonderful recipe and mindblowing presentation,but bad ....u enjoyed it alone without us ...lolz

Vaidehi Bhave said...

Hi Mansi,
Kachori looks so yummy...great recipe

notyet100 said...

looks tasty...kachodi is my fav too

Vanamala Hebbar said...

Thanks for sharing wonderful recipe.

KALVA said...

Wow love kachaori,, never made it.. last time when i went to India i made sure to have themm... Now no need to vivist India when i crave for Kachoris...

Suganya said...

Wow... This is a excellent chat recipe. Looks great. Never tried this before. Have to try ur version. Nice presentation. YUM! YUM!

Jigna Desai said...

Hi Mansi,

I was looking for this reciepe for a while. I tried once but the crust wasn't that flaky. I will definetly try this one.
Thanks

Mansi said...

thank you folks, for your generoud feedback! this was really one of my cherished cooking experiments, and I'm sure you'll get hooked too!! do try it and let us all know how it goes!:)

Swati Raman Garg said...

i love khasta kachoris any street foood for that matter :D

ok i have a little something for you in my blog.. come over and check it :)

Anonymous said...

The Kachoris look delicious. I am a hufe fan of street food and you made me drool. I'm craving for it now..

www.zaiqa.net

Arundathi said...

oh that looks just delicious! love kachoris!

Trupti said...

wow manasi, kachori looks delicious. Nice photos.

Check my blog for wonderful award.

Richa said...

my mouth is watering looking at 'em kachoris, Mansi :)
u r so right, it looks intimidating in the beginning, then u get used to the process, glad to know you tried it!
gotta catch up with all the yummy posts of urs :)

pnoasnidtiinvie said...

i started drooling even before i reached the end of the post! superb recipe..cant wait to try this out!

Kalai said...

Absolutely gorgeous, Mansi!! Love this! :)

Anonymous said...

What an interesting dish! Something new to me. I wish I could try what you made:) Great post! Thanks for blogasphere, I've been learning quite a few new things about Indian cuisine:)

Namratha said...

I have been looking for a tried recipe for this since long, my search ends here. I'm gonna try this soon! :)

Unknown said...

I wish someone would have said . . . . my so and so loves khasta kachori , , , about me. Many moons ago, I had them at Haldirams in Delhi. But now that Mansi Ji has shown how to . . . they looked so realistic & yummy, that I am sure to try them one of these days.

And then I have to find, some one who would be so passionate about enjoying the chaat kachori with me.

I know some of my friends back in India who would, but here in the foothills of Bay Area, I have yet to make friends with such scrumptious savory taste buds.

Thanks & best wishes Mansi Ji

Mansi said...

thanks for those nice words Ashwani...but next time, pls remove the "ji" after my name!:) I'm not that great to deserve such respect:)D

glad you liked the recipe! Khasta Kachori is one of our favorites too!

Gargi Joshi said...

Wowwwww