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Features

Chaat with a twist

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From dahi bhalla ice cream to Turkish street food, we tell you where to try some innovative chaat

Delhi is known for its street food. At every nook and corner in the city you will find stalls serving the best of gol gappe, aloo tikki, dahi bhalla and chole bhature. Delhites don’t need a reason to binge on chaat. We love it and can have it at any time of the day. Maybe that is the reason why restaurants do not want to disappoint chaat lovers and have introduced a variety of chaats on the menu.

Chicken tikka chaat and Kukuri bhindi

Varun Puri runs Imly that is dedicated to Indian street food. One of the items on his menu is the Dahi bhalla chaat, which they do with a slight twist. Using savoury rasgullas, blueberry and strawberry yoghurts along with many other elements it makes the dish look and taste completely different from the usual. Another dish that you can look forward to is Kurkuri bhindi and Palak patta chat which is an mix of fried Palak patta and crispy bhindi tossed with some special masalas and chutneys giving you a feel of Old Delhi food with the comfort of being hygienic and healthy. Nukkad Cafe, another popular joint is serving chicken tikka chaat.

Gorge on a Dahi bhalla ice cream

Head to Prankster, to have the new modern chaat. On the menu, you will find Dahi bhalla that is being served as Dahi bhalla ice cream on a bed of roomali roti and crisp bhel, Tamarind glazed dryfruit salad which is a dry fruit chaat and Flat gappe that are served with chatpata water on a thin flat papadi. Molecule Air Bar is serving Gol gappe with five types of water. And chef Piyush Jain shares why, “Golgappa is something, which is enjoyed with basic mint water, but in our restaurant we intend to do things differently. So, we made our water in five flavours i.e. mint, beetroot, pineapple, orange and cola, which are presented in test tubes served with mint and tamarind chutneys in 50 ml syringes, while spicy potato is served in a baby toy cooker.”

Street food from Turkey

You can also try chaat straight from Turkey that is being served at Baris. Kumpir Patates and Lokmada Tavuklu Pilav is something new that you would want to experiment with. Kumpir Patates are loaded Turkish-style baked potatoes mashed in padano and mozzarella cheese and topped with chilled vegetables and mezze and Lokmada Tavuklu Pilav is Chicken and chickpea pilaf in semi-sweet sesame crusted lokma. Talking about why they thought of introducing Turkish street food in Delhi, Arjun Toor, creator and director of Baris says, “People actually enjoy Turkish street food because this reminds them of Indian street food sometimes because of the nature of the sweet-savoury mix. So, they find similar taste in a different kind of street food which helps them to connect with the food and enhances their experience.”

The simple chaat has definitely come a long way, while progressive and molecular gastronomy have given chefs a chance to play with ingredients and techniques, it has also resulted in some innovative chaat that has added to Delhi’s street food repertoire.

Source:  DNA India

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