Samosa chaat is a popular Indian street food that bursts with flavor, color, and texture. It is made of layers of crunchy samosas, rich pea or chickpea curry, and topped with sweet, tangy, and spicy chutneys and then sprinkled with chaat masala, finely chopped onions, and fresh cilantro. Have I just described the perfect snack? Well, time to get your cup of chai out to go with this real delight.
Samosa chaat is a great North Indian street food that originated in Uttar Pradesh, which uses mainly vegetable samosas (aloo or Punjabi samosas work a treat!), a simple curry of chole or chickpeas (such as chole masala), or peas, different types of chutney and fresh ingredients to top.
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Although this may seem like a complicated or long meal to prepare, this samosa chaat recipe is extremely easy to follow and will have you enjoying your favorite samosa chaat quite quickly, as the trick is in the prep before starting to assemble the layers of flavor.
To prepare this samosa chaat recipe, I used baked samosas, which are easy to make and extremely tasty, while not being oily. The green chutney and sweet tamarind chutney are easy to prepare too, and most spices will be in your pantry already if you regularly cook North Indian street food.
The top tip for this recipe is definitely to have all the components ready on the side, as this samosa chaat recipe is extremely quick to get from the stove to the table!
Samosa Chaat Ingredients
- Samosas: The obvious ingredient, as you could not have samosa chaat without them! Although I have used homemade samosa, you can also use store-bought ones (most Indian restaurants sell them), or frozen samosas, such as Haldiram's Punjabi Samosas.
- Chaat chutney's: For this recipe, you want to use a combination of tamarind chutney, which is sweet and rich, and green chutney (such as cilantro chutney - aka coriander chutney) to give some spiciness and freshness. [What is chutney?]
- Ginger and Garlic: Freshly chopped ginger and garlic work best in this quick recipe, however, ginger garlic paste can be used instead - make sure to adjust the amount, as ginger garlic paste is much stronger.
- Oil: To cook the ginger and garlic, as well as the spices. You can heat ghee instead if preferred.
- Spices: Red chili powder, chaat masala, chana masala powder, and coriander powder are the only spices needed for this super quick recipe.
- Peas or Chickpeas: Depending on what you prefer, you can use either for the curry. These can be either canned chickpeas or peas, or you can pressure cook them after soaking them overnight.
- Cilantro, chopped onion, and lemon juice: Cilantro or coriander leaves to top the samosa chaat. Lemon juice is optional, depending on how tangy you like your chaat.
- Salt: Seasoning.
- Sev: This is optional to use on top of your chaat; it is a crunchy Indian snack made of chickpea flour and spices. These can be found in different thicknesses all over the Indian subcontinent, however, I prefer to use nylon or fine sev.
- Yogurt: Plain yogurt make this samosa chaat fresh, however, if you want to keep this recipe completely plant-based, then vegan yogurt is a great option.
How to make Samosa Chaat?
- Prepare all the ingredients and keep them ready to use on the side: chop the ginger and garlic, drain and wash the canned chickpeas or peas, keep your spices and chutneys ready, bake or fry your samosas, wash and chop the fresh cilantro.
- In a saucepan, add the oil, and once warm add the fresh ginger and garlic.
- Once the raw aroma of these has gone, add the chickpeas or peas and mix well.
- Create your quick chickpea curry by adding red chili powder, chaat masala, chana masala powder, and coriander powder. Mix well and allow the spices to cook until they separate from the oil.
- Next, add the chutneys to the spicy chole masala and give it a quick stir.
- The final step before moving the samosa chaat to the plate and top with fresh ingredients is to break the samosas and mix to the chole masala and tangy chutneys; mix everything together well and the chaat to your serving plate.
- To finish the samosa chaat recipe, top with sev, thinly chopped onions, yogurt, and cilantro or coriander leaves . Add lemon or lime juice if liked.
- This chaat recipe is better served immediately.
Is samosa chaat healthy?
Samosa chaat, as it is ordinarily prepared, is not considered healthy, however, by paying attention to a few steps, this can be prepared with fewer calories and fats than the popular Indian street food.
First of all, it is important to either bake or cook in an air fryer the samosas, as this will eliminate a lot of oil from this samosa chaat recipe; the explosion of flavors in this lip-smacking chaat recipe will still be there, as the chana masala, cilantro, and tamarind chutney, as well as fresh ingredients, such as chopped onion, coriander leaves, and fine sev, will still be present. The samosas can also be prepared with whole wheat flour for added depth of flavor.
Secondly, try not to use too much oil when cooking the prepared chole, and do not overdo it with the fine sev (which is ridiculously nice!). Other than keeping an eye on these steps, there is nothing much you can do to reduce the calories of this dish, so you might as well enjoy it to the fullest!
People Also Ask [FAQs]
Chaat is a savory snack that evolved in India and is often offered as an appetizer in restaurants, or as a quick bite sold by street vendors throughout South Asia, including India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh.
There are more than 500 varieties of chaat recipes all over the Indian subcontinent, making Indian street food not only a quick and affordable option but also quite trendy and fashionable throughout the world; in the past years, chaat has been added to farmers’ markets choices, festivals, and shopping malls, as popular street food (not only Indian but also Italian for example), is becoming more and more mainstream.
Samosa chaat recipes vary depending on who is preparing them and where however this samosa chaat recipe keeps it simple.
All you need are a few crispy samosa pieces, some spices, cilantro chutney, and tamarind chutney, cooked chickpeas (or dried chickpeas if you prefer to pressure cook them yourself), and some fresh toppings, such as yogurt, finely chopped onions, cilantro or coriander leaves, sev, and other fresh ingredients, such as pomegranate seeds.
A samosa is a triangular pastry filled with spiced potatoes, which is fried, baked, or air fried. Samosa Chaat is created by breaking samosas into bite-sized smaller pieces and topping them with masala, spices, and chutneys of different types.
This dish only includes one non-dairy ingredient as a topping, yogurt, which can be easily substituted for vegan yogurt.
Although I prepare the chana masala with some oil, and some heated ghee at the beginning of the process, however, this is all up to personal preference.
How to store samosa chaat?
Samosa chaat, once ready, is best consumed straight away, however, should you need to prepare it in advance, then the different components can be arranged, so that the final steps can be performed at the last minute.
The samosas can be prepared in advance and then cooked or reheated for crispiness at the last moment, while the chana masala for the samosa chana chaat (or samosa chole chaat) can be prepared in advance with the dried chickpeas (or peas) made in the pressure cooker and then flavored with the chana masala, chaat masala, coriander, and chilli powder.
All of the fresh ingredients can be prepared and set aside ready for the last-minute samosa chaat preparation.
Tips and Tricks for the Best Samosa Chaat
To make samosa chaat keeping in mind Indian cusine, and specifically all of the popular Indian chaat dishes around the country, there are a few tricks that help along the way to maintain the real taste, while making samosa chaat easy!
- Samosa: Selecting the perfect crispy samosa is very important for the best samosa chaat recipe, however - like for anything - is all up to preference. Aloo samosa tends to be the most popular option for this recipe, however Punjabi samosa, as well as meat samosa, such as chicken or lamb, can be used if that is what you prefer.
- Samosa part 2: You do not necessarily have to prepare your own homemade samosa for this chaat, as samosa chaat is made by breaking the samosa into small pieces, and it is additionally flavored with the use of chana masala, spices, and fresh ingredients. Feel free to use frozen samosa, or even ones bought from the shop or restaurant; I personally prepare this chaat recipe when I have a few samosa left from a bigger batch that I made but don't have enough to feed us all a whole meal.
- Leftover curry: You do not necessarily have to prepare the quick chana masala as I did in this recipe, as you can use leftover chickpea curry instead, such as Punjabi Chole instead. This will obviously offer a richer and thicker base, so you will need to balance the other ingredients not to make the samosa chole chaat too strong, as there will be already garam masala, cumin powder, turmeric powder, cumin seeds, chilli powder, amongst others.
- Samosa chana chaat: Should you prefer, you can use a potato masher to lightly thicken the chickpea gravy and play more with the different textures.
- Textures and flavors: Any good samosa chaat recipe knows that it must play with textures and flavors, as that is part of the game. To start, ensure your samosa bites are golden brown after being cooked and crispy. Ensure your tamarind chutney is sweet yet spicy (if homemaking the chutney you can balance that out) and that the coriander chutney is fresh and spicy at the same time. To add more textures and flavors, add yogurt, pomegranate seeds, and thinly chopped onion. It is a must to serve samosa chaat immediately so as to maintain the levels of textures - even better with some chai!
Making samosa chaat is an experience that involves all of the senses, from the smell of chana masala, to the texture of the crispy samosa, and the beautiful contrasting colors of the various ingredients, like the finely chopped onions, and the tangy chutneys, perfect for parties but also for a modern twist on appetizer cuisine.
Make samosa and ensure you keep some for this chaat recipe, and whether you bake them or deep fry them, keep them crispy, but most of all, serve immediately with a nice cup of steaming chai and some sev on top (sprinkle chaat masala for that extra zing!). Enjoy!
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Recipe
Samosa Chaat Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Samosas
- 1 tablespoon Oil sunflower or vegetable
- 1 teaspoon Freshly Chopped Ginger
- 1 teaspoon Freshly Chopped Garlic
- 3 tablespoon Cooked Chickpeas or Peas
- 1 teaspoon Chaat Masala
- 1 teaspoon Chana Masala Powder
- 1 teaspoon Coriander Powder
- ½ teaspoon Red Chili Powder adjust to taste
- 1 tablespoon Green Chutney
- 1 tablespoon Tamarind Chutney
- 1 tablespoon Freshly Copped Cilantro Coriander Leaves
- 2 tablespoon Yogurt plain, unsweetened
- 2 tablespoon Fine Sev
- 2 tablespoon Finely Chopped Fresh Onions
Instructions
Preparation needed to make samosa chaat
- Before starting to cook, ensure all your components for this chaat recipe are ready.
- If you are using canned chickpeas or peas, drain and wash them; if using dry ones, start by soaking them the night before and pressure cook them ahead of time.
- Either prepare your tamarind chutney and green chutney, or set aside the needed quantity, ready to be used.
- Chop the fresh ginger, garlic and onion and lay the spices, seasonings, and cooking ingredients in close proximity, as the steps for this dish are quite quick.
- Prepare the samosa last minute, ensuring they are still crispy and warm when starting to cook the chaat.
Preparing the chole masala
- In a saucepan, warm up the oil and, once warm, add the freshly chopped ginger and garlic; cook them on a medium flame.
- Once the raw aroma has gone, add the chickpeas (or peas), and sautee until thoroughly warm.
- Next step, add the masalas: coriander and red chili powder, chaat and chana masala. Sautee the spices and allow them to cook too, until they separate from the oil.
- To finish the chole masala, add the chutneys (coriander and tamarind) and mix well.
- Once the chickpea curry is ready, adjust the water so as to achieve the curry consistency preferred; allow this to fully warm up before proceeding to the next step.
- Tear the samosa into bite-sized pieces and add to the curry; mix this well and, as soon as they samosa pieces are coated with the chickpea curry, but still crispy, add the coriander leaves (cilantro) and mix well once more.
- Move the whole content to your serving plate.
Adding the fresh ingredients on the top
- Season the yogurt with some salt, before adding it on top of the samosa chaat with the onions, and sev.
- Enjoy immediately once ready for a treat of the taste buds!
Becca
What brand of chole masala did you use?
Elle
Hi Becca,
I use Badshah's Chole Masala, however, there are many good brands out there. I hope you enjoy the recipe!