Kachori (moong dal)

Kachori is another famous snack which is served as street food. It is a delicious spicy puffed pastry and is filled with different kinds of fillings - spicy moong dal, onion, green peas and then they are deep fried in oil. It is very flakey (khasta) from outside and hollow inside.

I love the kachoris we get in Delhi, the khasta kachoris filled with moong dal. They were served with the hot aloo subji and a small spoon full of sweet chutney. We can serve it with the sweet & green chutneys.

Ingredients:

for dough

• 1 cup Maida (all purpose flour)

• Pinch of Salt

• 2 tbsp Ghee or Oil

• 1/4 tsp Carom (ajwain) seeds

• Chilled water for kneading

for filling

• 1/4 cup Moong dal soaked and drained for 2 - 3 hours

• 1/2 inches Ginger

• 1 fresh green chili

• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds

• Salt to taste

• 1/4 tsp asafetida

• 1 tsp dry mango powder

• 2 tbsp besan

• 1 tsp garam masala

• 2-3 tbsp oil

for assembling

• Oil for deep frying

• Green chutney

• Tamarind/ Sweet chutney

• Potato Sabzi (*optional/recipe below in the end)

Method:

• In a bowl add flour, carom seeds and salt and mix.

• Add the oil or ghee to it and mix it properly until it looks like bread crumbs consistency.

• Now add chilled water and knead a semi soft dough. Cover and keep aside for 10-15 minutes.

• Coarsely grind the moong dal, without using any water.

• In a pan heat oil and add the cumin seeds and let it sputter.

• Add the asafetida, chopped ginger, green chili and the moong dal and cook it for few minutes on medium flame.

• Add dry mango powder, garam masala, salt and besan and mix well. The besan will soak out any water present in the filling.

• Cook till it turns lightly brown in color. Keep it aside, let it cool and then make small balls.

• Knead the dough once before dividing it into balls of lemon size.

• Take one, flatten it and fill it with one of the dal balls and close it well.

• Flatten the moong dal filled balls in between your fingers (not very thin). Repeat the process with all of them.

• Heat the oil for frying on medium flame and put the flattened kachoris one by one in the oil and fry them till golden brown (don't increase the flame).

Serve them with the green chutney and tamarind chutney. The best is the potato subzi which is served with them. A simple subzi made by cooking boiled potatoes, ginger, green chili, haldi, red chili powder, crushed coriander and fennel seeds, dry mango powder and salt.