Aloo Tikki Chaat
Aloo Tikki Chaat is a street-food style Indian snack made using a crisp Potato Tikki or Patty topped with a variety of chutneys, curd, chole, sev and spices. This is an absolutely ‘lip-smacking’ chaat as it has got a perfect amalgamation of crisp and soft texture from tikki and a burst of sweet, tangy and spicy flavours coming through from the various types of chutneys.
Chaat is a generic term for street-food style snack which literally translates to ‘lick’ in Hindi which explains how lipsmacking it is. Aloo Tikki Chaat is one of the top items in the list of numerous items under the umbrella of chaat. There are numerous variations of this chaat – the way the tikki is made and also the toppings that go over it. For example in Mumbai, this aloo tikki is served as Ragda Patties which has a different set of toppings and is completely different than the one you get in Delhi. In this post, we would be looking at Delhi style Aloo Tikki Chaat and three different ways to assemble it.
Aloo Tikki chaat is one of my personal favourite and a regular pick whenever I order chaat outside. This chaat is easily customizable with respect to the type of toppings that go over it. Typically Aloo Tikki chaat can be served in the following ways:
- Topped with a spicy chole or channa gravy and a mix of sweet chutney, green chutney, pomegranate and sev
- Topped with curd, same set of chutneys, pomegranate and sev
- Just the chutneys, pomegranate and sev
It is important to note that the Aloo Tikki used in this chaat in quite different than any other burger style aloo patty or cutlet. This Aloo Tikki is to be made primarily with potatoes and does not have ingredient like bread crumbs in it. If bread crumbs are used, it becomes a cutlet! There is some technique involved in getting a crisp and crunchy outer layer with minimal ingredients. The only binding agent added to this recipe is Rice flour which also helps making the tikki crisp. Remember that we are trying to hero the potatoes here, so even the spices are kept minimal.
Though this recipe isn’t that complicated, but if some of the techniques are not followed correctly it might not yield a good Aloo Tikki. While it may sound simple that it is primarily made of potatoes, trust me it is easy to go wrong. Follow the below tips and tricks to always get a perfect super crisp tikki with a melt in mouth texture in the inside:
- Cook the potatoes just right – It is important to not overcook the potatoes as overcooked potatoes would not yield a firm dough for the tikki and you might end up adding more binding agent which will eventually alter the taste and texture of tikki
- Chill the potatoes – Though you might have cooked the potatoes just right, but it is important to chill them in fridge for at least 3 to 4 hours to make them firm. Don’t miss this step as it makes a sea of difference
- Grate the potatoes – Grating the chilled potatoes yields a uniform texture to the tikki
- Keep it minimal – Keep the spices minimal and let the flavours of potatoes come through. Remember the chutneys going on top already has all the required flavours.
- Rice Flour – This is the secret ingredient used in tikki which not only acts as a binding agent and also makes them super crisp. You may optionally use one tablespoon of corn flour in addition to rice flour. But use of bread crumbs is a big No-No in this recipe!
- Press and Cook – These tikkis are shallow fried and pressing them well would make sure that they get crisp through inside.
Aloo Tikkis are shallow fried in oil or ghee on medium flame till they are crisp and achieve a golden brown colour. You would have seen these Aloo Tikkis being cooked in a large shallow Tawa in most of the halwai or chaat shops and that is the technique works best for frying them. I do not recommend deep frying as it would crisp up quickly and not turn crisp from inside.
Other than the fact that a perfect Aloo Tikki is what makes this delicious, it is equally important to pay attention towards the taste of chutneys used in making this chaat. To be honest, not just this chaat, in fact any type of chaat. The chutneys are the heart and soul of chaat as it adds a complex depth of flavours. The two most important chutneys used in any chaat are the Sweet Chutney (Tamarind and Jaggery based) and Green Chutney (Coriander, Mint & Green chillies based). The recipe for Sweet Chutney is already given in my blog. You can find the recipe here. I have covered the recipe for the Green Chutney in the below recipe.
Similarly, make sure that the curd used in this recipe is not sour and thick. Whisking the curd well yields an uniform and smooth texture.
Serving Suggestion
Aloo Tikki chaat is to be made with hot Aloo Tikkis as soon as they are fried as it stays most crispy and crunchy when hot. The toppings can be a choice of either spicy chole, curd with green and sweet chutneys or just chutneys. A sprinkling of some chilli powder, chaat masala, fresh pomegranate and nylon sev and fresh chopped coriander finishes it as a perfect chaat!
Aloo Tikki Chaat
Ingredients
For Aloo Tikki
- 8-9 Potatoes medium sized
- 3-4 tbsp Rice Flour
- 1 tbsp Corn Starch
- 2 Green Chillies finely chopped
- 1 inch Ginger grated
- 3 tbsp Fresh Chopped Coriander
- 1 tbsp Fresh Chopped Mint
- ½ tsp Amchur or Dry Mango Powder
- ¼ tsp Asafoetida or Hing
- ½ tsp Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder
- ½ tsp Coriander Powder
- ½ tsp Jeera Powder
- ½ tsp Rock Salt or Kala Namak
- Oil for shallow frying
- 2 tbsp Ghee
- Salt to taste
For Green Chutney
- 2½ cups Fresh Chopped Coriander
- 1 cup Fresh Chopped Mint Leaves
- 2-3 Green Chillies
- 1 inch Ginger
- ½ tsp Rock Salt or Kala Namak
- 1 tsp Cumin or Jeera Powder
- ½ tsp Chaat Masala
- Juice of half Lime
- Salt to taste
For assembling Aloo Tikki Chaat
- ¾ cup Sweet Tamarind Chutney
- 2 cups Whisked Curd
- Chole Masala as required
- ½ cup Fresh Pomegranate
- 1 cup Nylon or Fine Sev
- Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder for garnishing
- Chaat Masala for garnishing
- Fresh Chopped Coriander for garnishing
- Finely Chopped Onions for garnishing
Instructions
- Wash the potatoes and pressure cook them as whole with salt for 3 whistles
- Drain the water immediately once the pressure releases and peel the potatoes. Do not leave the potatoes long in the cooker as it could get overcooked.
- Refrigerate the cooked potatoes for 3 to 4 hours.
- Grate the chilled potatoes in the largest setting of a grater.
- Now add all the remaining ingredients mentioned in the Aloo Tikki section (except oil and ghee) and mix well.
- Knead the ingredients well to bring together a firm and tight dough. Make sure not to add any water while kneading this. Rest this dough for 10-15 minutes.
- In the meanwhile, prepare the green chutney by grinding all the mentioned ingredients in 'Green Chutney' section.
- Grind in short bursts and do not grind for too long as it would make the chutney bitter. You can add some more lemon juice if required. Transfer the chutney to a bowl and keep aside.
- For making the tikki, take a chapati sized ball of the dough and press between your hands to flatten it. Keep corners slightly thin.
- Now roll the prepared tikkis on plate or flat surface to smoothen the cracks on edges.
- Roll all the remaining tikkis
- Heat oil in a iron skillet or a large shallow tawa. Add two tablespoons of ghee.
- Now add the tikkis to the skillet and cook them on medium flame. Flip the tikkis once it is cooked on one side
- After couple of minutes once the other side also becomes crisp, start pressing the tikkis so that they also get crisp from inside.
- Flip and press and cook on the other side too till the tikkis are golden brown in colour.
- Drain the tikkis on a tissue paper. Continue cooking the remaining tikkis.
- For making the Plain Aloo Tikki Chaat, take the fried hot tikki in a bowl, crush slightly and add a generous amount of sweet chutney, green chutney, a pinch of red chilli powder and chaat masala. Sprinkle fresh pomegranate, chopped coriander and nylon sev.
- For making the Dahi Aloo Tikki Chaat, take the fried hot tikki in a bowl, crush slightly and add 3 to 4 tablespoons of curd, a generous amount of sweet chutney, green chutney, a pinch of red chilli powder and chaat masala. Sprinkle fresh pomegranate, chopped coriander and nylon sev.
- For making the Chole Aloo Tikki Chaat, take the fried hot tikki in a bowl, crush slightly and add one ladle full of chole masala, a generous amount of sweet chutney, green chutney, a pinch of red chilli powder and chaat masala. Sprinkle fresh pomegranate, chopped coriander and nylon sev.
Notes
- Make sure to cook the potatoes just right and it should not be overcooked or watery.
- Refrigerate the potatoes for minimum of 3 hours. Do not skip this step.
- Grating the potatoes gives the tikki an uniform texture.
- Add one or two more tablespoons of rice flour if the dough is sticky. If the potatoes are cooked correctly and refrigerated, the amount of rice flour mentioned in the recipe above should be just right.
- Cook the tikkis on medium flame to get a uniform crisp texture. Also pressing them once the tikkis are partially cooked will make them crisp through inside as well. Do not press the tikkis as soon as it placed in skillet as it would break.
- The tikkis can also be cooked in ghee completely.
- Aloo Tikki Chaat tastes best when the cooked Aloo Tikkis are served hot.
