Say what you may, but street foods are never going out of fashion. While we admire the new fine-dine restaurants, high on concept. But those untimely gol gappa cravings can only be fixed by your favourite street food vendor. Are we right, or are we right?
Gujarat has been a significant destination of traders, travelers and tourists since time immemorial, owing to which it has one of the most bustling street food fares across the country. Gujarati cuisine is known for its rich culinary treasures with exquisite dishes like dhokla, thepla, fafda, khandvi that have now become a nation-wide sensation. Dabeli is another crowd puller dish, which is made with pav bread and stuffed with a blend of masala. The union of various crispy and sweet elements and the uniqueness of the dish and its flavours find way in your heart at the very first bite.
You can call it a kind of a rustic sandwich. Pav breads are slathered over with chutneys and sauces. The sweet and spicy stuffing is made of peanuts, potatoes, pomegranate seeds, coriander leaves, sev, etc.
Dabeli is quite popular in the state of Gujarat and can be found in every nook and cranny of the state. It is also ubiquitous to the street food fare of Maharashtra. It is quite easy to make and can be rustled up in a few minutes. You can also play with the ingredients of your choice thus making it the perfect snack customised to your liking. So, here’s the recipe for the scrumptious dabeli.
Ingredients:
- Pav bread sliced and lightly roasted in some butter
- 1 nos dry red chilli
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- ½ inch stick of cinnamon
- ½ cup roasted peanuts
- 2-3 cloves
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp red garlic chutney
- 3 medium-sized boiled potatoes, mashed
- 2 nos green chillies, finely chopped
- 1 small sized onion, finely chopped
- 1 pinch asafoetida (hing)
- 2 tablespoon tamarind chutney
- Grated coconut for sprinkling
- ¼ cup pomegranate seeds
- ¼ cup coriander leaves
- Oil
Preparation of Dabeli Masala:
1. Blend dry chilli, coriander powder, cinnamon stick, cloves and ½ tsp cumin seeds in a blender until they are powdery.
Preparation of Dabeli Filling:
1. Take a non-stick pan, add a few drops of oil and heat it over medium flame. When the oil is hot enough add ½ tsp cumin and onions. Fry them until onions are slightly translucent.
2. Lower the flame, add hing and tamarind chutney. Mix them well.
3. Then add mashed potatoes, 1 ½ tbsp dabeli masala, peanuts and salt. Mix all the ingredients well.
4. Let it cook for 3-4 mins. If the mixture is sticking to the pan add 1-2 tbsp of water.
5. Turn the flame off. Sprinkle the potato mixture with grated coconut and pomegranate seeds.
Assembly:
1. Take the pav bread, put red garlic chutney on one side and the tamarind chutney on the other. Spread both of them evenly.
2. Take the potato mixture and spread it evenly inside the bun. Sprinkle some dabeli masala. Close the bun.
Your yummy dabeli is ready to eat.