Aloo Tikki Chaat (Potato Cutlets in Seasoned Yogurt)

This delicious aloo tikki chaat is my homemade take on a popular Indian street food. It is gluten-free, refined sugar-free and lip-smackingly yum. The addition of rice flour and flattened rice (poha) gives the tikkis a crispy exterior. I prefer to shallow fry them in ghee, but you can deep fry them if you like. For a vegan option, they can be fried in oil and served sans the yogurt. For easy assembly, boil the potatoes and prepare the chutneys a day ahead.

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Recipe

Aloo Tikki Chaat

(Makes 5 Servings)

Ingredients

For the Aloo Tikkis -
2 cups boiled and grated potatoes (I used 4 large potatoes)
2 tbsp rice flour
3 tbsp poha (flattened rice), rinsed and drained well
1 tsp dried mango powder/amchur (this can be substituted with the juice of 1/2 a lime)
1 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp red chilli powder 
1/2 tsp roasted cumin powder
1/2 tsp black salt (kala namak)
Salt to taste
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1-2 green chillies, finely chopped
1 tsp grated ginger  
1 heaped tbsp cashew halves (optional)
1 heaped tbsp raisins (optional)
1 tsp melon seeds (optional)
Oil/ghee for frying 

For the Chaat -
300 ml plain unsweetened yogurt
2 tbsp powdered jaggery (add more/less to taste)
1/2 tsp roasted cumin powder
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup pomegranate arils
2 tbsp bhujia sev (optional)
1 tbsp finely chopped cilantro
Sonth and Hari chutney
Chaat masala

Method

For the Aloo Tikkis -
In a nonstick pan, heat a tablespoon of oil/ghee over medium heat. Fry the cashews, raisins and melon seeds until golden, drain and set aside to cool.

Make sure the potatoes are completely cool. In a large bowl, combine them with the rice flour, poha, powdered spices, ginger, green chillies and chopped cilantro. Mix well and add salt to taste.

Grease your hands lightly with some ghee/oil. Divide the potato mixture into 12 equal portions and roll them into balls. Flatten each one slightly and place a cashew and two raisins and some melon seeds in the middle. Roll again and flatten to form tikkis/cutlets.

Heat 4 tbsp of ghee in the nonstick pan over medium heat. Carefully, place five tikkis into the pan at a time. Shallow fry them for 2-3 minutes or until the bottom is golden brown. Gently flip each one over and fry on the other side. Repeat this a few more times, taking care to gently flip the tikkis each time, until they are crisp and well browned on both sides. Remove from the pan and place them on a plate. Follow the same procedure for the remaining tikkis, adding another tablespoon of ghee if needed.

For the Chaat -
Whisk the yogurt with the powdered jaggery, cumin and salt until the jaggery dissolves.

To Assemble - 
Set out five dessert bowls. Ladle 3 tablespoonfuls of the whisked yogurt into each one. Place 2 aloo tikkis in each bowl. Spoon some sonth and hari chutney over them, garnish with the bhujia sev, pomegranate arils, cilantro and a dash of chaat masala. Serve immediately.