Build-Your-Own Chaat Bar

Chaat, or Indian snacks, are a delicious way to satisfy any day or night-time hunger. It's also a great way to feed a party! This weekend we celebrated my husband's PhD from Northwestern University. What better way to satisfy a group of hungry and tipsy friends than with a chaat bar.

Chaat covers a wide variety of small snacks. They can range from tapas-style small plates to crunchy on the go bites. Bhelpuri, for example, is a popular chaat in Mumbai, served in newspaper from an oceanside vendor to snack while you enjoy the sun and sea. 

With the chaat bar, our guests who were unfamiliar with Indian snacks, were able to try different combinations of flavors and textures. In Chicago, we have access to all of the Indian goodies by visiting Devon Avenue. Shout out to our cousin Lalitha, who recommended all of the yummy components. Our chaat bar included mamra (puffed rice), boondi (fried balls of chickpea flour), a variety of chivda (snack mixes), paapdi (like a cracker) chickpeas, red onions, tomatoes, cilantro and sev (crunchy noodles from chickpea flour paste). Rather than make my own samosas, I opted to order in from one of our favorite restaurants, Tiffin. To finish it all off, you can add a combination of sauces to suit your guests' tastes: tamarind-date chutney, cilantro (coriander) chutney, coconut chutney, and mint yogurt sauce. 

We added both grilled paneer tikka with a tandoori marinade and a take on Meera Sodha's chicken tikka (see her great book "Made in India" https://www.amazon.com/Made-India-Recipes-Indian-Kitchen/dp/1250071011/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1526849903&sr=8-1&keywords=made+in+india+meera+sodha). 

All in all it was a huge hit with our friends and has the potential to be a party staple in the Warner-Murthy household.