Make delicious Kutchi Dabeli just like your favorite chaat shop/ eatery. Serve it for a tea-time snack or a meal with lassi, kachumber and pomegranate salad.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 25 minutes
  • Cook time: 25 minutes
  • Total time: 50 minutes
  • Yield: 8 · 8 dabeli
  • Category: Main /snack
  • Cuisine: Gujarati

Ingredients

  • 1 pound (450 grams) potatoes ((2 large or 4 medium))
  • 2 tablespoons oil ((divided))
  • ¾ to 1 teaspoon sea salt ((divided, use less if using store bought masala))
  • 2½ tablespoons Dabeli masala ((store bought or from the blog post, divided))
  • 1 cup roasted skinned split peanuts ((if using salted, cut down salt while you spice them))
  • ¾ cup tamarind chutney ((store bought or from the blog, divided))
  • 1 tablespoon Kashmiri red chili powder ((or 12 deseeded/ destemmed Kashmiri dried red chilies))
  • 6 (20 grams) large garlic cloves (peeled)
  • ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt ((adjust to taste))
  • 1 to 1½ teaspoon jaggery powder (or 1 teaspoon sugar (adjust to taste))
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice ((adjust to taste))
  • 2 tablespoons roasted peanuts
  • 1½ tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 8 pav ((dinner rolls or use bun))
  • ½ cup onions ((fine chopped, divided))
  • ¼ cup coriander leaves ((chopped, divided))
  • ¾ cup pomegranate arils ((divided))
  • ¾ cup sev ((gram flour noodles, substitute with crushed tortilla chips, divided))
  • roasted spiced peanuts from above

Method

  1. Peel and dice potatoes to 2 inch cubes and add them to a pot. Cover with water and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce to medium and boil until fork tender. Remove from water and mash them well with a masher.
  2. Soak red chilies in 1 cup boiling hot water until soft, for about 10 mins. Remove from water and add to a grinder along with garlic, salt, jaggery, peanuts, cumin and ¼ cup water. Grind to a thick smooth chutney adding more water as required.
  3. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a pan and add the roasted peanuts, salt and 1 tablespoon dabeli masala. (If using store bought spice blend or salted peanuts, cut down or avoid salt.) Toast for 2 mins and remove to a plate.
  4. To the same pan, add the rest of the oil and the dabeli masala. Stir well and add 2 tablespoons sweet tamarind chutney. Cook for a minute until aromatic and pour half cup water. Bring to a boil.
  5. Stir in the mashed potatoes and add little salt. Mix well to combine. Taste test to adjust salt, tang and spices. If you want add more tamarind chutney or dabeli masala for more flavor. Cook for 2 to 3 mins and turn off. Let cool down a bit.
  6. Transfer to a serving bowl if you want and even out the surface. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons each of roasted peanuts, sev, onions, pomegranate arils and coriander leaves.

Assemble Dabeli

  1. Slit the pav (horizontally) on three sides, keeping one side intact. Smear 1 tablespoon tamarind chutney on one side (inside) of the pav and ½ to 1 tablespoon garlic chutney on the other side (see pics in the post)
  2. Stuff 1½ to 2 tablespoons of potato stuffing,1 teaspoon chopped onions, 1 tablespoon peanuts and a few pomegranate arils.
  3. Stuff more potato masala and even out the surface on three sides using a spoon. This way assemble all the 8.
  4. Spread remaining sev and half of the remaining peanuts in one plate. Add remaining chopped onions, 2 tablespoons pomegranate arils and coriander leaves to another plate. Press down the dabeli over the ingredients, one after the other into both the plates. Rotate the bun on all the 3 sides to coat.
  5. Add 1 to 2 teaspoons butter or ghee to a pan and place the dabeli. Smear soft butter or ghee on top of the dabeli and toast them on both sides until hot & crisp. If you want you may press down the dabeli while toasting.
  6. Serve them immediately. Lassi and kachumber go well in this meal.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.