Masala Puri is a popular street food chaat from Bangalore, Karnataka. It is made with crispy, crushed golgappa puris topped with a spicy dried white peas gravy, fresh onions, tomatoes, coriander, lemon juice, chutneys, and sev. This dish stands out as a South Indian twist on classic chaat with its crispy, creamy, tangy, and spicy flavors. Each bite brings a wonderful mix of textures and tastes.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 540 minutes
  • Cook time: 20 minutes
  • Total time: 560 minutes
  • Yield: 4
  • Category: Snacks
  • Cuisine: Karnataka, South Indian

Ingredients

  • 1 cup or 250 grams dried white peas (or dried green peas)
  • 2 cups water
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ⅛ teaspoon turmeric powder (or 2 to 3 pinches (ground turmeric))
  • 1 inch cinnamon
  • 2 cloves
  • 2 marathi moggu ((kapok buds), optional)
  • 1 to 2 mace strands
  • 2 pinches nutmeg powder (or grated nutmeg)
  • 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
  • ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1 tablespoon roasted chana dal ((roasted husked bengal gram))
  • 3 to 4 medium garlic cloves (- chopped)
  • ½ inch ginger (- chopped)
  • ½ cup chopped coriander leaves ((cilantro))
  • 1 to 2 green chilies
  • ¼ cup fresh coconut (- tightly packed)
  • ¼ cup cooked white peas
  • ⅓ cup water (- for grinding)
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • ⅓ cup chopped onions
  • ¼ teaspoon red chili powder (or cayenne pepper or hot paprika)
  • 1 cup water
  • 2 teaspoons sugar (or as required)
  • salt (as required)
  • 16 to 20 pani puri (or golgappa puris - crushed, as required)
  • ⅓ cup onions (- finely chopped)
  • ⅓ cup tomatoes (- finely chopped)
  • ¼ cup coriander leaves (- finely chopped)
  • chaat masala (- as required)
  • lemon juice (- as required)
  • Tamarind Chutney (- optional, as required)
  • regular salt (or black salt, as required)

Method

Pressure cooking white peas

  1. Rinse and then soak dried white peas in 2.5 to 3 cups water overnight or for 8 to 9 hours.
  2. Drain all the water and add them in a stovetop pressure cooker. Also add salt and turmeric powder.
  3. Then add water.
  4. Pressure cook for 15 to 20 minutes or for 10 to 12 whistle on medium heat.
  5. When the pressure falls down on its own, then only open the lid and check if the white peas are cooked. In case the peas are undercooked, add ½ cup more water and pressure cook for some more minutes. The peas should be softened completely and cooked thoroughly.
  6. Once the white peas are completed softened and cooked well, then proceed to the next step.

Making masala paste

  1. Now in a grinder jar, add the whole spices mentioned under the list 'For masala paste' in the ingredients section above.
  2. Also add roasted chana dal, garlic cloves (chopped), ginger (chopped), chopped coriander leaves, green chilies (chopped) and fresh coconut.
  3. Add ¼ cup of the cooked peas.
  4. Add ⅓ cup water and grind to a smooth and fine paste. There should not be any small chunks of any ingredient in the paste. Keep aside.

Making white peas gravy

  1. Heat oil in a pan and add chopped onions.
  2. Mix and saute for 1 to 2 minutes.
  3. Then add red chili powder and mix well.
  4. Now add the green masala paste. Mix well and saute for a minute.
  5. Then add the cooked white peas and add water.
  6. Season with sugar as per your preference. Also add salt as per taste.
  7. Mix very well and simmer on a low to low-medium heat. Stir at intervals so that the mixture does not stick to the pan.
  8. Simmer for 12 to 15 minutes or till you some oil specks on the top. The masala should get cooked and the rawness should go away. Once done switch off the heat. Cover and keep aside.
  9. Meanwhile when the peas gravy is cooking, you can finely chop onion, tomato, small lime or lemon and coriander leaves. Keep aside.

Making masala puri

  1. On a plate, crush 4 to 5 puris which we use for pani puris.
  2. Pour the peas gravy. If you like some sweetness, then you can add sweet tamarind chutney at this step.
  3. Top with some finely chopped onions and tomatoes. You can also add grated carrot as this step.
  4. Sprinkle chaat masala, black salt or regular salt. Also drizzle some lemon juice all over.
  5. Sprinkle some sev on top. If you want the crunch of the pooris, then sprinkle crushed puris on top instead of placing puris in the plate.
  6. Lastly add some chopped coriander leaves on top.
  7. Serve bangalore style masala puri immediately. This way you can make various servings of masala puri and then serve them hot or warm.

Serving

  1. Assemble Masala Puri just before eating so the puris stay crisp.
  2. Serve hot or warm with extra sev, onions, tomatoes, chaat masala and puris on the side.

Storage

  1. Store the white peas gravy in the fridge for 1 to 2 days.
  2. Reheat before serving. Do not freeze. Assemble only when ready to eat.

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.