Bengali Ghugni Chaat Recipe with Moodi/Bhaja Masala | Calcutta Style Vegan Yellow Peas Curry

Learn how to make Bengali Ghugni Chaat ~Calcutta style vegan yellow peas curry garnished with assorted fresh toppings

My love for Indian street food has no beginning and no end… This ongoing affair with street food is unparalleled to any other food, including the comfort foods, and I can quite happily go on living just eating street food for rest of my life. As much as I love deep fried, calorie loaded foods which I like to binge on occasionally, it’s the nutritious, delicately spiced street foods bursting with big flavours I am enslaved to. Apart from being highly addictive, these Indian street foods are packed with nutrition, nourishing and guilt-free. And there are couple of street food that screams comfort food, which wraps you in a warm blanket on a cold, cold night. One such recipe is Ghugni Chaat, a delicious yellow peas snack is a popular street food of Eastern Indian states of West Bengal, and some parts of Orissa, Assam and Bihar.

Ingredients for Calcutta Style Ghugni Chaat

To make Ghugni Chaat, dried yellow peas are soaked overnight and pressure cooked until soft and almost mushy and then simmered in a spicy and sour gravy of finely chopped onions, tomatoes, ginger and a special spice blend called Moodi/Bhaja Masala. A traditional Ghugni is made with dried yellow peas, sold as vaTana in Indian groceries in the lentil and bean aisles. Although there are other versions of Ghugni made with black or white chickpeas or dried green or white peas, I personally prefer the dried yellow peas which easily takes in layers of flavours added to it. Some versions of Ghugni Chaat also included meat, such as lamb, and some are made without garlic and onions during the festival times.

Rotimatic Review, FAQs and Discount Code | Everything You Need To Know About Rotimatic

A complete Rotimatic Review, FAQs and Discount Code 

About a year and half or two years ago, a video went viral on social media where a robotic kitchen appliance measured, kneaded and rolled the dough balls, flattened it, puffed and roasted it and pushed perfectly cooked round rotis. I was very sceptical when I first saw the video, but at the same time I was really excited to see this staple unleavened Indian flat bread called Roti, with over 4000 years of History dating back to Harappan civilisation, and consumed by millions of people of Indian subcontinent finally have its own dedicated modern machine which makes roti from scratch with a touch of a button. This dream was made into reality by inventor wife and husband team Pranoti Nagarkar Israni and Rishi Israni with their 8 years of hard work and never give up attitude.

If you haven’t already guessed by now, I am talking about Rotimatic which is world’s first ever automated roti maker with its cloud based software and an impressive assembly line with chockful of robotic goodness! The look and finish of the product is quite sleek and minimalist with glossy white exterior that belongs to the 21st century design concept. So, does the Rotimatic live up to its hype? I am hoping that my extensive review of Rotimatic with FAQs will help you in finding out everything you need to know about this ‘smart’ kitchen appliance. 

But before we go through the detailed review, I am teaming up with Rotimatic who are giving exclusive discount of US  $75 to the readers of Monsoon Spice. Order via https://rotimatic.com/order-priority-uk-monsoonspice to jump the queue and order Rotimatic directly without signing up on the wait list PLUS receive a discount of US $75!

Kolhapuri Usal/Misal Recipe with Kat and Kolhapuri Masala | Popular Indian Street Foods Series

Learn how to make Kolhapuri Usal/Misal with Kat and Kolhapuri Masala ~ Sprouted Moth Beans cooked in a spicy gravy of onion, coconut and flavoured with Kolhapuri misal masala

Who likes spicy food?

I mean super spicy… Spicy as the one that turn your nose crimson red and brings tears in your eyes! Spicy as you are left with wiping your nose and eyes and yet you are smile and happily continue to devour the food! Yeah, I am talking of hot and fiery spicy food.

Ingredients for Kolhapuri Usal/Misal

If you are still reading this and nodding your head in agreement then this recipe is for you. We have hot and fiery Kolhapuri Usal or Misal in our today’s menu. Last time I had it was in Belgaum where my friend took me to this small hotel in one corner of the city. It was not a fancy hotel with crystal chandeliers and comfortable chairs. Instead it was a small, modest hotel with wooden tables and long benches in a small square room with sea green coloured walls and red roof tiles. The hotel’s owner was sitting right next to the entrance door on a beautifully carved high rosewood chair. And in front of him was the ancient rosewood table with half a dozen big glass canisters filled with coloured peppermints and shortcrust cookies studded with colourful tutti-frutti. The wall behind him was adorned with frames of colourful pictures of Goddess Lakshmi (goddess of wealth), Lord Ganesha (elephant faced Hindu god) and Goddess Saraswati (goddess of knowledge). The owner himself was a pleasant looking guy with kumkum on his forehead and wore pristine white cotton kurta and dhoti.