“KhatHa MeetHa TeekHa Paani Poori with Sprouted Matki (Moth Beans)” … a tantalizing snack famous in Mumbai for decades available almost at every nook and corner … prepared as per each person’s demand of variation in sweetness and spicness along with a tinge of tartness, people throng to relish them whenever or wherever they are served … in the last decade or so they are even being served at functions and is now famous all over the world too … Yummilicious …
** Those who have tried this will definitely have stories of their own, as for me the first time I had paani poori In Mumbai (then Bombay), at the Gateway of India about 40 yrs back, it literally had me choking and gasping for air … nanksure vochunu kanantule hogo ani dolentule uddaka aaile (in konkani) … but once you learn to eat it then it is simply addictive … after a lot of goodies and traditional food for over a month, wanted a break with something chatpata … paani poori always comes to rescue … usually I prepare single chutney including all together and keeping it the right consistency of spiciness and tanginess but this time prepared them separately and served with sprouted matki instead of ragda (cooked white peas) or sprouted moong along with store bought boondi and poori …
** For those who are new to this spiced water filled poori snack, here is a little bit about the same, Usually 2 types of chutney are prepared for serving of paani poori. One is Khatta meeta theeka/ sweet spicy tangy chutney made out of tamarind, dates and spices and the other is dhania pudina (coriander mint) chutney. The first mentioned chutney is kept thicker while the other one is prepared into a thin water texture. The pooris which are readily available in stores in pack of 25/ 50/ 100 are purchased prior to preparing or some even prepare them at home. But I always purchase them as there is no point in going through the grind of heavy work or preparing them for just two person and it is not priced high too.
** Just take a poori that is intact and pierce a hole in the center, add in some sprouts or cooked white peas/ ragda and a few boondi, these are what usually added though nowadays people prepare them in varieties. Now add in the sweet spicy tangy chutney a little bit and then top it with thin dhania pudina waterish chutney. Once these are add it has to be served immediately and the person who wants to relish it should place it in whole in the mouth in one go and slowly bite on and relish it. The eating part is a little bit tricky and the first few times you may literally choke up as I did that is the very reason, the vendors give you the first one or two slightly sweeter and then follow the way the person likes to relish.
** As I mentioned initially you may choke up, if you are not aware of the procedure of eating it, just check it up on You tube to get a jest of the same or just have them with someone who is used to having it and learn the same. It is a common street side dish in Mumbai and elsewhere in Metro cities of India. People enjoy this very much and is much loved eating in streets than at home. However for the sake of hygiene one has to be careful now a days with the types of water being used etc. So prepare your own paani poori and have it at home. The poories are easily available in all grocery stores in Mumbai and now elsewhere too.
** As I mentioned above 2 types of chutney one sweet and the other spicy are prepared for paani poori. They are done so for the sole purpose of serving as per the demand of the person relishing it as when some love to have them all spicy others prefer medium while some like sweeter, so by keeping them separate one can mix and match them into the right consistency and taste they prefer. However, if there are just a few people at home like in my home its only hubby and me then there is no point in keeping them separate specially when out tastes match, you can just prepare them into one or mix them as per the way you want and relish the same without fussing about adding the same twice.
** Again, salted besan boondi (deep fried gram balls) are always available in the stores, they are usually fresh and taste great too and I personally do not go to the hectic work of preparing them at home and the same with poori which I mentioned above. But, yes, if they are not available and you want to relish them then you will have to prepare them which you can do so a few days before and keep them in air tight containers to retain the crispiness. It will save you on time as it does remain good for about 2 weeks. The chutney too can be prepared in thick texture and stored for about 2-3 days in fridge and used as and when needed by adding watering and bringing them to required consistency.
** Sprouts are good for health and one of the best way to make paani poori turn out healthier is by serving with any types of sprouts though in my home it had always been either moong sprouts or cooked white peas called as ragda in Mumbai. But this time I have prepared it with sprouted matki (moth beans) and it was fantastic. Again, you can steam cook or microwave the sprouts for a few minutes if desired or you can have them as it is which is what we do in my home as sprouts are many times consumed as it is for health benefits as cooking them lessens their nutrient value, but the choice is yours. Do try out various options, like fruit based syrups with these, which I have posted before, they are all tasty and fun to have.
** Here is my way of serving “KhatHa MeetHa TeekHa Paani Poori with Sprouted Matki (Moth Beans)” with two types of chutney, sprouts and boondi … My Style …
** Keep ready the desired amounts of sprouts, poori and boondi as per the number of people you are going to serve them to. The quantity of all these depends again the number of people you are going to serve and it is difficult to mention, so use appropriately, a little bit more if done will not run waste as you can always store them in fridge and relish them in the coming few days too as they will remain good for a few days.
** Wash, clean and collect about 3-4 cups of fresh coriander leaves (dhania/ kottaambari pallo). You can use the tender stem part here for the chutney. Similarly, pick only leaves of pudina/ mint leaves discarding the stems and wash them well. For this chutney the ration of pudina and coriander leaves is about 1: 5 ie if using 1 cup of mint leaves then use about 5-6 cups of coriander leaves. Always use lesser mint leaves as they are stronger in taste.
** For Spicy Coriander- Mint Chutney : In a mixer grinder add coriander, mint leaves, 8-10 green chillies (hari mirchi/ tarni mirsanga) cut into pieces along with 1 inch pieces of ginger (adrak/ alle’) also cut into pieces. Make variations of green chillies depending upon its spice level. Grind all with about one cup of water to a very smooth paste. Remove into a large vessel, add another 3-4 glasses of water along with salt (meeta/ namak) to taste, 1 tblsp of paani poori masala powder (available in stores), mix all well and keep it ready.
** For Sweet Chutney : Clean and soak about 1 cup of Khajoor (Seedless dates/ khajur) in just a glass of warm water for about 30 minutes for softening. Add it along with the water in which it is soaked into mixer grinder with about 1 cup of grated or powdered jaggery (goda/ bella/ gud), small lemon sized cleaned tamarind (imly/ chinchama), 1 tblsp of red chilly powder (laal mirchi/ mirsange pitti) and grind to a very smooth paste with about 1 cup of water. Remove into vessel, add in salt (meeta/ namak) to taste, mix well, check and add in more water if necessary only, keep this chutney thick textured than the other.
** Note : I have used Paani Poori Masala powder available at grocery stores, you can use any brand of the same. You can add in tamarind paste in place of tamarind too. I always prefer to use kaala namak for chatpata snack as they impart a lovely flavor of their own, however you can use any normal salt too, but do try to use kala namak often which is pinkish in color and much more healthier option than the table salt.
** Note : As mentioned in the details above you can either steam or mircro wave the sprouts and serve them but I do not cook sprouts for paani poori or when using in salads as I feel that the nutrient level gets diminished when doing so, however the choice is yours, you can just do the same for about maximum 5 minutes and cool them before serving.
** Add in water to both the chutney depending upon the preferable consistency you want for serving. As mentioned if there is not variation in taste among your family members you can mix the two in desired proportion and thin out to the correct texture and serve to avoid unnecessary work of individual serving, which is what I do most of the time.
** Do check in the seasoning and taste before serving and adjust accordingly, you can add in a little bit more of the paani poori masala powder if required too, so is the case of salt. Do not add in excess as there is inclusion of salt in all the servings, so it be careful or it may turn out with excess salt which is neither tasty nor good for health.
** “KhatHa MeetHa TeekHa Paani Poori with Sprouted Matki (Moth Beans)” is done and ready to be served. Serve them in a plate by piercing a round hole in the center of poori about one inch in size, with the help of the back of the spoon. Serve the sprouts and the chutney in individual bowls along with some boondi if desired, you may assemble them and serve or let the person who relish them serve for themselves. In all a delicious snack that all will crave for more, so be prepared for more demand or you may fall short of the same.
** For the Method of Sprouting Moong or Matki Recipe, Please follow the link given below ….
** Sharing a common link to “Paani Poori” in Blog, Pleas follow the link given below …
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