Bhel Puri: A Favorite Indian Snack

Written by
Petrina Verma Sarkar
Food writer Petrina Verma Sarkar is a native of India with extensive knowledge of the country's regional cuisines.
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Petrina Verma Sarkar
Updated 10/22/19
Bhel Puri Puffed Rice Snack

The Spruce
  • Total: 20 mins
  • Prep: 10 mins
  • Cook: 10 mins
  • Yield: 2 portions (2 servings)
Nutritional Guidelines (per serving)
1124 Calories
14g Fat
227g Carbs
30g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 2 portions (2 servings)
Amount per serving
Calories 1124
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 14g 18%
Saturated Fat 3g 13%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 877mg 38%
Total Carbohydrate 227g 83%
Dietary Fiber 19g 67%
Protein 30g
Calcium 496mg 38%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

A snack with almost iconic status in the western region of India, bhel puri (or bhelpuri) is a low-fat, nutritious, and delicious food. It is a chaat, which is a spicy food that is typically sold via street carts throughout the region.

Bhel puri a puffed rice snack that can be eaten by the spoonful or scooped onto a flatbread or chip. Some places serve it in a paper cone and it's eaten directly from there.

In general, bhel puri is made with puffed rice and sev (a vermicelli-like snack made from gram flour), both of which are available at Indian markets. These dry ingredients are then mixed with onions, potatoes, chat masala, and chutney. It is spicy, but also sweet, tart, and salty and can be adapted to enhance any of those characteristics. The versatility in taste is the beauty of bhel puri.

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Ingredients

  • 3 cups puffed rice
  • 1 handful of peanuts (roasted and salted)
  • 2 potatoes (boiled, peeled, and chopped into tiny cubes)
  • 1 large onion (finely chopped)
  • 1 large tomato (finely chopped)
  • 1/2 bunch coriander (approximately 1/10 pound or 50 grams, finely chopped)
  • 2 chilies (green, finely chopped)
  • Tamarind chutney (or Mint-coriander chutney, to taste)
  • 1 handful papdi (coarsely crushed)
  • 1 cup sev

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Bhel Puri snack ingredients
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  2. In a large bowl, mix the puffed rice, peanuts, potato, onion, tomato, coriander, and green chilies together.

    Mix the puffed rice, peanuts, potato, onion, tomato, coriander, and green chilies together
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  3. Add the tamarind chutney or mint-coriander chutney according to your own taste preferences.

    Add the tamarind chutney or mint-coriander chutney
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  4. Mix the entire contents of the bowl well.

    Mix bhel puri ingredients
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  5. Garnish with plenty of sev and papdi.

    Garnish bhel puri with sev and papdi
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  6. Serve and eat immediately. Enjoy!

Tips

  • Assemble the bhel puri just before you are going to eat it to prevent the puffed rice from getting soggy.
  • To make this snack even more quickly, simply store the puffed rice, sev, and papdi (savory biscuits made from flour) in air-tight containers. Pre-make and either refrigerate or freeze the chutney. This allows you to toss the wet and dry ingredients together on a whim and prevents that unwanted sogginess.
  • Various chutneys give bhel puri different flavors. A saunth chutney, for instance, is a dark, sweet chutney derived from tamarind and dates. In contrast, a green spicy chutney uses green chilies and coriander that leaves for a very distinctive taste. If you have another favorite chutney, try that as well.

Bhel Puri Goes by Many Names

Some say that this snack originated in Mumbai, which, according to research, is a common belief. The dry version of bhel puri is known as bhadang, which is spiced with lemon juice, coriander, and onions. The Kolkata version is called jhaal muri. Another kind is known in Bangalore as churumuri or churmuri. 

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