Papdi Chaat is a popular street food from North India where crispy papdi (deep fried flour crackers) are topped with a variety of toppings like chickpeas, boiled potato, yogurt, chutneys, cilantro and more! These are highly addictive and are like a burst of flavor in every bite!

Chaat- I can literally live on it! I have always said that the last thing that I would want to eat before I die would be chaat. And it can be anything from aloo tikki to samosa to golgappe, papdi chaat and more. Basically anything that comes under that large umbrella of what we refer to as “Indian chaat” aka street food will be my last meal.

Papdi chaat is one chaat that I absolutely love for the variety of texture and flavors it has in every bite. Papdi refers to round fried crackers usually made from plain flour. These crispy crackers are topped with various toppings and chutneys to give this chaat layers of texture and flavors.

Every bite of this chaat is little spicy, little sweet and little tangy. There’s also the crunch from the sev at the top along with with fresh cilantro and pomegranate which make it refreshing. I can have 20 of these in one go, it’s hard for me stop at one when it comes to papdi chaat. And who eats single piece of papdi chaat anyway?

Ingredients

Papdi: these are deep fried flour crackers which are used for snacking (for snacking they are often flavored with cumin seeds, ajawain etc.) or to make dishes like papdi chaat. They are usually made from regular flour but can be also be made from whole wheat flour. For this recipe, we need plain papdi. I have used store bought papdi here.

Yogurt: I like using plain store bought whole milk yogurt which isn’t too sour for this recipe. The yogurt should also be not super thin else it will flow all over. Adding little sugar to the yogurt while whisking really makes the flavors pop.

Toppings: papdi chaat is all about toppings! You can get creative here and add as many or as less toppings as you like. Commonly use toppings are spices like cumin powder, chili powder, chickpeas, potato, chutneys, cilantro, sev etc.!

Chutneys Used In The Recipe

Chutneys are a must here and I use 2 of the popular ones in this recipe.

Cilantro Chutney: made with cilantro, ginger, chilies, this is one of the most popular Indian chutneys and a must have with any chaat. Everyone has their own way of making it and homemade is always the best. Mint chutney will also work well here.

Sweet Tamarind Chutney: just like the cilantro chutney, chaat of any kind is incomplete without this chutney too. It’s little sweet, little tangy and you definitely need to make this at home for the best taste.

Garlic Chutney (Optional): I have not used this chutney here but adding some garlic chutney will add more layer of flavor to the chaat.

Step by Step Instructions

1- To a large bowl, add 1 cup yogurt along with 1 teaspoon sugar. Using a whisk, mix it well until yogurt is smooth. If your yogurt is super thick, you may add little water to thin it out. But remember to not make it thin else it will be runny all over. Yogurt should be thick but flowing consistency.

2- Boil the potatoes and chickpeas. Cut the potatoes into small cubes. Ideally, this step can be done in advance.

3- Now, arrange the papdi onto your serving plate. I am showing just 1 plate here, this recipe makes 2 such plates. Top the papdis with boiled chickpeas and boiled potatoes cubes. You can also add sprouted moong here.

4- Now, add yogurt on top all over. You can add as little or as much yogurt as you like.

5- Now, sprinkle cumin powder, chaat masala, kala namal (black salt) and Kashmiri red chili powder all over.

6- Followed by cilantro chutney.

7- And then the sweet tamarind chutney. You can adjust the amount of chutney to preference.

8- Finish the papdi chaat by topping with pomegranate, nylon sev and chopped cilantro. Serve immediately!

Prep In Advance

Papdi Chaat is very easy to put together however since there are various elements to it, you need to do some prep work in advance.

Boil the potatoes and chickpeas, you can do this a day in advance. Also, you need to have the chutneys read to go. Cilantro chutney tastes best when fresh so I would not recommend making it way in advance. But day or 2 in advance should be okay.

The sweet tamarind chutney can be easily made in advance and refrigerated. It stays good for a month or more in the fridge in an airtight container.

You can do the chopping of cilantro and whisking the yogurt just at the time when you plan to make the papdi chaat. Once you have all the elements ready to go, it comes together in less than 10 minutes!

Using Shortcuts

If you want to make this super quick, here are few shortcuts you can take.

Use store bought papdi: this is something I always do! Yes I can make papdi from scratch at home but store bought is just so convenient.

Use canned chickpeas: to cut short one more step of boiling chickpeas, you can use a can of chickpeas. Just drain and rinse it well before using.

Store bought chutneys: honestly this would be something that I would recommend that you do only if you are really pressed for time. Homemade chutneys make a lot of difference to the final taste of papdi chaat, however if you want to make it quick, you may use store bought chutneys. You can find these chutneys at any Indian grocery stores.

Serving Suggestion

My biggest serving suggestion for papdi chaat is to serve it immediately. The papdi gets soggy from all the toppings as it sits so it’s best eaten immediately.

It’s doesn’t need a pairing as such but you can serve it along with other popular Indian snacks like samosa etc.

Vegan Variation

To make this papdi chaat vegan, use plain almond milk yogurt in place of whole milk yogurt.

Also make sure that your cilantro chutney is vegan (as sometimes it can contain yogurt).

Tips & Notes

• This recipe can be customized to taste. You can skip a type of chutney or add garlic chutney here as well. You can add toppings like sprouted moong, boondi, chopped onions as well. Basically, add as little or as many toppings as you want.
• Do not use sour yogurt, it’s best to use store bought yogurt or freshly made yogurt which isn’t sour. Also make sure the yogurt is thick.
• Keep the consistency of yogurt and chutneys on the thicker side else they will be runny all over.
• Serve papdi chaat immediately for best flavors and texture!

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