Ever since I was a little girl, I remember the one thing I would look forward to every day was my evening snack. After coming back from school and before going out to play or doing homework, I would just hang around the kitchen bugging my mom to see what she would be making that evening!

Not only did I want an evening snack, but it also had to be something different from whatever I had been eating for the last few days. Good old cookies and chips just would not cut it with me 🙂 It got to the point that my mom would get a headache just trying to think of something new and delicious to make for me!

Thankfully, my kids don’t bother me about it like I used to bother my mom, but I still enjoy an evening snack with my cup of tea! One of my favorite snacks is called Bhel, or Bhelpuri. This is a popular street food in India made with bhel mix – a mixture of puffed rice & bhujiya (savory chickpea flour noodles) -available at Indian grocery stores as a pre-made mix. You can also buy the two separately and mix them yourself. The traditional bhel is given a finishing touch with some sweet, tangy tamarind chutney to balance out the salt and spices. If you want to serve this as party appetizer, be sure to add the lemon juice and chutney at the end so that it doesn’t get soggy.

My unique twist on this classic snack is to use cooked quinoa instead of puffed rice; the rest of the ingredients are pretty much the same. But this one change adds a lot of fiber and protein to an otherwise carb-heavy snack. Try it as an evening snack, a hearty filling salad, or as a side dish for your lunch. Bring the mouthwateringly delicious flavors of India to your house with this simple vegan recipe 🙂

Ingredients:

Cooked Organic Quinoa – 2 cups

Organic Non GMO corn – 1 cup (boiled and cooled)

Organic potato – 1 medium (boiled, peeled and diced)

Onion – 1 cup, diced

Cucumber – 1 cup, diced

Tomato – 1 cup, diced

Cilantro – ½ cup, chopped

Bhujiya (Savory chickpea flour noodles) – ½ cup (for crunch)

Lemon juice – 2 tsp

Chaat masala – ½ tsp

Salt – ½ tsp

Black pepper – ¼ tsp

Red chili powder – ¼ tsp (optional-for extra spice)

Tamarind Chutney/ Saunth – 2 tsp

Directions:

• Make sure the cooked quinoa and boiled potatoes have cooled down.
• Add all the vegetables and quinoa to a large bowl.
• Add the salt, black pepper, lemon juice, chaat masala and mix well. Feel free to add any red chili powder if you prefer it spicier!
• For the traditional slight sweet flavor in bhels add the tamarind chutney, and for the final touch add the bhujiya for some crunch.

• Enjoy as an evening snack with tea or as a side salad!

 

Nutritional Contents: 

Serving Size: 1 cup

Total Servings: 7 cups

Per Serving:  Cal 108, Carbs 20 g, Fiber 2.7 g, Protein 3.7 g, Vit C 8.4%, Iron 5.1%

 

I am entering this recipe for the No Croutons Required challenge from Lisa’s Kitchen!

This recipe is also being entered in the Eat your Greens Challenge!

This recipe has also been entered in Extra Veg Blog Challenge and Food & Fitness Friday.