Dahi Bhalla

Whether you call it Doi Bora, Dahi Bhalla or Dahi Vada, this lip-smacking, healthy appetiser is an apt street snack for the sweltering Indian summers. Consisting of deep-fried lentil doughnuts immersed in runny, flavoured curd, this sweet, sharp and spicy snack smacks your palate with its robustness.

Now a staple sight during Holi, Dahi Bhallas seemingly have existed for centuries. Noted food historian KT Achaya’s A Historical Dictionary of Indian Food underlines that the first-ever mention of Vadas or lentil balls was found as early as 500 BC in Sutra literature. However, the 12th-century Sanskrit text Manasollasa details a recipe where fried lentil dough was dunked in milk, curd or rice water.

There is a popular legend associated with the invention of Dahi Bhalla during the Mughal reign. It is said that the water of Yamuna was unpalatable, and the cause behind the 18th-century cholera outbreak. Determined to solve this crisis, Mughal cooks started injecting heaps of spices into their dishes, as spices were supposed to cure stomach ailments.

To make Dahi Bhalla, urad dal soaked overnight is ground to a paste, and mixed with salt, chopped green chillies, ginger and coriander leaves. The mixture is then scooped into bubbling hot oil and fried till the ball becomes crispy and golden. Once ready, they are soaked in hot water to get rid of the oils, and then immersed in a bowl of cold curd.

Once the dish is ready, it can be topped with anything and everything—from tamarind, coriander and mint chutney, jaggery syrup, chaat masala (Indian spice mix), aamchur (dried mango powder), cumin powder, red chilli powder, rock salt, sev (chickpea flour noodles), boondi (deep fried gram flour globules) and pomegranate seeds.

Owing to its comparatively low-calorie count, Dahi Bhalla is a great alternative to fried snacks like French Fries and Chicken Nuggets. The sharp yoghurt cools the stomach and the assortment of spices aid in digestion.