CELEBRITY MASTER CHEF DR KAVIRAJ KHIALANI
Sev Puries, one of those tempting words which makes us feel hungry and gets our appetite charged up wanting to have the delicious and world-famous street side favourite food. If we look back in time I have been enjoying it since my childhood and we were always so excited and waiting for the evenings to come by so that we could find a reason to go down looking for a break from studies to the nearby sev puri wala who would be all set with his pre-prepared ingredients waiting for the line of people to start post sunset.
Being a chef today when I look back, it was such a mesmerising moment to see him make these sev puries, he was so good and accurate at portioning the toppings on each puri and without even having a taste of them it would turn out to be just perfect each time we had it, that was one of the things to learn about being organised, keeping things in place, how to carry out standard portion size of the preparation and how to maintain taste, the crowd and the fan-following as well. I truly believe that there is something to learn from every day and every person we come across.
To me sev puries then became a dish to innovative with and I started working on it in my home kitchen initially trying out fancy and weird combinations at times which would somehow turn out to be nice once the toppings, loaded with chutneys, chaat masala, sev etc were all dressed up. Working on using leftovers on sev puries, mix- n- match combinations, getting into fusion varieties and then creative global gastronomy with this concept has ever since been a great journey.
Here are some of my twists on the regular sev puri concepts which I am sure you all will love trying out in your kitchens as well:
Sev Puri, the term itself is not only tempting but also brings about a number of ideas and concoctions which can be prepared and served. It is one good way to de-stress, pamper, excite your taste buds & treat your palate – Dr. Kaviraj Khialani, Celebrity Master Chef.
INDO- CHINI SEV PURIES
Ingredients
Sev puries/ flat puries- 10-12 no
For the topping
Oil-1 tsp
Garlic-1 tsp chopped
Ginger-1 tsp chopped
Green chilies-1 tsp chopped
Onion-1 small chopped
Boiled chicken cubes-1/2 cup
For veg- use paneer cubes-1/2 cup
Khara boondi-1/4 cup
Green capsicum-1/2 chopped
Tomato-1/2 chopped
Manchurian sauce-3-4 tbsp.
Schezuan chutney-2-3 tsp
Tamarind chutney-1-2 tsp
Chaat masala powder-1 tsp
Coriander leaves- 2 tbsp. chopped
Lime juice-1-2 tsp
Salt to taste
Nylon sev- 2-3 tbsp.
Method
- Prepare all the ingredients for the sev puri recipe.
- In this case we are trying a fusion of indian and Chinese flavors so we can adjust them to our taste.
- Keep all the ingredients ready, try and serve this immediately for best results, ideally make it live in front and serve.
- To saute the topping for the sev puries, heat oil and add in the ginger, garlic, chilies, onions and saute for 2 mins, add in the chicken cubes, capsicums, and mix well, add Manchurian sauce and mix, adjust seasonings with salt and pepper as needed, lastly add khara boondi, tomatoes and mix well.
- Remove and cool the mixture, place the mixture on the sev puries and top with some more Manchurian sauce, a little tamarind chutney, schezuan chutney, dash of chaat masala, coriander, lime and top with nylon sev and serve.
INDO-FUSION SEV PURIES
Ingredients
Flat puries/sev puries- 10-12 no
For the topping
Maggi- 1 packet cooked up dry and add little soya sauce and chili sauce to the noodles once cooked, mix and keep aside.
Boiled mashed potatoes-1/2 cup
Onions-1/2 chopped
Green chili-1 tsp chopped
Salt to taste
Cheese-2 tbsp. grated
Tomato-1/2 chopped
Chaat masala-1/2 tsp
Lime juice-2 tsp
Boiled sweet corn-1/4 cup
Tamarind chutney-1-2 tbsp.
Tomato ketchup-2 tsp
Soya sauce-1 tsp
Chili sauce-1 tsp
Nylon sev- 2-3 tbsp.
Chopped coriander-2 tsp
Method
- First step here is to use leftover noodles or to prepare a packet of ready to eat noodles to a dry texture, add in 1 tsp soya sauce and 1 tsp chili sauce, add cheese and mix well.
- To assemble the sev puries, arrange them on a serving platter, place the noodle mixture first, boiled corn mixed with mashed potatoes, top with other ingredients as well of your choice to add more color.
- Sprinkle chaat masala, add in the chutneys/sauces as per taste and finally top with nylon sev or we can also use sev bhujiya for a change.
INDO – ARAB SEV PURIES
Ingredients
Sev puries/ flat puries- 10-12 no
For the topping
Boiled chickpeas/chana- ½ cup
Garlic-1 tsp chopped
Lime juice-2 tsp
Salt to taste
Chaat masala-1/2 tsp
Black pepper powder-a pinch
Peanuts-2 tsp roasted and crushed
Olive oil/ oil- 2 tsp
All above ingredients to be made into a paste.
For additional topping
Mint and coriander leaves-2 tsp chopped
Roasted chicken cut into slices/chopped-1/2 cup
Tandoori chicken/ paneer etc -1/2 cup cut
Mint-coriander chutney-2-3 tbsp.
Lime juice-1 tsp
Fresh anardana- ¼ cup for garnish.
Namkeen sev- 2-3 tbsp. for garnish.
Method
- Prepare all the ingredients for the recipe.
- In a mixing bowl chill the prepared chickpea paste.
- In another bowl mix together the chicken or paneer pieces with little mint and coriander chutney and keep chilled.
- To assemble the sev puries, arrange them on a platter, top with the chicken and chutney topping first then cover it with the chickpea mixture, then top it with other chaat ingredients, chaat masala, lime, coriander, mint, fresh anardana and some namkeen sev and serve immediately.
INDO- MEXI SEV PURI PLATTER
Ingredients:
Flat puries/sev puries- 10-12 no
For the topping
Potato cubes-1 cup deep fried and tossed in mexican seasonings or in a combination of masalas like cumin, coriander, red chili powder, black pepper powder and salt to taste, with a touch of mixed herbs in a little oil/butter.
Additional ingredients
Tomato pepper salsa sauce:
Tomato ketchup-2 -3 tbsp.
Red chili sauce-2 tsp
Chopped green capsicums-2-3 tbsp.
Sliced black and green olives-2-3 each
Parsley/coriander/mint-2 tbsp. chopped
Tamarind chutney-2-3 tbsp.
Chaat masala-1/2 tsp
Cream cheese- 2-3 tsp
Onion-1/2 chopped
Tomato-1/2 chopped
Lime juice-2 tsp
Jalapeno peppers- 1-2 no sliced if available
Method
- Prepare all the ingredients for the Indo-Mexi sev puries.
- In a mixing bowl combine together the ingredients for the salsa and mix- chill for 20 mins or we can also cook it in 1 tsp oil and then use a cooked version of a salsa sauce as well.
- To assemble the sev puries, apply a little cream cheese on the puries and then top it with the mexican spiced potato cubes, then place the salsa and other chaat ingredients as desired one by one.
- Sprinkle chaat masala, add a dash of lime juice, green coriander/herbs etc, finally a touch of sev/ bhujiya or fried crispy noodles for garnish and serve these yummy bites immediately.
MAVEDAAR SEV PURIES
Ingredients
Sev puries/ flat puries- 10-12 no
For the topping
Oil/ ghee- 2 tsp
Onion-1 small chopped
Green chilies-1 tsp chopped
Paneer-1/4 cup grated
Mava- 50 gms, grated
Cheese-1-2 tbsp. grated
Carrot-1/2 grated
Cabbage-1/4 cup fine chopped
Capsicum-1/4 chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Tomato ketchup-2-3 tsp
Red chili sauce-2 tsp
Peanut butter- 2 tsp
For the garnish
Nylon sev- 2-3 tbsp.
Tamarind chutney-2-3 tsp
Schezuan chutney-1-2 tsp
Coriander and mint- 2-3 tsp chopped
Lime juice-2 tsp
Red/green capsicums-2-3 tbsp. chopped
Or use tomato- ½ no chopped
Method
- Assemble all ingredients for the recipe and keep ready.
- Heat oil/ghee and saute the ingredients with onions, chilies and mava, all veggies, paneer, salt, pepper, cook on a medium flame for 2-3 mins, add in the sauces, peanut butter and mix well, remove and add cheese.
- Assemble the puries on a serving plate and top it with the mavedaar mixture, then using the additional ingredients garnish with sev puries and serve immediately.
KUCH KHATTI KUCH MEETHI SEV PURIES
Ingredients
Sev puries/ flat puries- 10-12 no
For the topping
Batata vada- 1-2 no, fried hot, crushed lightly.
Or use onion bhajiyas/ kanda bhaji- 4-5 no broken
Or use moong dal Kachories- small ones- 5-6 no broken
Onion-1 small chopped
Tomato -1 small chopped
Green chili-1 tsp chopped
Coriander and mint- 2 tbsp. chopped
Chaat masala-1/2 tsp
Tamarind chutney [sweet and sour]- 2-3 tbsp.
Chilled beaten sweet curd- 2-3 tbsp.
Roasted crushed jeera- ½ tsp
Red chili powder-1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Green chutney-2-3 tbsp.
Nylon sev/ fried noodles/ bhujiya- 2-3 tbsp.
Method
- Prepare all the ingredients as needed for this recipe.
- We can use variety of toppings in this case, even sliced seekh kababs, or malai tikka, cooked soya chunks etc can also be used.
- Arrange the sev puries on the serving plate/platter and top with the choice of toppings- veg or non-veg, I personally like the vada/ pakoda combination for an evening snack.
- Top with the other garnishes for the chaat and top it up with chutneys, curd, sev and serve immediately.
Celebrity Master Chef Dr Kaviraj Khialani is a Mumbai-based hotel-restaurant and food consultant. He is specialised in over 33 international cuisines and has quality experience with hotels and airlines as a part of his long journey of over two decades in his chosen field. Chef Kaviraj is a renowned author, academician, food designer, writer and has also been awarded several national awards and global recognitions for his talent & outstanding achievements. Besides having been featured on several food shows on ColorsTV and Star Plus he is a mentor, coach and guide to aspiring to be future chefs and hoteliers of tomorrow.
He can be contacted at twitter: @kaviraj_chef, Mobile: +91 9820939336. Mail: chefkaviraj249@gmail.com
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