Dabeli

An explosion of flavour stuffed in a super crunchy giraffe bread makes a lip-smacking Mumbai street food!

I had no intention of writing this recipe even though I make it so many times at home…well, there are so many delicious recipes out there isn’t it? Why to add another?

I was writing the recipe for the crunchy giraffe bread but somehow felt it was incomplete. It needed something…something that will go perfectly with all that crackle and crunch. And dabeli just fitted. It fitted because it is a soft mushy potato mix layered with textures of crunchy masala peanuts, juicy pomegranate seeds and sev. Just like my tiger/giraffe bread – soft interior giving way to a crusty bite.

So, what is dabeli? A literal translation of the word means ‘pressed’ and I understand with all that flavoursome mix of potatoes pressed in a bun must have given the birth to the name. It is also known as kutchi dabeli as it originates from the kutch region of Gujarat. And as you know by now, Gujarati food has all the essential elements of spice, sweet, tang and dabeli has all of that and more!

Another wonderful thing I love about dabeli is that it is a perfect party food. All the elements can be prepared in advance and the amount of spice and sweetness can be adjusted as per one’s liking.

In my version, I use a mix of raw banana, sweet potato and potato…reason? Well, simply to cut down on use of potatoes, to make it ‘healthier’. Sweet potato give the mash the required sweetness without adding any extra sugar while raw bananas replace the potatoes. Taste? If you follow my recipe, I guarantee, you can’t tell the difference. The stuffing in the dabeli is only one element (even though an important one) but it is extremely easy to camouflage given that it has a lot of elements. So, go ahead. Try it and do let me know how it turned out for you. ?

Recipe Card

Dabeli

Recipe Rating

AUTHOR

Hema B Kathrani

CUISINE

Gujarati

PREP TIME

30 minutes

COOK TIME

30 minutes

SERVINGS

makes 12 dabeli

Author: Hema B Kathrani | Cuisine: Gujarati | Category: Mains

Prep Time: 30 minutes | Cook Time: 30 minutes | Servings: makes 12 dabeli

An explosion of flavour stuffed in a super crunchy giraffe bread makes a lip-smacking Mumbai street food!

Ingredients

12 pav/buns (giraffe bread link is in the write up)
For stuffing:
- 2 large potatoes
- 1 large sweet potato
- 3 raw green bananas
- 2 tbsp oil
- 2 tbsp ready dabeli masala *read notes
- Salt to taste
- Coriander to garnish
For the coriander-garlic chutney:
- 1 cup coriander leaves with roots, washed and dried
- 5 green chilies
- 3 large garlic
- ½ inch ginger
- ¼ cup sev/bhujia, plain
- 20 curry leaves
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- Salt to taste
- 2-3 tbsp ice cold water
For the dates-tamarind chutney:
- 1 cup dates
- 3 tbsp tamarind pulp
- 2 tsp red chili powder
- 2 tsp cumin-coriander powder
- ½ cup water
- Salt to taste
Accompaniments:
- 1 cup plain sev/bhujia
- 1 cup pomegranate seeds
- 1 cup masala peanuts
  - 1 tsp aamchur powder
  - 1 tsp black salt
  - 1 tsp red chili powder
  - Salt to taste
  - 1 tsp oil
- 1 medium sized onion chopped finely

Method

Prepare the stuffing:
- Pressure cook potato, sweet potato and raw banana until tender.
- Mash the raw banana as soon as it is done. It is easier to mash when it is hot.
- Add mashed potato and sweet potato to the mashed raw banana.
- In another pan, heat oil.
- Mix dabeli masala with 1 tbsp of water and add it to the heated oil.
- Fry for one minute and turn off the flame.
- Add the fried masala mix to the mashed veggie mix and combine well.
- Add salt and coriander and adjust the seasoning.
- Keep it aside.
Prepare coriander-garlic chutney
- Combine coriander roots, chilies, garlic, ginger, curry leaves, sev/bhujia in a blender or a chutney jar and grind it a coarse paste.
- Add coriander leaves, salt and ice-cold water and grind it in a chutney.
- Add lemon juice and give one quick pulse
- Remove in a container and keep in the fridge till ready to serve
Prepare dates-tamarind chutney:
- In a pan, combine dates and water and bring it to a boil.
- Add red chili powder, cumin-coriander powder, tamarind pulp and salt.
- Turn off the flame and keep it aside till it cools down.
- Grind it in a thick chutney and adjust the seasoning.
Prepare masala peanuts:
- Heat oil in a pan.
- Add peanuts and fry till toasty.
- Add all the masalas and fry for one more minute.
- Check the seasoning and keep it aside.
Assemble:
- Slice open a bun.
- Generously apply dates-tamarind chutney on one side and coriander-garlic on the other side of the bun.
- Layer the bottom side of the bun with the dabeli stuffing and press it down.
- Add sev, masala peanuts, pomegranate and onions
- Put the top side of the bun and press it all down gently.
- Either serve as is or toasted on a skillet with butter.

Notes

Dabeli masala varies with each brand. You may need to adjust the quantity of the dabeli masala depending on the brand that you are using. I use the dabeli masala of the Chheda store (Mumbai) which sells their own mix.
Do mash the bananas as soon as you remove them from the pressure cooker. It becomes very difficult to get a smooth mash once they cool down.
You can use ready made masala peanuts as well.
You can make the dates-tamarind chutney in advance and freeze it. I always make double or triple the portion and then freeze it. Use it as needed.
The coriander-garlic chutney can be made in advance too. It stays well in the fridge up to 2-3 days.

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Comments

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