Be My Guest – Dahi Boondi

PinBlogging is quite a funny business. There are many bloggers that I am very good friends with, but there are many more who I have acquaintances with, or some even we occasionally comment on each other’s blog, and that’s about it. “My Ninja Naan” was one of the blogs I discovered fairly early through my blogging journey. I would read the blog but not comment on it. I don’t know why… I just wouldn’t. Fast forward to now, the blog has been renamed as “Chai and Churros” and Henna has become somebody really dear. We keep commenting on each other’s Insta stories and liking each others posts. Hehe… how life turns around, isn’t it? 🙂

 

I have been thinking of calling her around to be on my blog and I thought this Ramadan was perfect timing for it. She very gladly accepted my invite and even send the post really fast to me, so that both of us didn’t have to spend too much time on it during this precious month. What she has bought along is something so frequently made during Iftars in our neighboring Pakistan.

 

You must check out the Nankhatais with those pretty yellow tops she posted recently. Her Lemon Velvet Trifles and her Pakistani recipes are really drool-worthy. She’s one of the co-hosts for the Eid Eats 2018, so do not forget to check out her blog on June 10, and come along with your Eid goodies, InShaAllah. Let’s move on to her lovely post before I yak even further…

 

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Salaam and hello friends!

My name is Henna and I blog over at Chai And Churros (formerly known as My Ninja Naan).  I “met” Rafeeda several years ago, when I first began blogging, and it’s been an honor to see her growth over the course of the years. I enjoy following Rafeeda on Instagram, as she consistently opens up and shares personal tidbits of her life.  I feel as if I’ve gotten to know more about her, other than her obvious love for cooking and baking, and it has truly been a pleasure.

I love making appetizers and snacky types of foods, so what better time to indulge in these than Ramadan? In our home, a typical iftar meal consists of dates, fruit, and water or milk (with Rooh Afza, of course).  We avoid fried foods, and generally reserve those for the weekend.  However, these Dahi Boondi (mini gram flour dumplings in yogurt sauce) are on constant rotations in our home, and they’re perfect to feast on after a long and hot day of fasting.  They’re cooling and relatively healthy, and make for a delicious and light meal to break our fast.

This dish is a wonderful option to make if you’re pressed for time because it can be made and refrigerated ahead of time.  Sometimes while serving, I serve it alongside a side of sweet tamarind chutney and some crushed papris or sev. So so good!

 

Yield:  6 – 8 Servings

Ingredients:

• I cup prepared boondi
• 2 cups yogurt
• Water or milk, as needed
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon chaat masala
• Salt, as needed
• 1 potato, peeled and cut into bite size chunks

For topping:

• 1 onions, diced finely
• 1 tomato, diced finely
• Handful cilantro
• Pinch of salt
• ½ lime, juiced

Directions:

Fill a large bowl with warm water and add the boondi.  Soak until the boondi are softened and have no crunch left, about 10 to 15 minutes.  Drain the boondi and let them sit in a colander or strainer undisturbed for 20 minutes.

In a separate large bowl, whisk together yogurt, sugar, chaat masala, and salt.  Slowly add water or milk until a relatively thin consistency is reached.  Add drained boondi and potato.  Mix well and transfer to a serving bowl.

Make topping:

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients together and mix.

When serving, place desired amount of topping on top of dahi boondi.

Dahi boondi pairs well with sweet tamarind chutney and crushed papri.

 

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We used to have this Pakistani restaurant close-by our old home, which used to sell amazing fried stuff like bhajis and pakodis along with jalebis and various types of chaats. They would start their business from 4 pm and it would go on till just five minutes to Maghrib time, since they had to close during that time for Iftar. Sometimes, umma and I would watch from our balcony the crowd that would come and buy those goodies. Occasionally, we would go get some much to the irritation of D, who isn’t really fond of restaurant food, citing hygiene issues. 😀 When Henna’s chat post came by, it bought along such fond memories.

 

I prefer Pakistani chaat since there aren’t too many battling flavors. The chutneys would always be given separately, so if you don’t want to add them, you don’t need to. Another thing I love is they use yogurt in almost all their chaats, which is so cooling to the stomach! So you can imagine how much I must have salivated when her post arrived in my inbox, hehe… Thank you so much for coming by with this delight for my guest post…

 

Hope you all enjoyed this guest post as much as I did… wishing all of you a great week ahead…