aloo chaat garnished with crunchy sev and pomegranate arils

Aloo Chaat Recipe (Potato Chaat)

By Swasthi on July 2, 2023, Comments, Jump to Recipe

Aloo Chaat is a popular Indian street food snack made with potatoes, sweet sour spicy chutneys, sev and coriander leaves. Aloo is a Hindi word for potatoes and Chaat is a dish with a mélange of sweet, sour and hot tastes. So this Aloo Chaat is a super addictive and delicious chaat snack where crisp fried potatoes are tossed with sweet and tangy tamarind chutney, ground spices and coriander leaves. Lastly garnished with crunchy sev and pomegranate arils.

aloo chaat garnished with sev and pomegranate arils

Indian street foods need no introduction, they are immensely popular & are a common thing you see right on the street food carts to the upscale restaurants in India. You will find numerous mouthwatering dishes which include several appetizers and even wholesome meals.

Bhel puri, Mumbai Pav bhaji, Aloo tikki & Samosa are some of the other popular street foods of India. Aloo chaat is yet another such super delicious and addictive snack which is much loved by everyone.

About Aloo Chaat

Aloo Chaat originated in Indian subcontinent and is a popular street food in several North Indian states. In India you will see the street vendors using large tawa, an iron griddle in which diced potatoes are fried to perfection until crisp and golden.

For a home version the potatoes can be shallow fried, baked in an oven or even air fried. I prefer a healthy aloo chaat so I have parboiled the potatoes and fried them in a pan. In this post I share 3 ways to prepare or fry the potatoes for the chaat.

Various spices like chaat masala, red chilli powder and roasted cumin powder are used for the flavor and heat. Usually green chutney and sweet tamarind chutney both are used in the street style aloo chaat. But it is up to you to use them or simply skip or use fine chopped coriander leaves and lemon juice for the flavor and tang.

You will miss on the flavors from the chutney though but the substitutes work well.
For the topping you can use fresh chopped onions, crunchy sev and pomegranate arils as well. On occasions I have also topped this with chopped cucumbers which taste great.

Sev is crisp fried gram flour vermicelli snack that is used for garnishing various chaats. These are easily available in the Indian stores. If you do not have crunchy sev you can simply roast some papads, crush them and use. Other substitutes are crushed papdis, cornflakes, tortilla chips, baked potato chips or poha chivda.

Pomegranate arils add color to your chaat and also provide some crunch and sweetness. You can skip them if you don’t have.

More Chaat Recipes
Ragda Patties
Sweet Corn Chaat
Dahi Vada
Sev Puri
Papdi Chaat
Vada Pav

aloo chaat made with pan fried potatoes, ground spices and sev

How to make Aloo Chaat (Stepwise photos)

IMO, the fastest and easiest way to make aloo chaat is with air fried or baked potatoes. If you want to air fry or bake them, check the faq section below.

Prepare Potatoes

1. Wash, peel and boil the potatoes in whatever way you prefer. They must be just cooked al dente and not turn mushy. I usually cube them and steam in a cooker just to make sure they don’t over cook. If you prefer to deep fry the potatoes then just parboil them for a while until 80% cooked meaning they are slightly undercooked.

steam cooking potatoes for aloo chaat recipe

2. While the aloo boils, add all the ingredients mentioned to make green chutney to a mini blender jar.

The quantity to make the chutney mentioned in the recipe card is too less and may be hard to blend in a normal jar unless using a mini jar. So you can check this post on green chutney to make more quantity.

3. Add 1 tablespoon oil to the pan. Add 1 teaspoon minced ginger or garlic and 1 chopped green chili.

Optional for deep frying: or Alternately If you prefer deep fried crisp potatoes, then parboil potatoes. Air dry them for a while so there is not moisture over them. Heat oil in a kadai. Fry the potatoes in the hot oil until crisp and cooked thoroughly. Then skip to step 6. But I am just showing pan fried method here.

frying garlic chilli in oil to make aloo chaat

4. Add the potatoes and saute on a high flame stirring often.

adding boiled cubed potatoes to make aloo chaat recipe

5. They will turn golden in few minutes. They will also turn slightly crisp if potato is boiled al dente. Turn off the stove.

frying potatoes until golden

6. Add chaat masala powder as required and very little salt. There is salt also in the chutney so make sure you don’t add more here. You can add about ¼ to ½ tsp chaat masala.

sprinkling chaat masala to make aloo chaat

7. Also add red chili powder as required and jeera or cumin powder as required. Add about ¼ to ½ tsp red chilli powder and ½ tsp cumin powder.

adding spice powders

Make Aloo Chaat

8. Mix everything well and transfer to a bowl.

tossing spiced potatoes until crisp to make aloo chaat

9. Add green chutney & tamarind chutney or lemon juice as required.

adding green chuntey

10. Mix everything. Do adjust spice, chaat masala, cumin powder, green chutney, salt and lemon juice to suit your taste buds. If needed add more at this stage.

adding lemon juice or tamarind chutney to make aloo chaat

Transfer to a serving plate. Sprinkle some coriander leaves, generous amount of nylon sev and pomegranate seeds. You can replace pomegranate seeds with some sweet raisins and roasted cashews. Serve aloo chaat immediately.

aloo chaat recipe

Pro Tips

  1. The most popular delhi style aloo chaat is made by deep frying the aloo. However potatoes can also be shallow fried or tawa fried. They can also be grilled in an oven. To make it healthier, I have parboiled the aloo first and then sauteed in oil until crisp.
  2. Sweet tamarind chutney gives a sweet and sour taste to the aloo chaat. If you do not have the chutney, you can just skip it and use some lemon juice. However the flavor of tamarind chutney cannot be recreated by using lemon juice.
  3. I have also used green chutney as I had it in hand. You can skip it completely if you do not prefer. The chaat will still taste good.
  4. Chaat masala is the key ingredient to any chaat. There is no replacement to this as it lends a unique aroma of spices. So do not skip it.
  5. For a variation you can also make a dahi aloo chaat by topping this with some thick curd or dahi, tamarind chutney, spice powders, sev & pomegranate arils.

Faqs (Baked & Air Fried Aloo)

What is aloo chaat called in English?

Aloo chaat literally translates to potato snack that is sweet, tangy and hot. Aloo translates to potatoes and chaat is a dish that tastes sweet tangy and hot with bursting flavors from ground spices, sweet chutney and crunchy toppings.

What kind of potatoes are best for crispy potato chaat?

Use starchy potatoes like Russets, Idaho or Maris piper are best for aloo chaat. Potatoes that are high in starch are also low in moisture making them an excellent choice for fried potato snack.

Can I air fry potatoes for aloo chaat?

Yes you can air fry the cubed potatoes with the auto option for French fries or preheat your air fryer for 5 mins at 360 F or 180 C. Then spread the cubed potatoes (1 inch pieces) in the basket and spray some oil. Air fry them for 10 to 12 minutes until crisp and golden. Toss them half way and air fry until crisp and fully cooked through.

Can I oven bake the potatoes for chaat?

Yes! Toss the soaked & drained potatoes with 1 tablespoon oil and spread them on a greased baking tray. Bake them in a preheated oven at 200 C or 400 F for 25 minutes. Mix them half way and bake again until crisp.

Related Recipes

Recipe Card

aloo chaat

Aloo Chaat Recipe (Potato Chaat)

Aloo chaat is a simple snack made with potatoes and chaat chutneys. This sweet spicy and sour tangy aloo chaat is also a popular street food which is made by deep frying the potatoes. Just to keep it healthy I have made this aloo chaat by boiling potatoes. You can also use grilled or fried potatoes.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Jump to Comments

For best results follow the step-by-step photos above the recipe card

Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Servings2
AuthorSwasthi

Ingredients (US cup = 240ml )

  • 2 large potatoes cubed
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 1 teaspoon ginger or garlic chopped
  • 1 green chili chopped
  • ½ teaspoon cumin powder roasted jeera powder (optional)
  • â…› teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon chaat masala powder
  • ¼ to ½ teaspoon red chilli powder
  • 1 tablespoon coriander leaves chopped
  • 2 to 4 tablespoons nylon sev
  • 2 tablespoon pomegranate arils (replace with sweet raisins & roasted cashews)
  • ½ to ¾ teaspoon lemon juice or 1 teaspoon sweet tamarind chutney

(optional) green chutney (1 to 2 tsps)

  • ¼ to ½ cup coriander leaves
  • 4 to 6 mint leaves (pudina, optional)
  • 1 garlic clove
  • â…› inch ginger
  • 1 teaspoon fried gram (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon water if needed
  • ¼ teaspoon salt or as needed


Instructions

Preparation

  • Wash and peel potatoes. Cube them to 1 inch pieces and soak in water until used.
  • Optional – To make green chutney, add coriander leaves, pudina, garlic, ginger, fried gram and salt to a mini blender jar. Add 1 tbsp water. Make a fine smooth green chutney. Set this aside.

How to make Aloo Chaat – Method 1 – No deep fry

  • Boil potatoes till al dente. They must be just cooked without turning mushy. You can steam or pressure cook or boil them in a pot. Cool these completely and cube. 
  • Add oil to a pan and heat it. Add ginger or garlic and green chili.
  • Next add the potatoes and saute on a high flame until golden and little crisp. Turn off the stove.

Method 2 – Deep fry

  • Parboil cubed potatoes for few minutes. Drain and wipe off excess moisture.
  • Heat half cup oil in a deep pan. When the oil is hot enough drop the potato cubes and deep fry until crisp and cooked through. Remove to a mixing plate.

Make aloo chaat

  • Next to the hot fried potatoes, add red chilli powder, chaat masala powder, very little salt and cumin powder.
  • Add green chutney, tamarind chutney or lemon juice. Check the salt and spice.
  • Mix well and transfer aloo chaat to a serving plate.
  • Add some coriander leaves, sev and pomegranate arils or raisins and cashews. Serve aloo chaat immediately.


Notes

You can also simply grill the potatoes until crisp in an oven or air fryer following my faq section.

Alternative quantities provided in the recipe card are for 1x only, original recipe.

For best results follow my detailed step-by-step photo instructions and tips above the recipe card.

Video

Watch Aloo Chaat Video

NUTRITION INFO (estimation only)

Nutrition Facts
Aloo Chaat Recipe (Potato Chaat)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 184 Calories from Fat 72
% Daily Value*
Fat 8g12%
Sodium 439mg19%
Potassium 1442mg41%
Carbohydrates 23g8%
Fiber 5g21%
Sugar 5g6%
Protein 8g16%
Vitamin A 2055IU41%
Vitamin C 179.1mg217%
Calcium 389mg39%
Iron 13.7mg76%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Tried this recipe?Mention @SwasthisRecipes or tag #swasthisrecipes!

© Swasthi’s Recipes

Aloo Chaat Recipe (Potato Chaat)

About Swasthi

I’m Swasthi Shreekanth, the recipe developer, food photographer & food writer behind Swasthi’s Recipes. My aim is to help you cook great Indian food with my time-tested recipes. After 2 decades of experience in practical Indian cooking I started this blog to help people cook better & more often at home. Whether you are a novice or an experienced cook I am sure Swasthi’s Recipes will assist you to enhance your cooking skills. More about me

Follow Swasthi’s Recipes

Comments

Recipe Rating




21 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

5 stars
Swasthi,
I made this aloo chaat and it was delicious. I request you to move the air fryer instructions to the top in the step by step instructions. It took me a long time to look for that. Thank you for the recipes

Hi,
I have 2 questions, i’m not english native speaking and don’t know some of the ingredients:
Nylon sev?
Fried gram?
Could you please elaborate on these ingredients?
Thank you

5 stars
Perfect aloo chaat. I made it and it was tasty.

5 stars
Excellent & easy recipes

5 stars
Hii Swathi dii,
Thanku so so much??, u r truly great cooker and ur blog is just amazing. In these lock down days I really wanted to learn chaat recipe, this blog helped me a lot. Thanks once again?. I understood all without any problems or confusion. Thanku dii?

5 stars
Hii Swathi dii,
Thanku so so much??, u r truly great cooker and ur blog is just amazing. In these lock down days I really wanted to learn chaat recipe, this blog helped me a lot. Thanks once again?. I understood all without any problems or confusion. Thanku?

4 stars
Hi Swathi,

Awesome recipe.. i have been following your blogs from many months but was not able to respond to any of the tried recipes. I almost prepare weekly 2 to 3 recipes from your cuisines. And all tasted good. Thnx for such simple and healthy recipes.

One clarification.. can this aloo chat be served cold, i mean at room temperature.

Can the potatoes be fried and kept one day before the party, and assembled the next day by warming on the iron skillet or in the oven before assembling to give a head start on the food prep before the actually party day?

Hi swathi
I am trying to find a good recipe of Khaman dhokla from long time but not able to. If you have pls share

5 stars
I feel happy to go through your recipes. Good and simple ingredients you use. Very fond of your recipes.

???? very nice

5 stars
Looking forward to using your wonderful recipes…Thank you!

5 stars
Thanks for the recipe.. So quick and yummy

5 stars
Superb and delicious..