This 15 minute makhana bhel recipe is a wonderful snack that’s not just yummy but healthy too – great for those untimely hunger pangs!
With the weather getting cooler by the day, my untimely hunger pangs have seem to have gone up. The 4pm need to munch on something quick yet filling, is especially, my sin. Since, I know this is going to be the norm through the winter months, I am aiming to keep my snacking healthy, as much as I can. And this makhana bhel or Indian fox nut (lotus seed) salad is one of my go to recipes. It takes just about 15 minutes to put this bhel or chaat together and it tastes really good. I, generally, keep dry roasted makhana in my pantry for snacking. But when I feel like having something more chatpata this bhel is my answer. This recipe is a wonderful example of health meets taste! After all, lotus seeds (makhana) are rich in antioxidants, high in nutrients and helps stabilize blood sugar levels.
To make the makhana bhel or chaat, besides adding some sweet and spicy chutneys to it, I love adding fresh veggies in it too. Not only, does this make the bhel more filling, but it is a great way to incorporate more fibre in my diet. Some of my favorites that I normally opt for are cucumbers, radish and onions. Also, if I have boiled potatoes in the refrigerator, I like adding some of that too. However, this choice is completely customizable. You can add (or omit) any veggies that you want. In fact, sprouts are a lovely addition too here. Sprouted moong beans, black chana etc are also a tasty and healthy addition to this fox nut bhel recipe. And after you’ve put together all this, you can decide how sweet and spicy you’d like it to be and enjoy it. 🙂
You may also like,
Chole chaat (Indian chickpea salad)
Chatpata murmura chivda (puffed rice recipe)
Serving suggestions
If you aren’t able to get a hold of lotus seeds (makhana) you could replace them in the makhana bhel with puffed rice, as well. The recipe remains the same and even healthy. Even though, puffed rice may not have as much nutrients as lotus seeds do, it still is a healthy option. Like with the makhana, you’d need to use dry roasted murmura (puffed rice) for the bhel recipe. This flavorful Indian salad of sorts, tastes best with crisp and crunchy murmura/makhana. And for this reason, it is best to serve this lip smacking bhel as soon as you’ve made it. If not, then the chutneys used in it will make it soggy and limp and that’s not something you are looking at.
The chutneys that I’ve used here are the same I use in all my chaats. One is the coriander-mint chutney and second is date and tamarind chutney. I also make a chili garlic chutney for chaats generally, but I’ve not used that one for the makhana bhel. Like I always say, you can use the chutneys in your snack as per your taste. In fact, even if you don’t use them and keep the bhel “dry” it is still going to taste wonderful!
If you are planning to make this mouthwatering snack sometime, do share your feedback with me. You can share your food pictures with me over on Instagram and Pinterest. Alternately you could also rate the recipe and drop your feedback in the comment section below. I’d love to hear from you.
Eat hearty!
Makhana bhel
Ingredients
- 1 cup makhana (fox nuts/lotus seeds) dry roasted
- ¼ cup cucumber finely chopped
- ¼ cup onion finely chopped
- ¼ cup radish finely chopped
- 1-2 chilis finely chopped
- 2 tbsp potatoes boiled and cubed (optional)
- 1-2 tbsp peanuts roasted
- 2 tbsp coriander leaves finely chopped
- 1 tbsp coriander mint chutney or to taste
- 1 tbsp dates tamarind chutney or to taste
- 1-2 tsp chaat masala
For garnishing
- 1-2 tbsp pomegranate pearls
- 1-2 tbsp nylon sev gram flour noodles
Instructions
- Crush some of the roasted makhana seeds and mix these back in with the rest and keep aide
- In a mixing bow, mix together the cucumber, onions, radish, chilis, potatoes, peanuts and the chutneys. Add in the makhana (fox nuts) and toss throughly
- Remove on a serving plate, drizzle some chaat masala and garnish with some more peanuts (optional), sev, pomegranate pearls and coriander leaves. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Notes
- You can replace roasted makhana seeds with puffed rice also here
- If you prefer, you can keep the makhana bhel dry by not adding the chutneys, even that tastes yummy
- 1 cup = 250 millilitres
- tbsp - tablespoon
- tsp - teaspoon
