Monsoon special: 5 yummy snacks to enjoy this season

Monsoon is here, the smell of the mud, the cool breeze, the pleasant weather and not to forget the rain – that makes us love the monsoon so much.Monsoon apart from brining rain with it also brings back the foodies in us, most of us crave for some spicy snack to munch during rainy evenings. Be it chatpata pakoras, samosa or something sweet like gulab jamuns, monsoon is the best time to have the home cooked appetizers.Here are some delicious dishes with simple recipes that will make your monsoon more enjoyable:Paneer PakoraIngredients:Paneer, besan, oil, salt, red chilli powderMethod:1. Take 1 cup besan along with ½ cup water and beat it properly to make a thick batter.2. Leave the batter for 30 minutes in a warm place.3. Add ½ tsp of red chilli powder and salt as per taste in the batter and mix it well.4. Take 250 gms of Paneer and cut them into thick cubes.5. Now dip the paneer cubes in the batter and deep fry them.Serve the pakoras with ketchup or chutney.Bread CutletIngredients:Boiled potatoes, bread, finely chopped green chilli, chopped ginger, red chilli powder, garam masala powder, aamchur powder, mustard seed, salt, oilMethod:1. Take 2 boiled potatoes and mash them properly.2. Take 1 tsp of oil in a kadai and add 1/2 tsp mustard (sarso) seeds to it. Once the mustard seeds start spluttering add mashed potatoes to it.3. Add 1 finely chopped green chilli, chopped ginger, ½ tsp of red chilli powder, 1 tsp of garam masala powder, ½ tsp of aamchur and salt as per taste. Mix all the ingredients well and cook them for 2 minutes. Let it cool after it is ready4. Make round balls from the mixture and keep the aside.5. Take 4 slices of bread and remove the corners. Now take a bread slice and dip it in water for a second just to make the bread wet. Drain the excess water from the bread with light hand press. Make sure you squeeze out all water from the bread.6. Take a potato mixture ball and place it in the centre of the bread slice and cover the call with the bread. Press the ball flat with a light hand and make the edges smooth. Do ensure that the bread ball is closed from all sides.7. After making all the bread balls, heat oil in a pan and fry the cutlets on a medium flame till they turn golden from all sides. Take out the fried cutlets on a plate with absorbent paper.Serve them hot with green chutney.Pyaz Ki KachauriIngredients:Maida, melted ghee, salt, finely chopped onions, kalonji, saunf, tej patta, green chillies, besan, dhania powder, chilli powder, garam masala, oil, salt.Method:1. Take 2 cups of maida, ¼ cup of melted ghee and ½ tsp salt and mix them well. Knead them into soft dough and leave it 5-7 minutes. Kepp the dough covered under a wet muslin (malmal) cloth.2. Heat some oil in the pan and add 1 tsp of kalonji, 2 tsp of saunf, 2 tej patta, ½ tsp of finely chopped green chillies and 2 cups of finely chopped onions. Sauté them till the onions turn light brown.3. Add 2 tbsp of besan, 2 tsp of dhania powder, 2 tsp of chilli powder, 1 tsp of garam masala and salt as per taste. Cook it for 2-3 minutes. Add the chopped coriander to it and remove tej patta. Allow the mixture to cool.4. Make rolls out of the dough and make 2 inch diameter circle.5. Place one portion of the mixture in the dough and surround the filling with the dough. Make sure you seal the ends of the dough properly.6. Roll each filled portion into a 2 1/2 inch diameter circle taking care to ensure that the filling does not spill out. Gently press the centre of the kachori with your thumb.7. Heat the oil and deep fry the kachoris on a low flame till they turn golden brown. These kachoris take a long time to be cooked in the inside too. Make sure kachoris puff up like puris.Serve the kachoris hot with ketchup or green chutney.Moong Daal VadaIngredients:Moong dal, chopped coriander, cumin seeds, green chillies, onions, salt and oilMethod:1. Take 300gms of moong dal in water for a couple of hours and grind it form a smooth paste.2. Take some chopped coriander, chopped onions, green chillies and cumin seeds (jeera) and mix them with moong dal paste. Add salt as per taste to the mixture and mix it well.3. Make balls of the mixture and deep fry them.Serve them hot with green chutney.Aloo ChaatIngredients:Potatoes, red chilli powder, cumin powder, chaat masala, tamarind chutney, mint chutney and coriander leaves.Method: 1. Take 3 potatoes and dice them into large cubes.2. Take oil a pan and deep fry the potato pieces till they turn golden brown.3. Place the fried potato pieces in a bowl and add ½ tsp of red chilli powder, 1 tsp pf cumin (jeera) powder and 1 tsp of chaat masala. Mix them properly4. Add mint chutney, tamarind chutney according to taste and mix them.Garnish it with coriander leaves before serve.