Chaat is a common generic term used for many street foods in Indian cuisine. Chaat is also a spice blend with a predominant flavor of tart-sour dried ground mango, ground cumin, rock salt, black pepper coriander and other spices. It has a sharp piquant flavor thats balanced with other sauces like sweet tamarind, hot chilli to create dishes that take your tastebuds on roller coaster of a ride.
Chaat is delicious sprinkled on fresh chopped fruit, grilled meats like chicken tikka, its so good on grilled veggies, plain yogurt you get the point. For today’s recipe Ive paired it with lentils, lots of herbs and chopped veggies. Chaat masala is easily available in Indian grocery stores or online. Its a tad hard to find in regular grocery stores so I recommend ordering online or stop by your local ethnic Indian grocer, alternatively bump up the lemon juice and add a little extra ground cumin and a touch of Garam Masala if needed.
It’s a refreshing salad rich in plant protein that happens to be full of excellent source of fiber + loads of vitamins and minerals. Its so easy to put together and it holds up really well for at least 3 days in the fridge making it a tasty, nourishing lunch to make ahead for your weekly meal prep. We start by cooking French lentils, while it cooks prep the veggies and herbs. Once the lentils are cooked drain if needed and allow to cool to room temperature. Mix everything and enjoy, it’s that simple.
Herbed Lentil Salad with Chaat Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 1½ cups French Puy lentils, uncooked
- water for cooking
- 1 red bell pepper or other color of your choice chopped
- 1 medium red onion finely chopped
- 2 Persian cucumbers chopped
- 2 cups packed mixed herbs (cilantro, mint, parsley and dill) finely chopped
- 1 hot green chilli like Thai or serrano skip if milder salad is preferred
Chaat Vinaigrette
- 3-4 tbsp e.v.olive oil
- ¼ cup lime or lemon juice
- 1 tsp chaat masala **see notes for substitutes
- ½ tsp ground cumin roasted preferably
- ½ tsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp grated ginger
- sea salt as needed
Instructions
- Rinse the lentils and add them to a medium sized saucepan. Cover with water a little higher than the lentils and bring to boil.
- Reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 10-15 minutes until al dente, not mushy. This may take longer according to the age of the lentils, so keep checking.Â
- Drain completely. Allow it cool to room temperature.
- While the lentils cook, chop the veggies and herbs.
- Whisk all the ingredients for the vinaigrette. In a bowl mix the lentils with the chopped veggies. Pour the vinaigrette and mix well gently. Allow the salad to sit in the fridge for about 30 minutes before eating. Mix the herbs, taste and add any seasoning as needed.
- Garnish with cracked pepper and lemon juice for extra kick.
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