Jhal Muri ( Hot and Spicy Puffed Rice Munchies)

Jhal Muri is a bengali word. "Jhal " means very spicy or hot and "Muri"  means puffed rice. This is a very humble snack which can be eaten anytime . In different parts of india  bit of variation and the name changes  but it is still the hot , spicy and tangy puffed rice with a lots of adds on.We used to live in Calcutta when I was a kid.  A guy with a  huge blue gunny sack would come in the late afternoon almost every week and mom would replenish the  weekly supply. You could invariably find these hawkers  outside railway stations, colleges , hospitals, movie theatres, beaches, parks and anywhere where there is good human traffic.They have a small bowl in which they mix all the ingredients and put them in a cone they make out of used newspapers.  The price is super cheap so it is accessible to every one.I can bet that if the Jhal Muri vendors are on strike one day, the city would look and feel lifeless.

In US, I could not find anything closest to Jhal Muri. My husband asked me if I had anything in my pantry to go with his drinks. I searched the pantry and could not find anything other than corn chips. Suddenly , I saw a box of rice crispies I had bought from walmart thinking it might be gluten free for my daughter. I came home and checked the ingredients. It had malt so it is not gluten free. I will make the same recipe for her using Indian Puffed rice from Indian Grocery Store.

Here is my recipe for  hot , spicy and tangy puffed rice with a twist!

Ingredients:

1. Rice Crispies or Indian puffed rice  : 1 box or 8 cups 
2. Oil                                                 : 1 Tbsp
3. Roasted Chana dal                         : 1 cup( Black gram lentils roasted without skin)
4. Peanuts raw or dry roasted            : 1 cup
5. Garlic                                            :   2 Tbsp(cut in julians ) . I know it is a lot of garlic.
6. Cumin seeds                                  : 1 tsp
7. Salt                                               : 1 tsp
8. Tumeric                                         : 1 tsp
9. Chat masla                                    : 1 Tbsp
10. Red chilli powder                          : 1 tsp
11. Mint leaves                                   : 12-15
12. Golden raisins                               : 20

Method:

1. Turn on the heat and put a big pot on the stove.
2. Heat the oil. When the oil is hot, raw / roasted peanuts. Saute it till they are golden. take them out with a slotted spoon and keep them in another bowl.
3. In the leftover oil , saute the black gram dal . Take it out with the slotted spoon and add it to the peanuts.
4. If you are having less less 1 tea spoon oil in the pot, add 1 teaspoon oil more.
5.  Add cumin seeds when the oil is hot . Add garlic when the cumin seeds start crackling.
6. Saute the garlic till the raw flavor of garlic is gone and they turn lightly golden. 
7. Add mint leaves, salt , tumeric, chaat masla and red chilli powder . mix well and cook it for 1 minute till the tumeric leaves the raw flavor.
8. Add  fried peanuts and dal to the pot . Add golden raisins. Mix them well.
9. Now add rice crispies or puffed rice and mix them well.
10. keeep tossing them carefully so that the rice do not burn for 2 to 3 minutes. 
11. Jhal Muri My way is ready to devour!
12. Enjoy!

Variations:

1. Add finely chopped onions, boiled potatoes , cucumbers , cilantro, serrano pepper , and lime juice for extra tanginess.