Palak patta chaat is a classic Indian street food chaat recipe made with crispy fried spinach leaves topped with chutney, spices, and tangy flavors. Traditionally this dish is made by deep frying spinach leaves, which creates the light and crispy texture that makes this palak chaat recipe so popular in Indian chaat stalls.
This air fryer version recreates the same crispy spinach leaves with far less oil. The batter-coated spinach leaves cook until light and crunchy, creating a healthier version of palak patta chaat without the need for deep frying.
Once cooked, the crispy leaves are topped with boiled potatoes, tamarind chutney, chaat masala, and sometimes pomegranate seeds. The result is a layered Indian chaat dish that is tangy, spicy, crunchy, and refreshing at the same time.
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How to make palak patta chaat in air fryer? (Recipe video)
Why Use an Air Fryer for Palak Chaat
Using an air fryer makes this palak chaat recipe much easier and lighter than the traditional deep fry method. The hot circulating air crisps the batter around the spinach leaves while using very little oil. This avoids excess oil, reduces splatter, and still gives you crispy spinach similar to fried spinach leaves. The air fryer also cooks quickly, making it easy to prepare this Indian street style chaat at home.
Ingredients
In order to make air fryer palak patta chaat recipe, you only need a few pantry ingredients.
For crispy palak patta
- Lentil flour
- Water
- Salt
- Chaat masala
- Amchur powder
- Baking soda
- Fresh baby spinach leaves
- Dry flour for dusting
For palak patta chat
- Boiled potatoes
- Tamarind chutney
- Green chutney
- Pomegranate seeds
- Extra chaat masala for topping
These simple ingredients create the crispy batter that coats the spinach leaf, while chutney and toppings bring the street style chaat flavor.
Step by step instructions
- Add lentil flour, salt, chaat masala, amchur powder and baking soda to a bowl, prepare dry batter ingredients
2. Add water to flour mixture in bowl, whisk batter until smooth and lump free
3. Dip spinach leaves in dry flour first, coat evenly in prepared batter, place coated leaves on air fryer tray lined with parchment
4. Arrange batter coated spinach leaves in air fryer basket, keep leaves in single layer, spray light oil before cooking
5. Air fry spinach leaves at 180°C for 4-5 minutes.spray oil and cook for 2 minutes. Once done, allow to cook, peel off from the baking sheet.
6. Once you are done with 2-3 batches, you can crisp them up before serving by cooking @180C for 2 minutes in the air fryer,
To serve
Remove crispy spinach leaves from air fryer.Top the crispy spinach with yogurt, tamarind chutney, green chutney and sev for a richer Indian street food experience.
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Air fryer palak patta chaat recipe
Equipment
- Air fryer
- oil spray
Ingredients
- ½ cup lentil flour or gram flour
- ⅔ cup water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon chaat masala
- ½ teaspoon amchur powder
- Pinch baking soda
- 100 g baby spinach leaves
- 2 tablespoons dry flour for dusting
- 1 tablespoon oil spray
For topping
- 1 boiled potato diced
- 2 tablespoons tamarind chutney
- 2 tablespoons green chutney
- 1 tablespoon pomegranate seeds
- ½ teaspoon chaat masala
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine lentil flour, salt, chaat masala, amchur powder and baking soda.
- Add water slowly and whisk until a smooth medium thick batter forms.
- Wash and dry the spinach leaves well so the batter sticks properly.
- Dust the spinach leaves lightly with dry flour.
- Dip each spinach leaf into the batter and coat evenly.
- Line the air fryer tray with parchment paper and arrange coated spinach leaves in a single layer.
- Preheat the air fryer to 180°C | 365°F for 3 minutes.
- Air fry the coated spinach leaves for 6-7 minutes until lightly crisp.
- Remove and cook remaining batches the same way.
- Return all batches to the air fryer and cook for 2 more minutes to make them extra crispy.
- Transfer crispy spinach leaves to a serving plate.
- Top with diced boiled potatoes, tamarind chutney, green chutney, pomegranate seeds and chaat masala.
- Serve immediately while the palak patta chaat is crispy.
Video
Variations
There are many ways to adapt this palak patta chaat depending on taste and ingredients available.
- Spicy street style chaat: Add red chili powder or red chilli flakes, extra chaat masala, and chopped onions to enhance the bold Indian street style flavor.
- Crunchy spinach fritters: Instead of serving as chaat, serve the crispy fried spinach leaves as snacks with chutney.
Substitutions
If you do not have some ingredients, these substitutions work well.
- Lentil flour: You can use gram flour (besan) or a mix of gram flour and rice flour for crisp texture.
- Baby spinach leaves: Regular spinach leaves can also be used. Choose medium sized leaves for best results.
- Amchur powder: Fresh lemon juice works well to add the tangy flavor usually present in Indian chaat.
- Tamarind chutney: Date tamarind chutney or even sweet yogurt chutney can be used.
- Baking soda: A pinch helps make the batter light, but the recipe still works without it.you can use baking powder as well.
FAQ
Palak patta chaat is a popular Indian street food chaat recipe made with crispy deep fried spinach leaves topped with chutney, potatoes, and spices.
Yes. Using an air fryer helps create crispy spinach leaves without traditional deep frying, making the dish lighter and easier to cook at home.
Dusting the spinach leaves with dry flour helps the batter stick evenly and creates a more uniform crispy coating.
Cook the spinach leaves in small batches and return them to the air fryer for another 1 to 2 minutes after the first batches finish cooking.
Yes, if you use rice flour or chickpea flour instead of wheat flour, this chaat recipe can be completely gluten free.
Conclusion
This air fryer palak patta chaat recipe brings the flavors of Indian street food into your kitchen with much less oil. The batter coated spinach leaves cook quickly in the air fryer, creating a light and crunchy base for the chaat toppings. Whether served as a snack, appetizer, or festive dish, this crispy spinach chaat recipe is a simple way to enjoy the bold flavors of Indian chaat at home.
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