Chiwda is our all-time favorite tea-time snack. You may even call it a guilt-free Indian junk food as it contains good low-calorie carbs and protein but allows you to enjoy a crunchy and salty texture.
Making chiwda at home can be a little time-consuming as you have to fry or roast different kinds of nuts separately. However, we’ve made this snack super easy to make by using store-bought ingredients such as Spanish peanuts and salted cashews. You just prepare the seasonings and mix all the ingredients and you’ll have a great snack in minutes.
Puffed Rice Savory Snack/Chiwda
Puffed rice, peanuts, cashews, raisins, and various spices come together in a sweet, salty, crunchy snack that’s perfect for tea-time or basically anytime of the day.
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- ½ tsp asafoetida/hing (optional)
- ½ cup Spanish peanuts (we love the nutty and buttery flavor)
- ½ cup salted cashews
- 2 tsp red chili powder
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- ½ cup raisins of your choice (we used black raisins)
- salt to taste
- 6 cups puffed brown rice (we used Arrowhead Mills available in Sprouts)
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large, rounded bottom pan. Once the oil is hot, add the mustard seeds. Let the mustard seeds crackle for a few seconds and then add the asafoetida powder, if using.
- Reduce the heat to medium and then add the peanuts and cashews and stir until they are coated with the oil.
- Add the chili powder and turmeric powder and mix well.
- Add the raisins and salt and mix well with the other spices and nuts.
- Finally, add the puffed rice and mix well with the spices until all the puffs are coated with the spices for about 4-5 minutes. Turn the heat off.
- Let the chiwda cool down completely before storing it in an air-tight container. It will stay fresh for up to two months; however, we devour it much sooner than two months.
