When I had first made Pav Buns at home, I made Pav Bhaji as it was the irresistible first choice. As I had started making these regularly at home, I wanted to try one of our other favorite street food – Kutchi Dabeli. This is a trademark Gujarati, sweet and spicy delicacy that is quite delicious too. Part of its name – “Kutchi” Dabeli comes from the fact that it is from Kutch in Gujarat.

I tasted Dabeli a couple of years back at a street food vendor in Bangalore and it was love at first bite. For someone seeing and eating it for the first time, it was quite a flavor bomb in my mouth. I have made it at home a couple of times and in fact, it requires very minimal effort once all the ingredients are ready. These days I make everything from scratch, including the Pav buns and the satisfaction can’t be put in words.

Kutchi Dabeli has a number of elements. First the buttered pav buns – ensure they are soft, airy and light. Each side of the bun is smeared with sweet tamarind chutney and spicy garlic chutney. Then the filling is made of spiced, boiled potatoes. For the crunch, roasted peanuts and sev, a version of Omapodi is used. The other surprise element is the pomegranate seeds! And that’s why I call this a perfect sweet & spicy deliciousness.

I made every element of Kutchi Dabeli from scratch and it does take a bit of planning in advance. It is a bit time consuming too, to get every element prepared for making Dabeli at home but the effort pays off really well. It makes for a really good snack or party starter or even a dinner option!

How to make Kutchi Dabeli | Kachchi Dabeli

📖 Recipe

Kutchi Dabeli Recipe with Step by Step Pictures

Making Dabeli Masala Powder

  1. Dry roast all ingredients under Dabeli Masala until golden and aromatic.

  2. Once cooled down, blend into a smooth powder and set it aside.

Making Sweet Tamarind Dates Chutney

  1. Boil dates along with jaggery and tamarind pulp until soft. Let this cool down. Blend into a smooth paste.

  2. Add this paste on to the pan again along with the remaining water.

  3. Add red chilli powder, jeera powder and salt. Let this come to a boil and thicken. Remove from heat.

Making Spicy Garlic Chutney

  1. Soak dried red chillies in warm water for 20-30 mins. Add soaked red chillies along with garlic pods, salt and lemon juice into a blender jar.

  2. Blend into a smooth paste. Remove onto a bowl – set it aside.

Making Potato Masala

  1. In a pan, heat oil. Add cumin seeds and let them splutter. Add hing/asafoetida and after few seconds, add finely chopped onions and fry until translucent.

  2. Add boiled, peeled and mashed potatoes followed by Dabeli Masala, sweet tamarind dates chutney and salt. Mix well.

  3. If it is too dry, sprinkle some water and cook until it comes together.

  4. Assemble the potato masala in a serving plate, topped with coriander leaves, pomegranate seeds and roasted peanuts.

Making/Serving Kutchi Dabeli

  1. Slice each pav bun in the center and slightly butter. Toast them on hot pan until golden.

  2. Assemble all the ingredients required for serving dabeli at one place.

  3. On one side of the pav bun, apply garlic chutney and on the other side, sweet tamarind dates chutney.

  4. Fill the buns with potato masala, followed by roasted peanuts, pomegranate seeds, sev, chopped coriander leaves and chopped raw onions. Tightly close the bun.

  5. Press the dabeli onto sev/omapodi on all sides. Top the buns with some more sev, pomegranate and chopped coriander leaves.

  6. Serve warm immediately.

Recipe Notes

Here is Pav Buns recipe. And here is Sev/Omapodi recipe. Adjust spices as per preference. Most of the elements can be prepared beforehand and stored in fridge. For a spicy version, use masala peanuts instead of plain roasted ones.

I would be delighted to know if you have tried this recipe, don’t forget to share your feedback and comments below. If you have any questions, you can e-mail me! I am also available on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter 🙂