Italian Bhel

Italian Bhel is a delightful fusion dish that reimagines the traditional Indian Bhel Puri with an Italian twist. This vibrant, crispy chaat or starter combines the familiar elements of Bhel Puri with the flavors of Italy. Instead of using traditional puffed rice, Italian Bhel is made with fried spaghetti, which adds a unique texture and flavor. Mixed with a variety of fresh vegetables and Italian spices, this dish offers a creative and tasty alternative to classic chaat recipes. It’s a perfect way to use up leftover pasta—after making spaghetti over the weekend, I turned the leftovers into this innovative Italian Bhel the following day.

Starters Overview

Starters, also known as appetizers, are small dishes served before the main course to stimulate the appetite and set the tone for the meal. They can range from simple to elaborate and are often characterized by bold flavors and textures. Italian Bhel fits into this category as an appetizing snack that can be enjoyed on its own or as part of a larger meal. It serves as a great alternative to traditional starters like Chinese Bhel, which is known for its crispy noodles and spicy seasoning. Italian Bhel can be enjoyed as a chaat at a casual gathering or as an elegant appetizer at a dinner party. For a traditional take on chaat, you might also want to check out my classic Bhel Puri recipe.

Red Chilli Paste

Red chilli paste is an essential condiment in many starter recipes, providing a rich and spicy flavor profile. This versatile paste is made from red chillies, ginger, and garlic cloves, which are blended together to create a smooth, flavorful mixture. The paste serves as the primary source of heat and depth in many dishes, complementing other ingredients and sauces. Having a batch of red chilli paste on hand allows you to prepare a variety of starters quickly and easily, enhancing the overall taste of your appetizers. The paste can be stored in the refrigerator for a few weeks or frozen for longer shelf life, making it a convenient and indispensable component in your kitchen

Also check my other Snack recipes

Bhel puri

Chutney for Chaats

Oven roasted Chickpeas

Oreo fry

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Italian Bhel

Niranjana Sankaranarayanan

Italian Bhel is a twist a to Indian Bhel puri. This is a colourful, crispy and easy to make chaat or starter. I usually make Chinese bhel at home which has fried noodles and Chinese spices in it. This recipe is an adaptation from the Chinese Bhel. Italian bhel is made with fried pasta specifically Spaghetti and mixed with some vegetables and Italian spices. I made pasta for the weekend and had some left over spaghetti. The next day it turned out to be a bhel.

Starters

Starter is a wide variety of dishes served before the main course of a meal. There are so many varieties of starters that can be served. One such dish is Chinese Bhel which is so crispy, spicy and tasty. Italian Bhel is an adaptation from that starter. It can aslo be served as a chaat or as an appetiser snack. You can also check my Bhel puri recipe.

Red Chilli paste

Red chilli paste is a main chutney to make any starter. It has red chillies, ginger, garlic cloves. This gives the main flavour for the starters apart from the sauces used. If we have this paste ready, we can make many types of starters easily.

Also check my other snack recipes

Bhel puri

Chutney for Chaats

Oven roasted Chickpeas

Oreo fry

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Course Chaats, Snacks, Starters

Cuisine Italian

Servings 1

Equipment

• Mixie

Ingredients

  

• 1 bowl Fried Pasta Boiled Spaghetti
• 1/2 tsp Corn flour
• To fry Oil

Red chilli paste

• 3 nos Guntur chilli
• 3 nos Bedigi chilli
• 6 cloves Garlic
• 3 inch Ginger
• 1 tsp Cumin seeds
• To boil Water

Other ingredients

• 2 tbsp Finely chopped tomatoes
• 2 tbsp Finely chopped Bell pepper
• 5 nos Olives
• 1/2 tsp Red chilli paste
• 2 tbsp Tomato sauce
• As req Salt
• 1 tsp Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Pizza seasoning
• 1/4 tsp Black pepper powder

Instructions

 

Boiled Spaghetti

• Take spaghetti, boil it with enough water with salt and a teaspoon of oil.
• Once the spaghetti becomes soft, drain it well.
• I suggest you make the spaghetti atleast two hours before you make the Bhel. You can also boil it a day before and refrigerate.

Fried Spaghetti

• When you are ready to make bhel, remove the spaghetti from the refrigerator atleast 15 minutes before.
• Dust it with corn flour and coat it well.
• Heat the oil and once the oil is hot, fry the spaghetti.
• Always fry the spaghetti in low flame first. Once the sizzling sound reduces, fry it in high flame until it turns golden brown in colour.
• When it turns golden brown, remove it from the oil and keep aside.
• Fried Spaghetti is ready.

Red chilli paste

• Take water in a bowl.
• Into the water add guntur chilli, bedigi chilli, garlic cloves, ginger, cumin seeds.
• Boil it well until the chillies, garlic, ginger becomes soft.
• Allow it to cool and grind it to a fine paste.
• Red chilli paste is ready.

Final step

• Take a bowl, crush the fried spaghetti into it.
• Then add chopped tomatoes, bell peppers, olives into it.
• And then add red chilli paste, tomato sauce, salt, sugar and mix it well.
• After that add pizza seasoning and black pepper powder.
• Mix everything together well.
• Italian Bhel is ready to serve.

Video

Notes

• We can add green, yellow, red bell pepper.
• Adding onions is absolutely our choice. But this bhel tastes good even without onions.
• Instead of pizza seasoning you can also use mixed herbs or oregano or any italian herbs.
• Adding chilli flakes is optional. 

Keyword Bhel, Italian bhel, starters

INSTRUCTIONS

Boiled Spaghetti

• Take spaghetti, boil it with enough water with salt and a teaspoon of oil.
• Once the spaghetti becomes soft, drain it well.
• I suggest you make the spaghetti atleast two hours before you make the Bhel. You can also boil it a day before and refrigerate.

Fried Spaghetti

• When you are ready to make bhel, remove the spaghetti from the refrigerator atleast 15 minutes before.
• Dust it with corn flour and coat it well.
• Heat the oil and once the oil is hot, fry the spaghetti.
• Always fry the spaghetti in low flame first. Once the sizzling sound reduces, fry it in high flame until it turns golden brown in colour.

• When it turns golden brown, remove it from the oil and keep aside.
• Fried Spaghetti is ready.

Red chilli paste

• Take water in a bowl.
• Into the water add guntur chilli, bedigi chilli, garlic cloves, ginger, cumin seeds.
• Boil it well until the chillies, garlic, ginger becomes soft.
• Allow it to cool and grind it to a fine paste.
• Red chilli paste is ready.

Final step

• Take a bowl, crush the fried spaghetti into it.
• Then add chopped tomatoes, bell peppers, olives into it.
• And then add red chilli paste, tomato sauce, salt, sugar and mix it well.
• After that add pizza seasoning and black pepper powder.
• Mix everything together well.
• Italian Bhel is ready to serve.

Note

• We can add green, yellow, red bell pepper.
• Adding onions is absolutely our choice. But this bhel tastes good even without onions.
• Instead of pizza seasoning you can also use mixed herbs or oregano or any italian herbs.
• Adding chilli flakes is optional.

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