Chivda recipe

I’m learning to cook my mom’s specialities. This particular dish (pronounced “chew-da”) is a good afternoon snack. I ate it everyday after school. For years and years. To this day, Ma puts a bag or two in my suitcase when I visit. It screams “childhood.” My childhood. Probably not yours.

Every family in India will have a different recipe for this. Here’s my family’s version.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup oil
• 1/2 cup peanuts
• 5 cups of rice crispies type of cereal
• 2 cups of cornflakes type of cereal
• 1 cup of cheerios type of cereal
• 15-20 dried curry leaves
• One large dehydrated onion. This is what makes the chivda. You cut up the onion, put it in a food dehydrator for however long it tells you and then it comes out the other side looking like this.

Spices

• 1/2 tsp each:
  • cumin seeds
  • mustard seeds
• 1 tsp each:
  • coriander powder
  • salt
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp of garam masala
• 2 tbspn sesame seeds

 

Directions

1. Pour oil in a pot on the stove.

2. Add in the mustard, cumin seeds and peanuts.

3. Let cook until it looks done. Kind of like this.

4. In a large bowl, mix the cereals together well.

5. Scoop out the peanuts you just cooked and add it to the cereal. Don’t add in the oil or the seeds yet.

6. Put the oil back on the stove.

7. Add in the cumin leaves, the sesame seeds and the dehydrated onions.

8. Cook for like, a minute. The onions will puff up. They’re ready super fast. Don’t let them burn.

9. Add in the powder spices.

10. Shut the stove off and mix well.

11. Pour the mixture over the cereal and peanuts.

12. Mix well.

My favorite way to enjoy chivda is with yogurt. You can also eat with lime juice. Or use it as a substitute for bhel mix in this recipe. I have been known to put it in my peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I get a weird look from family members when I do, but I just ignore them.

Acceptable Deviations

1. You can use fresh curry leaves if you don’t have dried ones.

2. You can add raisins.

3. Don’t buy a food dehydrator just for the onions. Although, it really does make it pretty delicious.