The delicious Mutter is a traditional Indian snack. Chef Rajendar, who runs his restaurant-on-wheels along the Sangam Road, makes it just right - hot and spicy.
Take some chickpeas and wash them. Soak them in water for the night. Drain the water in the morning or whenever you want to cook. Then take a pan and heat some oil - Rajendar recommends mustard oil. Drop in some chopped onions with grated ginger and garlic. Now put the chickpeas into the pan and fry them together. Add some chopped tomatoes and spices, sprinkle in some salt. When the peas are cooked pour over some water and bring to the boil. In a few minutes - the Mutter is ready.

Rajendar firmly believes that intelligent garnishing can make your mutter look mouth-watering - even if you don’t quite get the above preparation right: Always add some grated white radish and put a chopped tomato on top to make a fine and inviting snack.

Bread pakora is an excellent snack for the chilly Mela evenings - crunchy on the outside and soft and warm inside. You may not be well versed with cooking, but you just cannot go wrong with this recipe. Our chef, Pratap Singh, picked it up himself from a roadside joint in Delhi.

Pick some bread from a bakery. Cut the slices into two so that they make two triangles - Pratap recommends stale bread for beginners as the fresh ones are too soft and can be hard to handle. Take some gram flour. Add some salt and water and make a paste. Dip the bread slices in the paste. Take some cooking oil and heat it in a deep pan. Put the bread slices soaked in the paste into the hot oil and deep-fry it till it becomes golden brown.

Once you’ve got your bread pakoras ready, you need to make some green chutney to go with them. Take some coriander leaves, sliced onions, green chillies, garlic and salt and just make a paste in the food processor. And always remember, Bread pakoras are perfect with strong sweet tea.

Boil some potatoes. Mash the potatoes with some boiled peas and coriander leaves. Add some chopped ginger and garlic, finely chopped onion, green chilli, salt, and Garam Masala (mixture of Indian spices). Now flatten them to make tikkies - small round patties. Put some oil in a round flat pan with a thick base. Put the Tikkis on the pan and fry them slowly. The trick is to have a crispy outer covering.

The Aloo Tikki goes with some interesting garnishes: Take some curds and mix in some water, salt and grounded pepper. Blend them in a food processor.And now let’s make some sweet chutney: Boil some tamarind. Add some sugar to it and blend it.

Now Take the Aloo Tikkis and pour some of the curd chutney and some of the sweet chutney. Sprinkle some chopped coriander leaves and you have a delicious looking Aloo Tikki.

(A plate of Aloo Tikkis costs four rupees at Lal Mun’s.)

Chef Santosh Kumar has turned the Aloo Tikki into an even more delicious snack he calls Chat. The initial process is same: Mash the boiled potatoes with peas, finely chopped onion, coriander leaves, chopped ginger and garlic, green chilli and spices. But instead of making them into Tikkis, add some tomatoes and boiled chickpea and some salt. Now fry everything in oil. When done keep it on a slow flame on a flat pan.

Serve the Chat with some grated white radish and finely chopped tomatoes.

(A plate of Chat costs two rupees at Gupta Chat Corner - owned by Santosh.)