mixture recipe with step by step pics. one of the popular and delicious south indian snacks made during diwali is mixture, which is basically a mix of various edible ingredients, nuts and dry fruits.
what is known as chiwda in north and western india, is called as mixture in south india. there are many types of mixture recipes. this post shares the popular madras mixture made with omapodi (plain sev) and boondi along with some nuts and spices.
some variations of south indian mixture has sweet maida biscuits added. but i have not added them. i made the omapodi a day before to reduce the prep work. preparation does take time. so you can plan ahead and make accordingly. you can make the boondi and omapodi a day before and make mixture the next day. fried coconut can also be added, but i have not added as it reduces the shelf life of the mixture.
in the mixture recipe post, i have mentioned the methods of making both omapodi and boondi, but for a detailed post you can check the recipes here:
in this mixture recipe, you can also add ribbon pakoda, thattai, kara sev and murukku. just break them in small pieces and then add.
its always best to make such snacks at home as you can use the best ingredients and also the oil won’t be reused many times. so homemade chiwda taste better than store bought one and is also more healthy. i have shared few more chiwda or mixture recipes like:
this madras mixture recipe yields about 350 grams of mixture. store mixture in an air-tight jar. serve south indian mixture as teatime or diwali snack to your family or friends.
if you are looking for more diwali snacks recipes then do check:
mixture recipe
ingredients (1 cup = 250 ml)
for omapodi
- 1 teaspoon ajwain (carom seeds)
- 1 cup besan or 120 grams besan (gram flour)
- ½ cup rice flour or 100 grams rice flour
- 1 generous pinch asafoetida (hing)
- 2 pinches turmeric powder (haldi) - optional
- ¼ teaspoon red chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon salt or add as required
- 1 tablespoon oil or ghee or butter
- 6 to 7 tablespoons water or add as required
- oil as required for deep frying
for kara boondi
- ½ cup besan (gram flour)
- 1 tablespoon rice flour
- 1 pinch asafoetida (hing)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 8 to 9 tablespoons water to make thin batter
- oil for deep frying, as required
other ingredients for mixture recipe
- ¼ cup peanuts
- 25 cashews
- ¼ cup roasted chana dal (roasted bengal gram)
- ¼ cup poha (flattened rice or parched rice)
- 12 to 15 curry leaves (kadi patta)
- ⅛ teaspoon asafoetida (hing) or about 2 pinches
- ½ teaspoon red chilli powder
- 2 cups omapodi or add as required
- 2 cups boondi or add as required
- salt as required
how to make mixture recipe
making omapodi for mixture recipe
preparing omapodi dough
heat a small pan and keep flame to a low. add 1 teaspoon ajwain (carom seeds).
stirring often roast ajwain for some seconds till they are aromatic. no need to brown them. let them cool down.
then add them in a small dry grinder jar or a spice grinder.
grind to a fine powder. keep aside. you can even crush ajwain in a mortar-pestle. in this case, when adding ajwain, use a tea strainer and sift the ajwain powder through it. this is done so that when pressing through the sev maker, the dough strands do not break.
in a mixing bowl or pan take 1 cup besan (gram flour) and ½ cup rice flour.
add the ground ajwain powder.
then add 1 generous pinch asafoetida (hing), 2 pinches turmeric powder, ¼ teaspoon red chilli powder and 1 teaspoon salt. you can add salt as per taste. turmeric powder can be skipped. for a spicy omapodi, you can increase the amount of red chilli powder. for more crispiness you can add a pinch of baking soda also.
mix very well with a spoon or spatula.
now heat 1 tablespoon oil in a steel bowl or a steel measuring cup.
when the oil becomes hot, add it to the flour mixture. instead of oil you can also use ghee or butter.
now add water in parts. first add 2 to 3 tablespoons of water. mix well and begin to knead to a smooth dough. overall i used 7 tablespoons of water. you can add 6 to 7 tablespoons of water depending on the quality of besan and rice flour.
knead to a smooth dough. if the dough becomes sticky, then you can add some more besan. if the dough looks dry, then add some more water and knead again. cover the bowl.
use the disc shown in the below picture for preparing omapodi. you can even use the disc with fine holes. also heat a kadai and add oil as required for deep frying omapodi.
apply some water or oil in the sev/murukku maker. then take a portion of the omapodi dough and place it inside the sev maker. cover with the top part and keep aside.
frying omapodi
let the oil in the kadai become medium hot. check the oil temperature by adding a small tiny piece of the omapodi dough. if the small piece of dough comes up gradually and steadily on top, the oil is hot enough to fry. if it comes up too quickly, then oil is too hot. if it settles down at bottom of kadai or comes up very slowly, the oil is not hot enough for frying omapodi.
when the oil is hot enough, directly press holding the sev maker on top of the oil and let the sev directly fall in the oil. while pressing rotate in a concentric circle from the center to outwards similar to making a chakli. do not over crowd the kadai with omapodi. add as much as needed without overcrowding the kadai. be careful when pressing the sev in the oil. after the sev is pressed in the oil, break the top sev strands with a spoon or knife and let the sev strands fall in the oil.
after adding the besan sev, do not touch them immediately with the slotted spoon as they break. let them get fried first for a minute. they need to become crisp first and then you can turn them over with the slotted spoon.
gently begin to turn with a slotted spoon.
now fry the second side. you can turn over a couple of times for even frying.
when the oil stops sizzling, continue to fry for some more seconds till the omapodi are golden and crisp. turn over as needed when frying. do not break the sev while frying as then it becomes extra work to remove the small pieces of sev from the oil. so fry the entire round shaped omapodi as one piece and do not break it.
once done then remove omapodi with a slotted spoon or a strainer spoon draining off the extra oil.
place them on kitchen paper towels. fry the remaining omapodi in the same way.
when the omapodi are cooled, then place them in an air tight container or box. break omapodi before adding in the mixture.
making boondi for mixture recipe
preparing boondi batter
take ½ cup besan (gram flour) and 1 tablespoon rice flour in a mixing bowl.
then add 1 pinch asafoetida (hing), 1 pinch of baking soda, 2 pinches turmeric powder and ½ teaspoon salt.
mix everything with a spoon.
now add 8 to 9 tablespoons water in parts.
using a wired whisk make a smooth and slightly thin batter without lumps.
the batter consistency is slightly thin. the amount of water to be added depends on the quality of gram flour. so add accordingly.
frying boondi
heat oil for frying in a kadai or pan. when the oil becomes hot, then tap the wired whisk or the handle of a spoon which has a bit of batter in to the hot oil.
now take a dry perforated ladle/jhara and place it above the hot oil. don't keep too much on a height, as the batter droplets, when falling from a height, do not give a round shape. with a spoon add some batter on the perforated spoon ladle/jhara. spread the batter lightly with a spoon. finish up the batter on the perforated spoon ladle this way.
on a medium flame begin to fry the boondis. do not turn them. let them become slightly crisp and then turn them.
when the boondis have become crisp, turn them with a slotted spoon. you won't get perfect round shape for each boondi, but it does not matter as the taste of homemade boondi is better than store brought ones.
after the oil stops sizzling, continue to fry the boondis for some more seconds so that they become crisp.
remove with a strainer spoon or a slotted spoon draining the extra oil.
place the fried salted boondi on kitchen paper towels.
after each batch, wipe the perforated ladle/jhara with a clean piece of moist thin cotton kitchen towel from both sides. continue to fry boondis this way. once the boondi cools down, store in an air tight jar or box.
when the boondis are frying you can remove and keep everything ready for the next step.
frying nuts for mixture recipe
use a fine sieve ladle as shown in the pic below for frying. in the indian markets we get these sieve with a handle. this sieve ladle is very helpful for frying ingredients which have small pieces or flakes. as you don't waste time and energy trying to find out the rice flakes or the chana dal in the oil.
take the peanuts first in the sieve. immerse in the oil and begin to fry.
with a spoon stir often while frying so that the peanuts are fried evenly.
fry peanuts till they are crisp and crunchy.
using the same seive drain the extra oil. so this ladle is helpful for frying as well as for getting rid of extra oil after frying.
place the fried peanuts on kitchen paper towel.
then take cashews in the same ladle.
stirring often with a spoon fry cashews till they are golden.
place the fried cashews on the same kitchen paper towel.
next take roasted chana dal.
stirring often with a spoon fry roasted chana dal till they are crisp.
frying chana dal will take some seconds and their color will change.
place the fried chana dal on the same kitchen paper towel.
now take thick poha.
stirring often with a spoon fry poha till they are crisp and pale golden. don't brown the poha. i have used thick poha. you can also use thin poha.
once the poha is fried well, then drain off the extra oil using the same ladle.
place the fried poha on the same kitchen paper towel.
next add curry leaves. stirring often fry curry leaves till they become crisp.
curry leaves take a few seconds to fry. place the fried curry leaves on the kitchen paper towel.
making mixture
in a parat or a large bowl or tray or plate take 2 cups of the omapodi and 2 cups of fried boondi. remaining omapodi you can serve as a snack. with the remaining boondi, you can make boondi raita. you can also take more if you want.
add the fried nuts, poha, chana dal, curry leaves.
add ½ teaspoon red chilli powder, ⅛ teaspoon asafoetida (hing) and salt over the fried chana dal, poha, nuts and curry leaves as they will be still hot.
mix well with a spoon first and then later you can mix with your hands.
then place the mixture in a jar or container. store at room temperature.
serve south indian mixture as a diwali snack or a tea time snack.
how to make mixture recipe
a) making omapodi
making omapodi dough
1. heat a small pan and keep flame to a low. add 1 teaspoon ajwain (carom seeds).
2. stirring often roast ajwain for some seconds till they are aromatic. no need to brown them. let them cool down.
3. then add them in a small dry grinder jar or a spice grinder.
4. grind to a fine powder. keep aside. you can even crush ajwain in a mortar-pestle. in this case, when adding ajwain, use a tea strainer and sift the ajwain powder through it. this is done so that when pressing through the sev maker, the dough strands do not break.
5. in a mixing bowl or pan take 1 cup besan (gram flour) and ½ cup rice flour.
6. add the ground ajwain powder.
7. then add 1 generous pinch asafoetida (hing), 2 pinches turmeric powder, ¼ teaspoon red chilli powder and 1 teaspoon salt. you can add salt as per taste. turmeric powder can be skipped. for a spicy omapodi, you can increase the amount of red chilli powder. for more crispiness you can add a pinch of baking soda also.
8. mix very well with a spoon or spatula.
9. now heat 1 tablespoon oil in a steel bowl or a steel measuring cup.
10. when the oil becomes hot, add it to the flour mixture. instead of oil you can also use ghee or butter.
11. with a spoon mix the oil with the flour mixture.
12. now add water in parts. first add 2 to 3 tablespoons of water. mix well and begin to knead to a smooth dough. overall i used 7 tablespoons of water. you can add 6 to 7 tablespoons of water depending on the quality of besan and rice flour.
13. knead to a smooth dough. if the dough becomes sticky, then you can add some more besan. if the dough looks dry, then add some more water and knead again. cover the bowl.
14. use the disc shown in the below picture for preparing omapodi. you can even use the disc with fine holes. also heat a kadai and add oil as required for deep frying omapodi.
15. apply some water or oil in the sev/murukku maker. then take a portion of the omapodi dough and place it inside the sev maker. cover with the top part and keep aside.
frying omapodi for south indian mixture
16. let the oil in the kadai become medium hot. check the oil temperature by adding a small tiny piece of the omapodi dough. if the small piece of dough comes up gradually and steadily on top, the oil is hot enough to fry. if it comes up too quickly, then oil is too hot. if it settles down at bottom of kadai or comes up very slowly, the oil is not hot enough for frying omapodi.
17. when the oil is hot enough, directly press holding the sev maker on top of the oil and let the sev directly fall in the oil. while pressing rotate in a concentric circle from the center to outwards similar to making a chakli. do not over crowd the kadai with omapodi. add as much as needed without overcrowding the kadai. be careful when pressing the sev in the oil. after the sev is pressed in the oil, break the top sev strands with a spoon or knife and let the sev strands fall in the oil.
18. after adding the besan sev, do not touch them immediately with the slotted spoon as they break. let them get fried first for a minute. they need to become crisp first and then you can turn them over with the slotted spoon.
19. gently begin to turn with a slotted spoon.
20. now fry the second side. you can turn over a couple of times for even frying.
21. when the oil stops sizzling, continue to fry for some more seconds till the omapodi are golden and crisp. turn over as needed when frying. do not break the sev while frying as then it becomes extra work to remove the small pieces of sev from the oil. so fry the entire round shaped omapodi as one piece and do not break it.
22. once done then remove omapodi with a slotted spoon or a strainer spoon draining off the extra oil.
23. place them on kitchen paper towels. fry the remaining omapodi in the same way.
24. when the omapodi are cooled, then place them in an air tight container or box. before adding to the mixture, break the omapodi.
making boondi for south indian mixture
making boondi batter:
1. take ½ cup besan (gram flour) and 1 tablespoon rice flour in a mixing bowl.
2. then add 1 pinch asafoetida (hing), 1 pinch of baking soda, 2 pinches turmeric powder and ½ teaspoon salt.
3. mix everything with a spoon.
4. now add 8 to 9 tablespoons water in parts.
5. using a wired whisk make a smooth and slightly thin batter without lumps.
6. the batter consistency is slightly thin. the amount of water to be added depends on the quality of gram flour (besan). so add accordingly.
frying boondi:
7. heat oil for frying in a kadai or pan. when the oil becomes hot, then tap the wired whisk or the handle of a spoon which has a bit of batter in to the hot oil.
8. the boondis should have a round shape. if they become flat, then the batter is thin. if they get tail ends, then the batter is thick. if the batter is thin, then add 1 to 2 teaspoons of gram flour and check by frying a few boondis. if the batter is thick, then add a few teaspoons of water and then do the same test. once you get the correct consistency, proceed with the next step of frying the boondis.
9. now take a dry perforated ladle/jhara and place it above the hot oil. don’t keep too much on a height, as the batter droplets, when falling from a height, do not give a round shape. with a spoon add some batter on the perforated spoon ladle/jhara. spread the batter lightly with a spoon. finish up the batter on the perforated spoon ladle this way.
10. on a medium flame begin to fry the boondis. do not turn them. let them become slightly crisp and then turn them.
11. when the boondis have become crisp, turn them with a slotted spoon. you won’t get perfect round shape for each boondi, but it does not matter as the taste of homemade boondi is better than store brought ones.
12. after the oil stops sizzling, continue to fry the boondis for some more seconds so that they become crisp.
13. remove with a strainer spoon or a slotted spoon draining the extra oil.
14. place the fried salted boondi on kitchen paper towels.
15. after each batch, wipe the perforated ladle/jhara with a clean piece of moist thin cotton kitchen towel from both sides. continue to fry boondis this way. once the boondi cools down, store in an air tight jar or box.
16. when the boondis are frying you can remove and keep everything ready for the next step. take 2 cups of omapodi and 2 cups of boondi. the rest of the omapodi you can serve as snack. the remaining boondi can be used for making boondi raita or jal jeera or added to chaat snacks like pani puri or dahi bhalla chaat or dahi vada or had as a snack.
frying nuts for mixture recipe
1. use a fine sieve ladle as shown in the pic below for frying. in the indian markets we get these sieve with a handle. this sieve ladle is very helpful for frying ingredients which have small pieces or flakes. as you don’t waste time and energy trying to find out the rice flakes or the chana dal in the oil. heat some oil for deep frying in a pan or kadai. you can also use the same oil in which you fried the boondis.
2. take ¼ cup peanuts first in the sieve. immerse in the oil and begin to fry.
3. with a spoon stir often while frying so that the peanuts are fried evenly.
4. fry peanuts till they are crisp and crunchy.
5. using the same seive drain the exxtra oil. so this ladle is helpful for frying as well as for getting rid of extra oil after frying.
6. place the fried peanuts on kitchen paper towel.
7. then take 25 cashews in the same ladle.
8. stirring often with a spoon fry cashews till they are golden.
9. place the fried cashews on the same kitchen paper towel.
10. next take ¼ cup roasted chana dal (roasted bengal gram).
11. stirring often with a spoon fry roasted chana dal till they are crisp.
12. frying chana dal will take some seconds and their color will change.
13. place the fried chana dal on the same kitchen paper towel.
14. now take ¼ cup thick poha (flattened rice or parched rice). i have used thick poha. you can also use thin poha.
15. stirring often with a spoon fry the poha till they are crisp and pale golden. don’t brown the poha. you can add more poha if you want. you can also add more of peanuts, roasted chana dal or cashews if you want.
16. once the poha is fried well, then drain off the extra oil using the same ladle.
17. place the fried poha on the same kitchen paper towel.
18. next add 12 to 15 curry leaves.
19. stirring often fry curry leaves till they become crisp.
20. curry leaves take a few seconds to fry.
21. place the fried curry leaves on the same kitchen paper towel.
making mixture
1. in a parat or a large bowl or tray or plate take 2 cups of the omapodi and 2 cups of boondi. break omapodi before you begin to mix.
2. add the fried nuts, poha, chana dal, curry leaves.
3. add ½ teaspoon red chilli powder, ⅛ teaspoon asafoetida (about 2 pinches of hing) and salt as per taste over the fried chana dal, poha, nuts and curry leaves as they will be still hot. you can also add some powdered sugar for a slight sweet taste.
4. mix well with a spoon first and then later you can mix with your hands.
5. then place the mixture in a jar or container. store at room temperature.
6. serve south indian mixture as a diwali snack or a tea time snack.
