Is Chaat healthy? How many calories?

Catching up friends over some chaat, and trying to watch your diet? Not sure about which chat is the best for you to indulge in. Well, At Fitho, we’ve done the research for you, to know which chat is healthy, which chat is unhealthy, and suggestions on how to make your chats healthier!

Photo: Bhel Puri Chat (mbasu1@flickr)

Below is a list of some popular North Indian chats:

Aloo Chaat: Crisp brown deep fried potato pieces served with, chaat masala and a mixture of sweet and tangy chutney. Potatoes are healthy, but deep frying them makes them unhealthy. So, clearly this chat is not something you can indulge in, when you’re trying to watch your weight. If you want to make it healthier, you can pan fry or bake the potatoes with less oil, but it still doesn’t make aloo chat healthy . So follow the golden rule ‘mind the portion size’ while eating aloo chaat.
Calories: Approximately 350 calories (based on serving size)

Bhel Puri: Made from puffed rice (murmura, muri) with mash boiled potatoes, sev (yes, they are fried) with, tomatoes, onions along with tangy tamarind sauce and spicy coriander sauce. Bhel Puri is a healthy option in chat and and a good snack if you’re watching your waistline.
Calories: Approximately 200-250 calories (based on serving size)

Pani Puri: Called by varied names across India- Puchka, Gol Gappa, Bataashaa, Gup Shup, is a round hollow fried crispy shell, and filled with water mixture of tamarind, chili, chaat masala, potato, onion and boiled chole (chickpeas).
Yes, the shell is fried, but the filling is mostly healthy, so this one is on our approved list of chats.
Calories: 150-180 calories for 4-5 medium sizes pieces.

Papri Chaat: A mixture of crispy fried dough wafers made from refined wheat flour, chick peas, boiled potatoes and yoghurt, tamarind chutney which is garnished with sev. This chaat is a borderline case. Its got the benefits of the boiled vegetables, and the benefits of yoghurt nutrition, but the base (papri) is fried and made from refined flour, which has a high glycemic index and is loaded with calories and fat.
Calories: Approximately 300 calories for a medium size serving.

A really healthy chat is yellow matar chat or a fruit chat. As you can see, with most chats, there is a part of it that’s unhealthy. Now, you know what is unhealthy, and what to avoid. So, next time you’re at a chat stall, you won’t be left wondering about the nutrition. If you like to indulge occasionally, its alright. Just make sure you eat healthy most of the time and you get your exercise in!

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Comments

4 Responses to “Is Chaat healthy? How many calories?”

neha on February 23rd, 2010 8:13 pm

wow! never knew chaat has so many calories. i used to polish off plates and plates of papri chaat thinking its too light

Do you have any idea whats the calorie count for dahi bhalla (those balls made with moong daal and fried) … this is another very common chaat item. it would be great to know how much we are actually eating
kgbhat on February 24th, 2010 5:26 am

It is not only that the calories are bad but with the personal cleanliness of these vendors is so bad and the water they use is so dirty that you may catch a bout of Typhoid fever or Jaundice.Am not joking,I know as I am a doctor and have seen people suffering after eating at the roadside eateries.
Fitho dietician on February 24th, 2010 10:31 am

@ Neha: I agree one should keep a track of calories you are eating it also helps you portion control your favourate snacks.

One plate of Dahi Bhalla generally has 350-380 calories so again not a good snack option.

If preparing it at home then you can choose low-fat curd to cut down few calories.
Swapnil Gupta on February 24th, 2010 4:37 pm

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