Madras Mixture | South Indian Mixture

Mixture is a south Indian snack. As the name suggests it is a mixture of various snacks together. It has Kaara Boondi , Plain sev, Fried Peanuts, Cashew nuts, Poha, Roasted Gram Dal along with spice powders. It is usually prepared during Diwali in India.

At times we also add banana Chips, Potato Chips, Murukku , Thattai. All the ingredients that go into the mixture vary based on the region or even State. Every region has its own version of Mixture. It from the ingredients added to the mixture. Again, North India Mixture is referred as Chivda. Various types are there.

Mixture is one of my favorite childhood snacks. A bakery near home sells the best variety of Mixture and Banana Chips. Both are like favorites. I and my brother will be eagerly waiting for the evening for this snack.

Also, the mixture when we get here has chips added. So, our first choice will be picking the chips and peanuts from the mixture. Good old days. In this recipe, I got the mixture exactly how we get from the bakery. It is easy to prepare and give a try for this Diwali.

What is Mixture :

Mixture is a popular south Indian Snack. It has a mix of various dry ingredients like Boondi, Sev, Muruku, Karasev, Peanuts, and spices. It is mostly made as a Diwali bhakshaman.

Madras Mixture:

Madras mixture has the base with kara boondi and omapodi. Along with these peanuts, roasted gram dal, Poha, and spices are added. The best thing about this mixture recipe is that even if you prepare a small quantity you get a big batch. Because you add various ingredients to the final product.

One thing to be cautious of is to drain the oil completely after frying everything. As we are almost frying all the ingredients. Otherwise, the entire batch of the mixture will be oily. In some places, fried Almonds, Ribbon Pakkoda, Karasev, or even sweet maida biscuits are also added to the mixture.

Bombay Mixture or Chanachur:

Bombay mixture has slightly different ingredients than the Madras Mixture. In north India, the mixture is referred to as Chivda or even as Namkeen. The main difference is Bombay mixture has fried lentils or dals.

Bombay mixture has fried lentils, Fried Peanuts, fried poha, Plain sev, Curry leaves added in it. Finally, spices are added and tossed.

Types of Mixture:

Usually, by changing the base ingredients various types of mixture are there. Few popular types are

• Oats Chivda
• Poha mixture
• Corn Flakes Mixture

I have also a Mixture recipe in the blog already with Bajra Flakes.

How to Serve Madras Mixture:

Mixture is perfect as a evening snack. Serve it with some Ginger Tea or Masala Tea

How to Store Madras Mixture:

Mixture keeps well in an airtight container for about 2 weeks. So, after preparing drain the oil completely and then store in air tight Jars.

Checkout the South Indian Madras Mixture video below :

Quick Tips & Tricks on Preparing Madras Mixture

• I have Kara Boondi recipe in the blog already. You can check it out for detailed Sets for Preparing Boondi and Sev there.
• If you are planning to prepare Mixture in bulk for festivals. Try cooking Boondi or Sev the previous day, So it will be easy.
• Or you can also use store-bought boondi or Omapodi.
• Just fry the remaining ingredients and prepare the Mixture if you run out of time.
• In this recipe, I used store-bought sev. So just prepared boondi and finished preparing mixture by frying the nuts and curry leaves.

Ingredients for Madras Mixture:

Kaara Boondi:

Kara Boondi is a spiced or spicy version of Boondi. We can prepare it in various ways. It is a popular fried snack that is made in India during Diwali festival.

We Prepare boondi by deep frying the batter through perforated ladles. To the kara boondi , fried peanuts, Cashew nuts, and curry leaves are added. Finally tossed with salt and chili powder.

I have a post for Kara Boondi You can check it out for details, tips & tricks to get the perfect boondis.

Omapodi or Plain sev:

Plain sev is an easy and yummy evening snack made of besan flour that goes very well with Chai.

We can use Sev with no.of recipes like Chaat, Bhel Jhal Muri, and many more. If you are running out of time, Try using the store-bought ones.

I have a post for Kara Boondi You can check it out for details, tips & tricks to get the perfect Plain Sev or Omapodi.

Spices:

We usually use Chilli powder to spice the mixture, but, we can use pepper powder also. If you need color try using Turmeric powder instead of food color.

Other Ingredients:

Peanuts, Cashew nuts , Poha , Roasted Gram Dal are usually added to mixture.We can also add crushed thattai , Banana Chips , Muruku , Kara sev , Sweet Maida Biscuits.

How to Prepare South Indian Mixture with step by step pictures:

TO PREPARE BOONDI BATTER

In a mixing bowl add in 1 cup of Besan Flour, To this add in 2 tbsp of Rice flour.

Along with this add-in ¼ tsp of Red Chilli powder, ⅛ tsp of Turmeric powder.

Next, add a generous pinch of Turmeric powder and needed salt.

Add ½ cup water Mix well and then add in another ¼ cup water and whisk well until it’s well combined with the batter.

You can omit turmeric powder if needed and add food color but it’s better to avoid food color.

Allow it to sit for 15 mins and then add in ⅛ tsp of cooking Soda and 1 tbsp of Water and Whisk once again.

Now the batter is ready. It will be slightly thick but a free flowing batter.

FRYING KARA BOONDI

Heat a pan with oil. Keep three ladles ready. One for Preparing the Boondi, one for handling the batter. Another one for draining the boondi once it’s deep-fried.

Once the oil is hot keep the ladle on which we will pour the batter approximately 3 to 4 inches high above the kadai . Not more or less than that.

Spoon the batter and pour over the boondi ladle. Keep circularly moving the laddle while you pour the batter. So that the boondis fall separate and don’t get clustered.

Once the batter is poured, Remove the ladle. Wash it and wipe it clean to use for the next batch.

Cook till the sshhh sound is reduced and boondis are crisp. Remove boondis from oil and drain the oil completely using paper towels. Repeat the same process till the batter is finish the remaining batter.

To Prepare Madras Mixture:

In the same oil fry the peanuts till golden, and drain in a kitchen towel.

Next, fry the cashew nuts till golden and drain in a kitchen towel. Fry the curry leaves till crisp.

Also fry the Roasted Gram Dal and Poha till golden and crisp respectively.

The Poha gets fried in just few secs . So I switched off the stove and fried the Poha. The residual heat was enough for frying Poha.

In a mixing bowl add the boondi, to this add fried peanuts, cashew nuts, Poha and Roasted Gram Dal.

Also, add the Omapodi or Plain Sev , Curry Leaves

Finally add in the required Chilli powder and Salt as per your taste. Mix well and toss it so that everything it combines evenly.

Yummy Madras Style Mixture is now ready to serve

📖 Recipe