During the fasting/vrat season in India, sweet potato, also called shakarkandi in Hindi, is a versatile root vegetable widely used. Naturally organic, vegan, and gluten-free, it yields delightful dishes that are not only filling but also provide the necessary energy during periods of abstaining from food. One such delicious dish is the straightforward Sweet Potato Chaat, requiring just 5 ingredients. With this easy recipe, you can quickly prepare a fuss-free Shakarkandi Chaat, ideal for Navratri or any other religious fasts.
About Sweet Potato Chaat
Although I usually make the Shakarkandi Chaat for my Navratri fasting days, but it tastes just as fab any other time as well. In this recipe, everything is balanced – sweetness of the shakarkandi, faint pungency of black pepper powder, and tanginess of lemon juice and dried mango powder or amchur. That’s the flavor pairing, you would absolutely love. This is a super quick, low-fat, nutritious snack to enjoy any time of the day.
Sweet potato is a superfood. This makes it obviously a better and more nutrient dense choice, when compared to the regular potatoes. Since shakarkandi is also naturally sweet and starchy, it qualifies as a great veggie to make amazingly delicious sweet dishes as well, in addition to the savory ones like this Sweet Potato Chaat.
Check out these 2 sweet recipes that I have made with shakarkandi – Sweet Potato Halwa and Sweet Potato Gulab Jamun. While the halwa is also a great choice for your vrats or fasts, the gulab jamun serves as an equally decadent mithai (sweet) in your Diwali celebrations. In fact, I would say, better than your usual jamuns.
This Shakarkandi Chaat also packs many essential nutrients in it and is an excellent health dish. Because these tubers are rich sources of fiber, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, this chaat automatically becomes a wholesome and hearty meal in itself.
More on this Sweet Potato Chaat
When I used to live in Gurgaon (now Gurugram), we used to have this Sweet Potato Chaat on many occasions during winters. It is a common street food sold on thelas (carts) in the chilly season in North India. The smoky flavor resulting from the roasting of the sweet potatoes is still fresh in mind. That charm was something else, very hard to express in words.
For the Shakarkandi Chaat, the street vendors used to roast the sweet potatoes on coal, which would impart the lovely smokiness in the dish. This effect is something that can’t be mirrored if you roast this tuber in an oven or even steam it in a pan or pressure cooker. Nevertheless, this chaat is still scrumptious.
For the spice powders in this Sweet Potato Chaat, I have used the ones that are commonly consumed during the religious fasting of Navratri days. But when not keeping a vrat, add whichever spice powder you like. This chaat recipe with shakarkandi is easily scalable. So, you can prepare it in larger batches as well.
Step-by-Step Guide
How to make Sweet Potato Chaat
Cooking sweet potatoes
1. Firstly, rinse 260 to 270 sweet potatoes very well in water. Then, steam or boil them in a pressure cooker or a pan. If cooking in a pressure cooker, pressure cook for about 3 to 4 whistles, in water just about covering the sweet potatoes. I steamed sweet potatoes in a rice cooker. In the picture, you see 4 sweet potatoes. But I only used 2 of them for the chaat. You can even peel sweet potatoes first and then steam them.
Making Sweet Potato Chaat
2. After the sweet potatoes are cooked well, peel lightly and chop them. Take them in a bowl.
3. Add ¼ teaspoon black pepper powder, ½ teaspoon dried mango powder (amchur powder) and rock salt (sendha namak).
If making for regular days, you can also add red chili powder and chaat masala powder. Some roasted cumin powder can also be added. You can add the spice powders less or more as per your taste preferences.
4. Then, add ½ to 1 teaspoon lemon juice.
5. Mix gently. Check the taste and add any of the spice powders or lemon juice, if required.
6. Serve Shakarkandi Chaat immeditaely.
Expert Tips
- If you are not making this chaat for religious fasting, add red chili powder and chaat masala powder. Also, black salt can be added instead or rock salt.
- You can even jazz up the chaat by adding chutneys, curd and other chaat titbits, when not preparing for fasting.
- You can also add ¼ to ½ teaspoon roasted cumin powder in this recipe.
- The quantity of spice powders and even lemon juice can be more or less as per your personal likings.
More Navratri Recipes To Try!
Navratri & Fasting Recipes
Sabudana Vada Recipe (Traditional Fasting Recipe)
Navratri & Fasting Recipes
kuttu ki puri | vrat ki poori
Navratri & Fasting Recipes
Samvat Rice Khichdi | Sama Chawal Khichdi | Vrat ki Khichdi
Navratri & Fasting Recipes
Farali Pattice
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Sweet Potato Chaat | Shakarkandi Chaat
Sweet potato chaat is one of the easiest to prepare chaat recipe with sweet potatoes or shakarkandi and a few spice powders.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Prevent your screen from going dark while making the recipe
boiling sweet potatoes (shakarkandi)
Firstly rinse 260 to 270 sweet potatoes very well in water.
Then steam them in a pressure cooker or a pan. If cooking in a pressure cooker, then pressure cook for about 3 to 4 whistles with water just about covering the sweet potatoes.
making shakarkandi ki chaat:
After the sweet potatoes are cooked well and when they become warm, then peel them lightly and chop them. Take them in a bowl.
Add 1/4 teaspoon black pepper powder, 1/2 teaspoon amchur powder (dry mango powder) and rock salt (sendha namak). If making for regular days, then you can also add red chilli powder and chaat masala powder. Some roasted cumin powder can also be added. You can add the spice powders less or more as per your taste preferences.
Then 1/2 to 1 teaspoon lemon juice.
Mix gently. Check the taste and add any of the spice powders or lemon juice if required.
Serve shakarkandi ki chaat.
- You can also add 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon roasted cumin powder in the recipe.
- The recipe can be easily doubled or tripled.
- If not making for navratri fasting, then you can use red chilli powder, chaat masala.
- Black salt can also be added instead of rock salt.
- Spice powders can be added more or less as per your taste preferences.
This Sweet Potato Chaat Recipe from the archives was first published in April 2016. It has been updated and republished in March 2024.
