Chaat Masala Lemon Salad Dressing

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This chaat masala lemon dressing combines bright lemon, fresh coriander, green chili, and warm Indian spices for a quick chaat-style finish.

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 1

Total Time 6

Servings salads

Pour the lemon juice into a small mixing bowl.
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Add the finely chopped green chili, black salt, coriander powder, black pepper powder, roasted cumin powder, and optional red chili powder.
1 teaspoon green chili, ¼ teaspoon black salt, ¼ teaspoon coriander powder, ⅛ teaspoon black pepper powder, ¼ teaspoon roasted cumin powder, ¼ teaspoon red chili powder
Stir the mixture thoroughly until the powdered spices blend into the lemon juice.
Add the optional oil and mix until the dressing looks lightly glossy.
½ teaspoon oil
Stir in the finely chopped coriander leaves.
2 tablespoons coriander leaves
Taste the dressing. Add salt only when needed.
Salt
Divide the dressing between two salads and toss until the ingredients are evenly coated.

Mix the powdered spices with the lemon juice before adding the coriander. This order prevents dry spice pockets.
Taste the dressing before adding regular salt. Black salt already provides noticeable saltiness.
Green chilies vary in heat. Taste a tiny piece before adding them to the bowl.
Chop the green chili very finely. This step distributes the heat more evenly.
I skip the green chili when I make this dressing for kids. The remaining spices still give the dressing plenty of flavor.
The optional oil gives the dressing a smoother finish, but the lemon-based version also works well without it.
Stir the dressing again immediately before using it because the spices can settle at the bottom.
Toss the salad shortly before serving to help chopped vegetables keep their fresh texture.
This recipe does not use a store-bought chaat masala blend. I combine black salt, roasted cumin, coriander, black pepper, and red chili powder to create a fresh chaat-style flavor.
If you have chaat masala, you can use about ½ teaspoon instead of the coriander powder, roasted cumin powder, black pepper, and red chili powder. Taste the dressing before adding extra salt because most blends already contain salt.