MyTastr

Best chaat masala, according to chefs

Four picks, each tied to a named taster and a public source — from Rachel Gurjar, Himanshu Saini, Manish Mehrotra and Priya Krishna. Recommendations come from livemint.com, bonappetit.com and eater.com.

International Pantry · The ranking

  1. 1
    Top pick

    MDH Chunky Chat Masala

    Chosen by
    Also chosen by
    “For me, the chaat masala by MDH is the king of all masalas,” says Saini, corporate chef of Passion F&B (Michelin-starred Tresind Studio and Avatara), and Mint reports that Manish Mehrotra uses it too. Rachel Gurjar, in Bon Appétit’s test kitchen, calls MDH Chunky “the classic beloved Indian chaat masala brand” and “irreplaceable.” Note: in 2024 Hong Kong, Singapore and Nepal halted sales of some MDH and Everest blends over ethylene oxide residues; buy US-market jars from a store that turns stock.
    Where to buy · Amazon ↗Instacart ↗Source: livemint.com ↗
  2. 2

    Badshah Chat Masala

    Chosen by
    The jar in Priya Krishna’s pantry tour for Eater, where she calls chaat masala “the single most-used seasoning in my pantry.” Sold at Indian grocers and on Amazon.
    Where to buy · Amazon ↗Instacart ↗Source: eater.com ↗
  3. 3

    Diaspora Co. Chaat Masala

    Chosen by
    • Rachel GurjarRecipe developer; former Bon Appétit associate food editor
    The premium, single-origin option. After calling MDH the classic, Gurjar says in Bon Appétit’s test kitchen that “there’s a couple of specialty brands that I like… you can get it online very easily from like Diaspora Co.” Diaspora’s blend uses amchur, black salt, cumin, coriander, fennel, mint and wild sumac from its farm partners in South Asia. Ships nationally from diasporaco.com.
    Where to buy · diasporaco.com ↗Instacart ↗Source: bonappetit.com ↗
  4. 4

    Spicewalla Chaat Masala

    Chosen by
    • Rachel GurjarRecipe developer; former Bon Appétit associate food editor
    Gurjar’s other specialty pick in the same Bon Appétit video. Small-batch, from the Asheville spice company founded by chef Meherwan Irani: amchur, black salt, cumin, coriander, black pepper, ginger, mint, ajwain and hing. Ships nationally from spicewallabrand.com and is sold in many specialty grocers.
    Where to buy · spicewallabrand.com ↗Instacart ↗Source: bonappetit.com ↗

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Questions, answered

What is the best chaat masala, according to chefs?
MyTastr’s top pick is MDH Chunky Chat Masala, chosen by Himanshu Saini (chef, Tresind Studio · Dubai); Manish Mehrotra (chef, Indian Accent); Rachel Gurjar (Bon Appétit). “For me, the chaat masala by MDH is the king of all masalas,” says Saini, corporate chef of Passion F&B (Michelin-starred Tresind Studio and Avatara), and Mint reports that Manish Mehrotra uses it too. Rachel Gurjar, in Bon Appétit’s test kitchen, calls MDH Chunky “the classic beloved Indian chaat masala brand” and “irreplaceable.” Note: in 2024 Hong Kong, Singapore and Nepal halted sales of some MDH and Everest blends over ethylene oxide residues; buy US-market jars from a store that turns stock. Source: livemint.com ↗
What are the other top picks for chaat masala?
No. 2 is Badshah Chat Masala, chosen by Priya Krishna (author, Indian-ish). No. 3 is Diaspora Co. Chaat Masala, chosen by Rachel Gurjar (Bon Appétit). Each card above links to the original source.
How does MyTastr choose these picks?
Every pick is tied to a named chef, cookbook author or food expert and links to the public interview, panel or article it came from. We survey dozens, often hundreds, of top chefs, food writers and critics, and order reflects how often and how strongly a brand is recommended. Only organic recommendations count — paid endorsements don’t — and brands can’t buy a spot. Read how we pick.

The tasters behind this ranking

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