Bird's Nest - A Spring Treat

I wanted to send an entry to the click event at jugalbandi. I was thinking about various options till I chanced upon this recipe by Mrs. Chellam in a tamil magazine. I followed the recipe exactly and it came out pretty well, aptly bringing out the spring theme. I have given the same recipe below.

Ingredients:

Potatoes - 1 kg
Onion - 1 finely chopped
Ginger a small piece finely chopped
Green chilles - 2 finely chopped
Dhaniya powder -2tsp
Salt to taste
chilli powder - 2 tsp
coriander finely chopped half bunch
amchur powder - 1 tsp(optional)
oil to fry
cumin - 1 tsp

For Binding:
maida half a cup
water - 1 cup
Make into a batter

For coating:
Fried semia - 1oog

For stuffing:
boiled Green peas

Method:
1.Boil and mash the potatoes. Mix the dry powders and chopped coriander.
2.Heat oil, season with jeera, fry onion,ginger and green chillies. Mix the potato mixture. Cook and make into small balls.
3. Stuff the peas inside the balls and make into patties.
4. Dip in the maida batter, roll over semia and deep fry.
5. Garnish and serve.
http://jugalbandi.info/2009/03/click-april-2009-springautumn/

Dum aloo gravy

comes as a follow-up of the aloo fry I made few days ago. Dum aloo has potatoes simmered in tomato gravy along with Indian spices. I have made this the Punjabi way. I guess for the Kashmiri style, dry fruits are stuffed inside potato balls. Somehow, the idea does not appeal to me and I feel dry fruits are made for sweets and desserts. I like to have it the spicy way. Here's one more recipe that gets into the punjabi, aloo label. Go for it!

Ingredients:

Potatoes or baby potatoes - 1/2 kg

Onions - 2

Tomato - 2

Curd - 2 tablespoon

Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tsp

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Oil - 2 tablespoon

Salt to taste

Dry roast and grind to powder:

Dry Chillies - 3

Pepper - 2 tsp

Dhaniya - 2 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Cinnamon - 1

Cardomom - 1

Method:

1. Boil the potatoes, Cut into small cubes, deep fry in oil till golden brown and keep aside.

2. Add oil and fry the chopped onions or onion paste till light brown. Read this if you are using onion paste.

3. Add the tomatoes, ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder, salt and cook.

4. Add the fried potatoes and spice powder. Add curd and a little water and simmer the gravy.

5. Garnish with coriander.

And I forgot to tell you, this is the one that enlightened me about the use of onion paste - my previous post.

Veg Samosas

A samosa, a stuffed pastry is a common snack in most parts of Asia. The outer shell is made of maida flour and is filled with a potato savory. It's a wonderful party snack and has become quite popular across the globe. I find it under the starters category in every other restaurant here. Like all other potato recipes, it is dangerously delicious. You might take a try on baking the samosas instead of frying, if you wish to make it oil free and do let me know.
Now, for my recipe...

Ingredients:

For the filling:

Potatoes - 2 (boiled and mashed)

Onions - 1 finely

Chopped Peas -1 cup boiled

Green Chillies- 3 finely chopped

Dhania Powder - 2 tsp

Chilli Powder - 2 tsp

Amchur -1 tsp

Garam Masala - 1 tsp

Jeera for seasoning - 2tsp

Crushed ginger - 1 tsp

Chopped coriander - 1 cup

Oil for frying

Salt to taste

Method:
1. Heat the oil, season with jeera.
2. Fry ginger, green chillies and onion till tender.
3. Add the mashed potatoes and peas.
4. Add the dry powders and mix well.
5. Add the chopped coriander and cool the filling.

For the Pastry or Patties:
Maida -3 cups
Salt to taste

Water to mix

Mix together and make a soft dough. Keep aside for atleast an hour.

Method:

1. Roll out the dough into thin triangles and cook both the sides over dry tava for 10 to 20 seconds.
2. Place the filling in the center, fold and seal the edges with maida batter.

3. Deep fry in oil.

Sending this to Sunday Snacks - Chaats hosted by Pallavi.

Aloo fry

which is something different from the normal pan fried potatoes. The masala used is similar to that used for dum aloo. This is in a dry form and maybe you can vary this to make a dum aloo gravy. I will try that soon and post it. This goes well with roti, rice and typical south indian gravies also - a welcoming change.Ingredients:
Baby Potatoes 1/2 kg
pepper 1 tsp
dhania seeds 1tsp
Garlic 4
Ginger 1 big piece
Red chilli powder 2 tsp
Haldi 1/2 tsp
Jeera 2 tsp
Spice powder - Cardomom,cinnamon,cloves 2 each fried over a dry tawa and powdered
Oil for frying
Salt to taste
Coriander to garnish

Method:
1) Pressure cook the potatoes
2) Peal and prick the potatoes with a fork
3) Grind pepper,Dhania seeds,garlic and ginger to a fine paste
4) Smear the potatoes with salt,turmeric,chilli powder,the ground paste and keep aside
5) Heat oil and season with jeera
6) Fry the potatoes till golden brown
7) Add the spice powder and garnish with chopped coriander

Great side dish for more kozhambu and my mouth is watering as I write this :P