‘Matar ki Kachori’ A.K.A. ‘Deep fried Indian bread with Pea stuffing’

My darling Appa is a Tamilian who has lived in Delhi for more than half his life. Being in the airline industry he has traveled extensively across the globe which helped him expand his taste to cuisines other than Tamilian. This recipe has been made by my Nani (Bengali, but born and raised in UP) has made religiously every year during winters for my Appa as he loves it so much. I remember my brother and my task would be to shell the peas and the of course taste the masala/kachoris to ensure the balance of masalas to peas was perfect ;-). Over the years this dish has been perfected by Amma, my mami and moi as we all love it and it is a simple dish to make yet fancy enough to serve to company too. The recipe for ‘Matar ki Kachori’ A.K.A. ‘Deep fried Indian bread with Pea stuffing’ is the one passed on from my Nani to Amma to moi and I share it with you all in the hope this becomes one of your family’s favorite dishes.

Matar ki Kachori

Ingredients

2 cups – Whole wheat flour (Atta)

¾ tsp – Salt

4 Tbsp – Oil

Water to make dough

1 Tbsp – Oil

½ tsp – Cumin seeds

¼ tsp – Asafoetida

¾ tsp – Ginger paste

2 cups boiled and mashed – Green peas

¾ tsp – Green chilli paste

1 ¼ tsp – Fennel seed / saunf powder (dry roast fennel seeds and ground to a fine powder)

½ tsp – Coriander powder (dry roast coriander seeds and ground to a fine powder)

¾ tsp – Amchoor powder (Dried mango powder)

Salt to taste

Oil to fry kachoris

Method

1. Place the flour either in a wide mouthed bowl or on the kitchen countertop
2. Mix in the salt and oil and mix into the flour rubbing with hands to make it look kind of crumbly
3. Add water to make dough. Make sure the dough has to be firm not soft.
4. Once done, cover with damp cloth and keep aside to rest
5. Heat oil in a pan and add the cumin seeds
6. Once they splutter add the asafetida
7. Add the ginger paste and cook till light brown and then add the green peas paste
8. Add the green chilli paste and mix well
9. Add the fennel powder, cumin seed powder, dried mango powder, salt and mix well
10. Cook on low flame while stirring for 5-7 mins
11. Let the mixture cool completely
12. Uncover the dough and make roundels the size of a golf ball
13. Roll them out to a small roti/chapatti size then take a heaped Tbsp of the green peas mixture and add to the center of the rolled out dough
14. Bring together the edges of the roti/chapatti and form a pouch.
15. Twist the tip and take off the extra dough
16. Press down with heel of your hand onto the pouch of dough and filling and flatten lightly
17. Roll the kachoris a little (making sure to leave it nice and thick around the edges and smoother and flatter in the center area)
18. Heat oil in a wide mouthed deep frying pan
19. Gently slide in the kachoris and fry on medium high flame to ensure both sides are golden in color
20. Remove from pan and place on paper towel to absorb and get rid of excess oil
21. Serve with Aloo Tamatar / Khatta Meetha Kadhu / Raita

TIPS

1. In order to reduce time and use resources wisely, you can roll out the kachoris and keep them on a plate. Make sure to cover them with a damp cloth so that they don’t become tough
2. You can choose to add garam masala and red chilli powder to the filling , however I avoid it so as to be true to the green peas taste
3. Make sure the oil is hot before sliding the kachoris into the pan and don’t crowd the pan as the kachoris need space to float and cook properly

 

 

Desi Style French Toast

I remember Amma making this dish for my brother and me on weekends for breakfast. We both liked the American version of French toast; however this one was our fav especially when the rain GOD decided to bless us with showers. This is a simple and tasty dish and brings back memories of growing up n fighting over the last piece with my brother ;-). Hope you all enjoy the Desi French Toast as much as my brother and I.

Desi Style French toast

Ingredients

3 slices – Whole wheat bread

2 nos – Eggs

2 nos finely sliced – Green chillies

4 tbsp – Milk

2 tbsp – Oil

2 sprigs finely chopped – Cilantro leaves

Salt and Pepper to taste

Method

1. Break eggs in shallow dish , add salt, pepper, milk, green chillies and cilantro and mix well
2. Heat flat shallow pan and add 1 tsp of oil
3. Soak the whole wheat bread in the egg mixture
4. Once oil is hot place the soaked whole wheat bread on the pan
5. Cook on low flame till the bread is cooked (light brown) and then flip and cook the other side
6. Once both sides are cooked remove from flame and serve hot with tomato ketchup

 

TIPS:

1. You can add grated cheese to the egg mixture to make it creamier
2. You can make a stuffed desi French toast by placing one slice on the pan and then adding cooked potato mixture / paneer Bhurjee and then placing another toast on top