Tricks from grandma

I will never forget the first time I tried cooking. I decided to help my grandmother make dosa during a family reunion. Let’s just say that it turned out to be a thick and shapeless dosa and my relatives still tease me about it.

My grandmother taught me that trick after that so that I never make the mistake again — cut an onion in half and rub it on the tawa to clean the residue and preventing the dosa from sticking.

She’s the reason I came joined the culinary world. I fell in love with South Indian food, not just because it’s what I grew up eating, but the cuisine is so diverse in itself. While there is a common thread running through the dishes from the four states, they differ in terms of preparation and spice content.

I started my journey with a course in Indian cuisine for a year from Thrichinapally in Tamil Nadu. I then worked in a chain of South Indian group of a restaurant specialising in Chettinad, Andhra and coastal cuisine. That’s when I realised my love for Indian cuisine.

After working with another organisation post that, I now work with the Leela Palace Bangalore.

The culinary world has definitely changed over the years. We started off with traditional basic recipes, but now it’s become modern and the focus has shifted to the presentation. Having said that, it’s not a bad change, as long as taste and flavours are given priority.

I still love ‘Ragi Sangati’, ‘Mudda Pappu’ and ‘Pacchadi’. Even on my day off, I love cooking for my family. I spend most of my time researching about regional cuisine and standardising the recipes the guest want.

The ‘Bharwan Aloo Tikki’ is one such dish. It’s seasoned mashed potatoes filled with curried green peas and ginger served with tangy and sweet tamarind chutney, sweet yoghurt and mint chutney.

It’s a simple dish to make. Just make sure that you choose the right potatoes, boil and cool it in the fridge before you peel and mash it. This will make the tikki crispy.

Ingredients

Potato boiled, 500 gm

Green peas, 200 gm

Pure ghee, 100 gm

Salt, 12 gm

Green chilli chopped, 10 gm

Roasted gram flour, 50 gm

Corn flour, 25 gm

Paneer, 150 gm

Coriander chopped, 50 gm

Ginger chopped, 25 gm

Cumin seed, 5 gm

White pepper powder, 5 gm

Garam masala powder, 5 gm

Yoghurt, 75 gm

Tamarind chutney, 75 gm

Mint chutney, 75 gm

Method

Wash potatoes thoroughly to remove the surface dirt.

Place in a pan of cold water overheat and boil till soft.

Remove the boiled potatoes and allow cooling.

Peel the skin and grate the potatoes carefully to ensure that it is evenly sized.

In a mixing bowl, add grated boiled potatoes, grated cottage cheese, corn flour, roasted gram flour, chopped green chilli coriander and seasoning and mix in well to form an evenly seasoned mixture, mix in melted ghee.

To prepare the stuffing heat ghee in a pan, crackle cumin add ginger, chilli and allow for the flavours to be extracted.

Add green peas and season with salt and Garam masala powder. Add chopped coriander and set aside.

Divide the potato mixture into small balls and stuff with the prepared green pea mixture and form into flat cakes.

Pan fry the potato patties with ghee till evenly coloured and sides are crisp.

Served with yoghurt, mint chutney, tamarind chutney and chat masala.

Purushotham Naidu
Sous Chef- Corporate (South Indian)