mitzireddy

Wishing the Hindu community a Happy Diwali and here is a tongue in cheek greeting especially to my children, Luscious Lynn and Lovely Linda who will be celebrating a cold Diwali in London.

This Diwali,   May you be blessed with good fortune as long as Ganeshji’s trunk,

Wealth and prosperity as big as his stomach,

Happiness as sweet as his ladoos and

May your troubles be as small as his mouse

May the light and beauty of DEEPAVALI illuminate your homes and your hearts… As you celebrate this holy occasion.

I am doing a quick post of my easy tinned fish samoosa filling which is a sure fire winner ( I have just made  some now ) -  this quantity makes just over 2 ½ dozen samoosas with generous filling. I recommend you make these samoosas the day you need them or even a day earlier and keep in the fridge rather than the freezer – it just tastes so much better.

Tinned fish samoosa filling

 Ingredients

1 tin pilchards in tomato sauce (remove from can, removes the bones and reserve the sauce)

1 large onion, finely chopped (dry with a clean dish cloth)

6 – 8 green chillies, finely chopped

Handful fresh mint, wash and dry well with dish cloth – finely chopped

Handul of coriander , washed, dried and finely chopped

2 Tablespoon oil

Saute the onions, green chillies in about 2 Tablespoon oil in  a frying pan. Add fish only (not the sauce )and salt to taste. Cook for approximately 5 minutes Add all the greens. Mix well. Cook for a further 5 minutes. Break up the fish in small bits without mashing it. Simmer for about 5 minutes. If too dry add more oil and a little of the reserved tomato sauce.

Nb. Do not use the balance of the tomato sauce.

Please see my previous post for a step by step on how to make a smoosa. http://blogs.food24.com/mitzireddy/2011/10/18/samoosa-filling-chicken-mince

The traditional savoury snack, puri pattas, which requires time and effort to make, has evolved into so many interesting varieties in taste, shape and presentation and will amaze and bemuse the old grans who spent hours making and preparing this snack in the “old days”. This recipe using ready- made puff pastry and ready -made pattas which are usually stocked in most Indian spice shops can be prepared in a less than an hour and is a boon for today busy mothers.

Pattas are  layered madumbi leaves which is spread with a spicy batter and rolled into a swiss roll and is then cooked by steaming, then sliced and lightly fried or baked and traditionally served with puri (it’s a soft deep fried bread).

It’s now been given a modern twist and is prepared in many ways some of which is with the pattas being enclosed and baked in pastry, fried in spring rolls or samoosa pastry.

 PATTA PASTRY

8 Slices of patta

1 x puff pastry

Juice of 1 lemo

n 2 Tablespoon cooking oil

3 Tablespoon chilli sauce

Open out the pastry and place on a flat board.

Evenly spread the chilli sauce on the rectangular shaped pastry.

Loosen the patha slices into ribbon like pieces and place it on the pastry from end to the next, making sure to leave a ½ inch gap only at the bottom.

Cut the lemon into half and squeeze the lemon juice over the patha.

Start rolling the pastry tightly from the top like a swiss roll. Seal the bottom edges tightly.

Smear the oil on an oven tray. Evenly cut the patta into 1cm to 2 cm slices and flatten it slightly. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 C for 30 minutes.

Serve with chutneys.

A happy and blessed Diwali to the Hindu community – Diwali is celebrated by Hindus throughout the world and is often referred to as the Festival of lights because of the common practice of lighting small oil lamps (called diyas). Diwali which also signifies the renewal of life is celebrated over a period of a week in India – but here we celebrate for two days starting today.

Rajen and I celebrated Diwali with our children in Trafalgar Square, London last year – was a wonderful experience.

The recipe that I am going to share today is the crisp savoury puri which is lantern shaped and flavoured with aromatic spices – it’s light and delicious and is one of my favourite snacks. I made these yesterday and between me and Rajen – the jar is now only half full – it’s very moreish.

This recipe is by a local Indian cookbook author, Shiela Somers and was published in the local Durban newspaper, The Post, amany years ago. Although there are many variations to this recipe this still remains my favourite – it’s easy to make, never fails and is delicious.

CRISP SAVOURY PURIS

500ml cake flour

1 tsp salt

5 ml cumin seeds, roasted

1ml turmeric powder

2.5ml crushed black peppercorns

5ml roasted ajmo seeds (thymol seeds)

2.5ml chilli powder

125ml butter

1 cup milk

Oil for frying

Combine dry ingredients into a bowl.

Rub in the butter.

Add the milk a little at a time and mix to soft dough – adding more milk if necessary.

Break into walnut pieces and roll out into puris.

Make 3-4 slits in each of the purisand pinch the ends to form a lantern shape.

Deep fry the puri in hot oil over medium heat until golden brown and crisp.

Drain in absorbent paper.

 Store in an airtight container.

Before the days of food processors my mum would grind the split peas on an oblong grinding stone – this was seriously hard work and would take a few hours – and she would make huge quantities (especially for our large family gatherings ). Whenever I make vada (using my food processor) I always remember my Dad’s words while watching my Mum grind the split peas – he said that we will never be able to work as hard as her. She was one of a kind – full of energy and inner strength. I am very grateful for modern technology and love kitchen appliances that make life so much easier.

Vada is not as well-known as chilli bites – it is a South Indian fried savoury snack – it’s very delicious – it’s hard to stop the family from eating it as soon as it is fried. It might look a bit daunting to make–it is fairly simple – like everything once you have done it once it gets easier.

VADA

1 1/2 cup yellow split peas (available in all supermarkets)

1 onion, finely chopped

½ bunch fresh coriander, finely chopped

6 green chillies, finely chopped

½ bunch spring onions, finely chopped (optional)

Small piece of fresh ginger (about 1 Tblsp), grated

4 cloves garlic, grated

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon baking powder,

1 ½ teaspoon salt

Oil for frying

Soak the yellow split peas in a bowl filled with cold water until soft – preferably overnight.

Drain the water from the yellow split peas.

Grind the yellow split peas in a food processor to a coarse paste – if the mixture is too dry – add 1 – 2 tablespoons of cold water (not more than that – the mixture must be pliable and not runny).

Remove the ground split peas from the processor and place into a mixing bowl.

Add the onions, salt, ginger, garlic, green chillies, cumin and baking powder to the ground split peas and mix well.

Add the fresh coriander and spring onions to the mixture and mix well.

Divide the mixture into equal portions (approx. 18)

Roll each portion into a ball and flatten it on the palm of your hand into a round disc.

Make a dent in the centre of the disc (to ensure even cooking).

Fry in moderate oil till golden in colour.

Remove from the oil and drain well on absorbent paper.

Serve hot with tomato chutney.

Yummy stuff !!!

Bhajias, more commonly known as Chilli bites is a savoury Indian treat that can be served as a snack at any time and is popular in South Africa. It’s also a very quick mix to put together and is then deep fried and is a tasty snack served hot thats especially welcome in cold chilly weather. It’s a firm family favorite and from the countless recipes that I have tried over the years this is currently my favorite – this is also my contribution to meatless Monday.

BHAJIAS (CHILLI BITES)

Ingredients

½ cup Chickpea flour

1 1/2 cup Self raising flour

1 Medium-sized potato, coarsely grated

1 Medium-sized onion, grated

10 ml Coarsely ground coriander seeds

5 ml Coarsely ground cumin seeds

3 Green chillies (finely pounded)

1 ½ tsp Fine salt

½ tsp chilli powder

A handful fresh coriander leaves (finely chopped)

A handful of finely chopped spinach leaves

25 ml Diced spring onions (optional)

½ can (410gr) cream style sweetcorn

Cold water

Oil for frying (you can use Olive oil too)

Method

Sift all the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Then add the remaining ingredients to the mixing bowl as well.
Mix in enough water to make a batter similar to the consistency of thick pancake batter (sticky but not dry or runny).

Drop spoonfuls of the batter into hot, deep oil.

Turn over when the fritters are golden brown. Once the other side is golden brown, remove the chilli bites and drain on absorbent paper toweling. 

The chilli bites can be served with any variety of yoghurt dips and chutneys.