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August 18, 2008

Potato Bonda



One of the things I like best about spending time at my parents’ place is the little goodies I get from time to time. When I was a hosteller, Amma would keep all her special stuff for the weekends. And in all the years that I’ve been away, she has meticulously planned mealtimes for the time that I would visit. A couple of years ago, I told her to stop making so much food. I am a poor eater and so to manage
Undyo for breakfast, Paruppu Urundai, Milagu Kuzhambu and Milagu Rasam for lunch and Pizza for dinner with some lemon cheese cake thrown in for dessert can get tough. I felt I couldn’t do justice to anything at all. I then allowed her one special dish per visit. And everything else had to be regular food that they ate. Even if it meant leftovers. Nowadays, she sometimes doesn’t cook at all when I visit. I offer to cook or we eat something simple. Like Methi Thepla or Aloo Paratha or Aloo Tikki. Appa’s favourite is the potato bonda. Most days, he doesn’t have any dinner. A bowl of yogurt or a glass of apple milkshake are all that he has. Unless potato bonda is on the dinner menu.


This is the South Indian avatar of this dish. Similar to and yet different from its cousin, the batata vada.


For the Batter:

1/2 cup Gram Flour (Besan)
1/4 cup Rice Flour
1 tsp Cumin Seeds
1 tsp Chilli Powder
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
1/4 tsp Asafoetida
Salt to taste
1 tbsp Hot Oil


For the Filling:

3-4 Potatoes, boiled, peeled and cubed
1 tsp Green Chilli Paste
1 tsp Ginger Paste
2 tbsp Coriander Leaves, chopped
Salt to taste


For the tempering:

1 tsp Oil

1/4 tsp Mustard Seeds

1/4 tsp Asafoetida


Oil for frying


Heat the oil for the tempering in a frying ladle. Add the mustard. When the mustard splutters, add the asafoetida. Add the tempering to the potatoes, mixed with salt, chilli and ginger paste, and coriander leaves, and mash the entire mixture. Make small balls and keep aside.


Mix all the ingredients for the batter. Add enough water to make a thick batter.


Heat the oil in a kadhai. Dip the potato balls in the gram flour batter and drop carefully into the oil. Deep fry the bondas until they turn golden brown all around. Drain on absorbent paper and enjoy them with tomato sauce.


(Someone had asked me once what I meant by chilli paste. This is just ground chillies (or ginger or garlic) with a little bit of preservative (Sodium Benzoate or Potassium Metabi Sulphide). Made at right at home. Please feel free to substitute freshly chopped chillies (or ginger or garlic) wherever any of my recipes calls for paste.)


This plate of bondas is off to dear Anita as she celebrates the Anniversary of her blog with a virtual Mad Tea Party. Deep fried love... couldn't get any better than this.

25 comments:

Laavanya said...

So, I shall be sure to invite myself over when you visit your parents :)

Same pinch on the bondas.. My latest post is the same. Looks yummy.

Jayashree said...

This is the second bonda post that I've seen today. It's making me want to make some right away...

Anonymous said...

Ah, some bonda for the party! Many thanks!

Ranjani said...

I'd like to reach for one of those right about now..!
Looking good:)

Namratha said...

Aloo Bondas are always so tempting, can never say no to one! :)

Anonymous said...

Delicious! They look really great :-)

Aarti said...

Ur tagged :D

lubnakarim06 said...

Wow they look tempting. Nice thing is we can store them also. Wow Wow

Bharti said...

Bondas bondas everywhere! My Dad and FIL too can't pass these goodies by. Me neither for that matter!

lubnakarim06 said...

There is a suprise for you in my blog. Click here to know what the suprise is, http://kitchenflavours.blogspot.com/2008/07/fruit-chaat.html

Srikitchen said...

an award is waiting for u in my blog!

Srikitchen said...

an event for icecreams and milkshakes is going in my blog! participate in it!

Cynthia said...

I wish I could have some of these now for breakfast.

Paru ... said...

I love bondas..Looks delicious raaga...

Anonymous said...

Lovely bondas!!

Rhea Mitra Dalal said...

mmmmm...forbidden foods for diabetics and over weight mortals like me. But I will try these out on a 'treat' day as Hubby will love them too :)
Have added a link to your blog on my page...hope that's ok with you :)

Viji said...

No one can resist I could say that. Viji

Indian Khana said...

wow bonta looks delicious ...nice colour too...and so do the grilled sweet potato's...lovely recipe

Geetha said...

lovely blog... ur recipes and the posts to accompany are both very interesting!!!

Chitra said...

Hello hello, yenna aachu aale kanum? whr are u?

Aparna Balasubramanian said...

Some more potato balls for the Bonda Party. Wonderful.
Got here late only to realise you haven't posted for sometime. Hope everything's fine.

Paul Nixon said...

Hello singing chef. You look kind of familiar. I wish we'd kept you longer at our place when you were in Bangalore - you could have made a few dishes whilst you were there :)

Back in Gurgaon now?

Anonymous said...

hey,

please contact me at verma.smitha@gmail.com. this is for an article i am doing on food blogs for The telegraph.
smitha

Sig said...

hey girl, I am getting worried about you.. :) Can't believe you of all people have gone so lazy on the blogging front! Hope things are well with you!

jayasree said...

Hey, came here looking for ur savory cake. Relaized you haven't posted for a while. Hope eveyrthing fine with you.