FOOD & DRINK
TRY THESE DELICIOUS INDIAN BREAD ROLLS! By Khrishma Preston, The Alternative Indian This year COVID has been a sheer rollercoaster of a ride. I don’t know what challenges 2022 will bring but I also write this in contemplation of all I have managed to accomplish in the year gone: from starting pop-ups in West Coker, Bridport and Sherborne, to taking on private chef experiences. January is a hard time of year for everyone so I’m giving you a cheap, nutritious and
Indian bread rolls
filling recipe. Once again this can be adapted to your personal taste and dietary requirements. These Indian bread rolls are crispy with a spiced, savoury, tangy mashed potato filling. Makes for a delicious snack or part of a main meal and is a winner for kids. The recipe below is vegetarian but can easily be made vegan or gluten free with your choice of bread. If you are a meat lover, add some left-over finely chopped meat.
The rolls can be batch made, and stored unfried for about two weeks in the freezer. Freeze them (keeping them apart) on a baking tray or in a freezer-safe dish, before packing them together in an airtight container. Once ready to use, thaw them overnight in the fridge and fry immediately. Alternately you can refrigerate them overnight or up to 12 hours before frying. If you leave them in the fridge for too long, they get soggy.
Makes 10-12 Cooking Time 35 mins
INGREDIENTS
• 3-4 boiled potatoes or approx 420g mashed potato • ½ tsp mustard seeds • ½ tsp cumin seeds • 5 large garlic cloves, finely chopped • 1 green chili, finely chopped, (optional)
• 1 tsp dry mango powder or add to taste – dry pomegranate seed powder can be used instead (if you don’t have these, you can use the juice of an extra half a lemon) • 1 cup carrots and broccoli, finely chopped (this can be adapted so you can use any veg or already cooked meat)
• 1½ tsp salt
• Salt and pepper, adjust to personal taste once mixture is combined
• ½ lemon, juiced
• ½ cup coriander, chopped, (optional)
• ½ tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 10-12 slices of bread – of your choice or dietary requirements
• ½ tsp garam masala (optional)
• Rapeseed oil, for frying
• ½ tsp cumin powder
METHOD Start with cooled boiled potatoes. I always cook mine in a pressure cooker, but they can be cooked in any fashion. Peel and mash by hand rather than using a potato masher, to keep some lumpiness and to avoid making the mash too starchy. If you start with mashed potato, make sure it’s not too wet, otherwise the roll will not form properly or crispen up. In a small pan, heat 2 teaspoons of oil and add mustard seeds. Once they start popping, add cumin seeds, garlic, chili, salt, and lemon juice. Fry off on low heat until the lemon juice has evaporated and garlic is cooked through. Take it off the heat and allow it to cool completely before adding to the mash. Incorporate the rest of the ingredients. Remember to adjust the lemon juice, if you don’t have either dry mango or dry pomegranate seed powder. If the mixture is too soggy, for example, if you’re using left-over mash or powdered mash, add the crusts (crumbed) from the next step to your potato mix. Taste and adjust your salt and pepper levels. With a small fist-size ball of spiced mash, form little fat sausages, just under the width of your bread slices.
Next prepare your bread slices by removing the crusts. In a flat-bottomed bowl or plate, add some water. With the first slice, dip it flat in the water briefly to dampen it then remove it. Placing the bread between the palms of your hands, flatten the bread whilst squeezing out any excess water. Be gentle, the idea is to keep the bread intact whilst making it flexible to roll. Once damp and flattened, place on a board or tray. Repeat. In a heavy-bottomed pan, heat your oil: I shallow fried these, but deep frying or air frying also works. They can also be cooked in the oven at 200C fan but brush them with a little oil or butter and bake for 10-12 minutes. To make the rolls, place your mash-mix filling on one side of a moist bread slice. Gently roll the bread and join the edges. Press the edges together to seal, as well as the top and bottom seams. The filling should be completely encased in the bread. Seal any splits by just pulling ripped edges together gently or using another small bit
of soaked bread as a plaster. Just make sure the joins are all smoothed out. Repeat for each roll. By the time you have made the first 2-4 rolls, your oil should be heated up. Add 2-4 rolls at a time to the oil depending on the size of the pan. Do not over crowd. If the oil is not hot enough, the moist bread will absorb a lot of oil. If the oil is very hot, the bread will brown quickly and unevenly, leaving the inside not cooked through. Fry until crispy and golden before turning over in the oil. Fry until uniform in colour, then using a slotted spoon remove from the oil and place on kitchen paper to remove any further excess oil. Serve the bread rolls hot or warm with your condiment of choice. 29
