Aloo Bonda- Mashed Potatoes In Chickpea Flour Batter- After School Snacks

If you are raising an eyebrow at me after you read the After School part in the post title, i ll only tell you, Oh! come one, cut the kid some slack. If you can have a day for pizza, a day for McDonalds and one more for pasta, then you can have one day for tucking into these potato bondas too. This is probably the oldest snack idea that s existed since time immemorial.I ve literally known 4 generations of women making it every time some one comes to see a girl and decide if she s prospective marriage material. They call the whole fiasco,”Ponn Parthal” in tamil. And i disapprove of the practice heartily. Atleast in this age and time. But then, it happened to me too and when it happened to me, there were butterflies in my stomach. Imagine that with the lawyer tag. Duh! Anyway, my point is, whatever the tradition, whatever the age, a woman is a woman and a man can make her stomach churn especially when it comes to choosing your soul mate between a conversation that typically lasts for only like, what? 5 mins.To put it succinctly, its only the practice i disapprove off and not the snacks that come along with it. See, what i mean? I hope i ve put across my point. Haa… enough of meandering.

     
Coming back to the bonda, i dont care if it s made when a guy comes or if its the guys’ family. What i care about is that i get to gorge on these bondas everytime they get made. And i look forward to it like an eager beaver because A. Its yummy and B. Its yummy. 😀 And when i make them, which is seldom, i like them even more because they are super photogenic. And that s the reason why this post is overloaded with pictures. Now,before i bore you all to that point when you start yawning on my face, let me tell you all how i made it. Oh by the way, i couldnt resist myself from sharing this totally irrelevant and random piece of information. When ever i visit my In laws, this bonda is a must do. One more reason to enjoy  the trip back home. Just saying!

Recipe For Aloo Bondas
( Mashed potato mixture coated in chickpea and rice flour mixture and deep fried.)

Prep Time: Under 15 mins
Cook Time: 30 mins
Yields 12 to 15 depending on the size

What You Need?

For The Filling:

Potatoes 4 large
Onion 1 large chopped finely
Green chilies 8 chopped finely
Oil 1 tbsp
Grated ginger 1 tbsp
Turmeric powder a large pinch
Salt to taste
Cilantro leaves chopped finely 3 tbsp

For The Batter:

Chickpea flour/Besan 1 cup
Rice flour 1.5 tbsp
Cooking soda a small pinch
Red chili powder 1 to 2 tsp
Salt to taste
Water to mix

For The Bondas:

Oil for deep frying

How To Make It?

Lets make the filling first. Pressure cook the potatoes until soft. Peel and set aside.
In a pan, heat 1 tbsp oil and add the green chilies, onion and turmeric powder and saute till the onions turn a light brown.
Once done, transfer to a large mixing bowl.Now, add the cooked potatoes to this bowl.
Add salt and coriander leaves to the mixture.
Now, knead the mixture to a fine dough like consistency.You must be able to make balls out of the mixture. Once done,divide the dough into 12 equal portions and set aside.

That s the filling all ready and rolled!
Now, heat the oil for deep frying.
In the meanwhile, prep the batter.
In another deep mixing bowl, add all the dry ingredients for the batter except the water and combine well.
Now, make the batter by adding water gradually. The batter must be like that of dosa batter.
Once done, check if the oil is hot by dropping a small drop of the batter into the oil. If it floats up immediately, then the oil is ready.
Once ready, dip the potato balls into the batter and drop them in the oil gently.
Deep fry them until golden brown on low medium flame.
Once done, drain on a kitchen towel.

Serve hot with tomato ketchup or any chutney of your choice.