Taro Root Curry

This is what taro root looks like. There are leaves too with these plants, but my father just bought the root or corms as they are called. I had previously eaten a purple variety of the root in a Chinese restaurant at dim sum in the form of dumplings and taro cake. I really liked this preparation and was curious to try and cook the root for the first time according to an Indian recipe my father had learned while in Delhi. We had filled this curry into our samosas but I thought it tasted really good on its own, kind of a nutty, sweet flavor to it. We cooked a variety that is white on the inside of the skin.

This recipe calls for boiling of the roots. Then kind of in the same style that tostones are made, you flatten them out and shallow fry them with a few spices. My father said that for this dish, you should use the spice, ajwain as it complements the root well. Ajwain, also called carom seed, kind of looks like cumin or a carraway seed and is really good to use when making doughs for breads and also to flavor fried things like this taro! The flavor of the seed when fried is similar to thyme but more pungent.



Another spice that is good with taro is amchoor, which gives kind of a tangy, sour taste and is made from unripe dried mangoes. Amchoor is sometimes used as a substitute for lemon in cooking. This is what the powder looks like:



After you boil the taro and peel it, this is what the inside looks like. The root is very starchy so it is very sticky and slimy, but frying takes this quality away and makes them more firm. Since the inside is so soft, taro root is sometimes made into a porridge. It's also a nice substitute for potatoes because it's higher in fiber and protein and the type of starch that is in the root is extremely easy to digest.



You take one of these taro corms and flatten them with your palm. This is my Dad doing it:





I'll put the measurements below for the recipe but just wanted to show how the taro looks when cooking. Place oil in a pan under medium heat - mustard oil is best but you can also use canola or vegetable. Start placing the taro pieces in the pan. Sprinkle spices on each of them - ajwain, turmeric, amchoor powder, paprika, salt:



Flip them over to cook on both sides and coat with spices:



Fry them until browned and cooked through - 5 to 10 minutes.



Serve them with roti:



Taro Root Curry

Ingredients
8 taro root corns
2 tablespoons mustard oil, can substitute canola or vegetable

sprinkling of following spices on each taro root piece: ajwain, amchoor, turmeric, paprika, salt

Method

Boil taro roots in water for 20-30 minutes or until tender. Wash under cold water and peel the taro roots.

Heat oil under medium heat in a non stick pan. Take each peeled taro root and flatten it with your palm and place it in the oil on the stove. Sprinkle ajwain, amchoor, turmeric, paprika and salt on each one.

Flip the taro over until both sides are coated in oil and spices. Fry until browned on both sides and cooked through - 5 to 10 minutes.

Serve with roti.

Samosas - 3 Kinds

Over Thanksgiving, me and my Dad made samosas together for the first time. He had just learned from his Aunt in Delhi how to prepare them and wanted to teach me how. My family was in San Francisco for the holiday and my Aunt had decided to invite us all over for Thanksgiving so we prepared three varieties to bring to her house with a coriander chutney:

potato and peas

sweet potato and feta

taro root


The first two fillings came out really well and I'll share the recipes with you on this post. Although my little nephew liked it, the taro root came out a bit dry. The curry is delicious though by itself so I will share that recipe in the next post. Here are our samosas!


It was so fun to make these with my Dad. It does take time, but it can be a really communal activity where everyone can help to wrap the samosas.
I took photos of how to roll out, wrap and fry the samosas - kind of hard to explain in words. My Dad was the hand model:) Recipe for the dough is below for 24 samosas. After you let the dough rest for an hour or so, knead it again and divide and roll into 12 balls like these. Keep these dough balls covered with saran wrap so they do not dry out while you are rolling:

On a floured surface, roll out your first dough ball:

Should be rolled to about a 6 inch diameter:

Cut the circle in half:

Make a cone out of the half piece of dough with a seam that overlaps about 1/4 inch. Seal the seam together with water. Also press the edges together just to make sure that your seam comes together.

Fill your cone with a heaping tablespoon of filling:

Rub a little water in the inside of the top of the cone and close the top. Press well so that it is airtight.

Me and my Dad just folded up the corner of our samosas. Place your samosas on a tray and cover with saran wrap while you fill the rest:

Fry the samosas in a frying pan until golden brown. You can also bake but frying tastes better:)

Thanks for teaching me how to make samosas Dad! T'was fun:)

Samosa dough - makes 24 medium size

*I just used what my brother had in his pantry, you can make this with all all-purpose or with all whole wheat flour

Ingredients

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

4 tablespoons butter, softened

1/4 teaspoon salt

~3 tablespoons warm water

Method

Mix up the flour and the butter with your hands so that it gets all crumbly like bread crumbs. Next add in water, 1 tablespoon at a time. You may need more or less water, but knead until you get a dough that is soft and pliable. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and put in the fridge for an hour. Now you can make the filling:

Potato and peas filling - enough for 10 samosas with some leftover

Ingredients

2 tablespoons oil

2 medium sized Yukon gold potatoes (or any other you have on hand), boiled, peeled and cubed small

3/4 cup frozen green peas, defrosted

1/2 medium onion, chopped

1 teaspoon ginger, grated

pinch of hing or asafoetida

1 teaspoon cumin seed

1/2 teaspoon amchoor

1/2 teaspoon garam masala

1/3 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon coriander powder

salt

Method

Heat oil under medium heat. Put in cumin seeds and hing. Shake up the pot. When the cumin seeds start to sizzle or brown more, put in the onion. Fry until the onions are translucent. Add the ginger and stir well. Next add in the amchoor, garam masala, turmeric and coriander powder. Mix these well, adding oil if necessary. Throw in the potatoes and peas and mix well. Add salt and fry the potatoes and peas for about 8 minutes. Cool mixture for filling.

Sweet potato and feta filling - enough for 10 samosas with some leftover

Ingredients

1 sweet potato, peeled and cubed small

1-2 tablespoons oil

1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
pinch of hing or asafoetida

1/2 medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon ginger, grated

2 green chilis or to taste, minced

1/3 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon coriander powder

1 teaspoon cumin

4 oz. crumbled feta

salt to taste

Method

Heat oil under medium heat with mustard seeds, cumin and hing. Shake up the pot. Once they start to pop and sizzle, add in the onions. Fry onions until translucent. Next add in the garlic, ginger and chilis. Fry for a few seconds. Put in turmeric, coriander powder and cumin powder and mix well. Throw in the sweet potatoes and mix until coated with all the spices. Fry until the potatoes are soft - 20 minutes or less. If you feel that the potato is burning up, add water from time to time to cool the pan down. Transfer to a bowl and mix in feta. Add salt to taste. Cool mixture for filling.