Potato Croquettes (with Peas, Coriander & Coconut stuffing)

Now only a rare person will not yell potatoes! when you say ‘comfort food’… that very quality along with its easy availability, congenial nature, its inherent quality of pleasing its devourer – makes the potato one of the most popular vegetables in the world. All forms of cooked potatoes are popular street foods in many countries, save the UAE, where chickpeas dominate.

In India we have tikkis, bhajjis, aloo poori, tandoori potatoes, jhal chips… so many tongue tickling potato foods. This particular recipe I found in a Sanjeev Kapoor cookbook, I like it because, again its very simple, and though I made it last many months ago, I could recall all the ingredients without going back to the book. I think that’s the way to personalize a recipe – when you don’t go looking for the book but cook along with a sense of what it should taste like.

The only addition I made this was rolling the patties in sesame seeds. Any which way its a great tasting dish, that's guaranteed to get you many complements!

Another point to note is that usually croquettes are dipped in an egg bath and rolled in breadcrumbs and deep fried. This has none of it, I simply rolled them in sesame seeds and with very little oil, shallow fried them in olive oil. They are so quick to make, you can also assemble them in advance. So here it is, Potato Croquettes (with peas, coconut & coriander stuffing).

Ingredients:
Boiled & mashed Potatoes – 3 Large
Boiled & mashed Peas – 1 cup
Cornflour/Cornstarch – 2 Tbsp
Chopped coriander – 1 cup
Chopped Green Chillies – 4, 5 (adjust according to taste)
Grated Coconut – 1/2 cup
Cumin – 1 tsp
Asafoetida – a little (optional)
Juice of 1 small lemon
Sesame seeds – a little (optional)
Olive Oil – a little
Salt to Taste
A little water in a bowl

Method:
1. Mix the cornflour and a bit of salt into the mashed potatoes and keep aside.

2. Heat a tsp of oil in a pan and splutter the cumin, and follow up by with a little asafoetida, mashed peas, grated coconut, and chopped coriander. Mix well and cook on medium heat for about a couple of minutes. The mixture should look dry.

3. Now add lemon juice and salt to the above, mix well and keep aside.

4. Wet your palms with a little water, take a portion of mashed potatoes and make a ball. (Just remember that mixing in cornflour to the potato makes them mushy so wetting your palm with water is important.)

5. Stuff the centre with a little green peas mixture, roll well and pat them into thick diskettes. Keep aside.6. Once all the patties are ready you can refrigerate the lot and fry just before you’re ready to serve.

7. Before frying, roll them in a little bit of sesame seeds – for that extra flavour and crunch.

8. Shallow fry in Olive oil.

Serve with tomato sauce, or any chutney of your choice - as a starter, snack or accompaniment to your main course.

Because I didn’t use any green chilly in my mixture – I served the croquettes with a dash of Tabasco sauce. And for my daughter NT, I mixed up all of the ingredients together and made little tikkis. Yes! she loved it. And so this is my entry to Equal Opportunity Kitchen's Tried, Tested & True Two event.