Aloo Vada / Bonda (Potato Fritters)

Thing 2 loves to help me make Aloo Bondas and it's a favorite of all three cookie-monsters.

Aloo (which means potato) Vada or Bonda are spiced and cooked mashed potatoes which have been deep fried in a gram flour batter. They serve as a great snack or appetizer accompanied with tea. The little ones love to eat them with ketchup and hot sauce but they also go great with chutneys.

Aloo Vada /Bonda

(Makes 15 medium bondas)

Ingredients:
For the Filling:
4 medium potatoes
2 tablespoons oil
Pinch or 1/4 teaspoon of mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon pureed or grated ginger
9 chopped green chilies
10 chopped sprigs of cilantro
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 small chopped onion
Pinch of hing
1/2 teaspoon lime juice
Salt to taste



For the Batter:
1 cup gram flour (besan)
1/4 cup rice flour
Pinch of cumin seeds
Pinch of whole coriander seeds
Pinch of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
Salt to taste
Lukewarm water
2 tablespoons of hot oil


Directions:

• Peel the potatoes and cut them into large cubes. Bring them to a boil over medium heat till they are soft.
• In a separate pan, add oil and mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds begin to crackle, add cumin seeds. Once the cumin seeds crackle, add ginger and let it cook for 2 minutes.
• Add green chilies, cilantro, turmeric, and salt. Follow it with onion and hing and let it saute for 3minutes.
• After the onions are sauteed, mix in the potatoes and cook 4-5 minutes. Sprinkle the mixture with lime juice and let it cool.
• After the mixture is cooled, shape them into round balls. Let them stand for 10 minutes so that they retain their shape and become firm.

• Heat oil for deep frying.
• In a bowl, mix all the ingredients for the batter withholding the oil. Add enough water to keep the batter slightly runny and thick.
• Once the oil is heated, add in 2 tablespoons of the oil from the pan into the batter and mix.
• Fully coat each of the potato balls and deep dry until they are golden brown in color.
  

Notes:
- When making the filling, the pureed ginger will splatter. You can always use finely chopped ginger instead. I like to use the puree so that the little ones do not find pieces of ginger in their vadas.
- This recipe is very spicy. Just use fewer green chilies for a milder spicy flavor.

Adding hot oil to the batter was a tip I received from someone who claims it softens the cooked outer crust of the vada. Personally, it worked for me when I tried it. My previous vadas would crack open during frying, leaving my oil filthy with potato filling. I was very delighted today because they didn't crack and came out perfect. The little ones also congratulated me on this success.

~Critiques~

Question: "So how were the aloo vadas?"
Thing 2 gives a nod of the head due to the inability to comment with her mouth full.
Thing 3 comments "Deli-ci-ous!" which was then followed by a dance