From Amma With Love
Bonda
Potato Puffs
for batter:
1/2 cup gram flour
1 tbs. rice flour ( optional )
1 tsp. chili powder
salt to taste
a pinch of baking soda
for filling:
4 ~ 5 medium potatoes
1/4 tsp. turmeric powder
salt to cook potatoes
5 or 6 cashew nuts, broken into pieces
1/2 tsp. vegetable oil
1/2 tsp. black mustard seeds
1/2 tsp. urad daal
1 sprig curry leaves
a small piece of ginger, finely chopped
1 ~ 2 hot green chili pepper, finely chopped
1 ~ 2 tsp. lemon juice
vegetable oil to deep fly
Cut the potatoes into 4 or 8 pieces and boil them with salt and turmeric powder in water.
When they are cooked well, drain them and peel the skin. With the back of a heavy spoon or the masher, mash them coarsely. Keep the mashed potatoes aside.
Heat oil in a heavy saucepan, sauté the cashew nuts till they are light brown in color and add them to the potato.
In the same saucepan, add the mustard seeds and urad daal. When the mustard seeds pop, add the curry leaves, add this spice mixture to the potato.
Add the ginger, green chili pepper and lemon juice to the potato and mix well.
Make small balls with the potato, like the size of golf ball, or smaller. Keep them on the plate.
Mix batter ingredients well, make it like pancake mix thickness.
Heat oil in a fly pan or a heavy saucepan, make sure the oil is enough hot to deep fly. Dip the potato balls in the batter, and drop them in the oil till they get golden brown on one side, then turn them over. When they are done on both side, drain them on paper towels.
The Bondas are good eaten hot with coconut chutney.
