Vegan Street Food E-Book

Jackie Kearney

• Herausgeber: Ryland Peters & Small
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015

Beschreibung

Winner of the Best Book Award in the PETA Vegan Food Awards 2016. Jackie and her family ate their way around Asia, sampling streetfood and jotting menu ideas on the back of napkins. Inspired by the food cultures she embraced on her travels, Jackie has brought new life to healthy, meat- and dairy-free food, inspired by the sheer quantity of vegan food on offer in Asia. Dotted with personal anecdotes from her travels, family photos and fascinating local information, Jackie takes us from India to Indonesia on a journey of tastes and textures, via Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Malaysia. Recipes includes classic dishes that we might be already familiar with, such as Simple Sri Lankan Dal or Cauliflower and Kale Pakora, as well as regional specialities such as Oothapam (vegetable crumpets from South India) or Tahu Campur (Javanese fried tofu with cassava cakes). Street food is a central part of life in Asia. It brings families and communities together from breakfast to dinner, through all the scrumptious snacks along the way. With this book, you can bring this inspirational approach to feeding your family into your own kitchen, whipping up flavourful and wholesome bites. Celebrate vegan food in all its glory, without compromising on flavour or protein, or trying to makes substitutions for meat or fish. That is the beauty of this collection of Asian streetfood – it is simply delicious, and it just so happens to be vegan.

Leseprobe

Vegan

Street food

Vegan

Street food

FOODIE TRAVELS FROM INDIA TO INDONESIA

JACKIE KEARNEYFOOD PHOTOGRAPHY BY CLARE WINFIELD

Senior Designer Megan Smith

Editor Kate Eddison

Production Controller Mai-Ling Collyer

Head of Production Patricia Harrington

Art Director Leslie Harrington

Editorial Director Julia Charles

Publisher Cindy Richards

Prop Stylist Tony Hutchinson

Food Stylists Jackie Kearney and Emily Kydd

Indexer Vanessa Bird

First published in 2015 by

Ryland Peters & Small

20–21 Jockey’s Fields,

London WC1R 4BW

and

341 E 116th St

New York NY 10029

www.rylandpeters.com

Text © Jackie Kearney 2015

Design and photographs ©

Ryland Peters & Small 2015

Map illustratration (page 6)

© Lee James

E-ISBN: 978-1-84975-910-6

ISBN: 978-1-84975-650-1

10 9 8 7 6

The author’s moral rights have been asserted. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.

A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library.

US Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data has been applied for.

NOTES

• Both British (Metric) and American (Imperial plus US cups) measurements and ingredients are included in these recipes for your convenience, however it is important to work with one set of measurements and not alternate between the two within a recipe. Spellings are primarily British.

• All spoon measurements are level unless otherwise specified.

• When a recipe calls for the grated zest of citrus fruit, buy unwaxed fruit and wash well before using. If you can only find treated fruit, scrub well in warm, soapy water and rinse before using.

• Ovens should be preheated to the specified temperatures. We recommend using an oven thermometer. If using a fan-assisted oven, adjust temperatures according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

contents

A journey into food

A few ingredient basics

INDIA & SRI LANKA

DEEP-FRIED FRITTERS AND FIERY PICKLES

THAILAND, LAOS & VIETNAM

CREAMY CURRIES AND HOT AND SOUR SOUPS

MALAYSIA & INDONESIA

VEGETABLE DUMPLINGS AND SPICY SAMBAL

Index

Acknowledgments

INTRODUCTION

A journey into food

A map showing some of the places the family’s travels took them, hand-made by Jackie’s husband, Lee.

WHEN I WAS SIXTEEN, in between wanting to be an international show jumper and a vet, I wanted to be a chef. I loved food and cooking. Most of all I loved cooking for other people. As a teenager, I was always discouraged from pursuing a career in food. In the mid-eighties, it was considered low-paid, low-status work with terrible hours. For many, it is still very much like this. But my foodie ambitions never went away. Throughout my academic career I dreamed of opening a little café, well aware that many people dream of this (like moving abroad or going travelling) and many people fail at this. Once my comfortable research career was carved out, it was even harder to change the direction. But that didn’t stop me thinking about it. A lot. Some would call it an obsession.

As young children, my parents had enchanted me and my sisters with stories of their travels to faraway places during the fifties. My mum was a beautician and my dad was a hairdresser, and they took off around the world working on a cruise ship together. I used to gaze at the black and white photo of my mum posing in her bikini on a remote beach in Fiji, and wonder what it would be like to travel so far away from home. It certainly had an impact on the kind of food we grew up on, too. My mum was making curries and other considerably exotic dishes for the early seventies, although she nearly did us all in with the hottest vindaloo I’ve ever tasted in my life. I think I was about six, and I remember my dad had to go and brush his teeth because his mouth was on fire. Back then, who knew a glass of milk would have done the trick?

When I met Lee, we shared a mutual interest for wanting to explore the world a bit more. The idea of a ‘gap year’ for travel is usually seen as a choice during the heady days of singledom and youth; yet the opportunity is at a time when money and appreciation are in much shorter supply. I had always wondered about this, but especially after we had children. How can a 20 year-old possibly appreciate a year off when they have barely spent any time working or shouldering responsibilities? We fantasized about quitting our jobs and staying away until the money ran out (well actually, I was thinking about opening a little café on a Lombok hillside and not coming back at all). But then along came our twins, and we found ourselves wondering if we’d ever get there. Eventually the idea of a gap year as a family started to take shape. We worked and saved hard, and before we knew it, we had one-way tickets to Delhi and passports full of visas.

THE IDEA FOR THIS BOOK

This is a collection of recipes inspired by the food and flavours that we came across and loved during our travels. Throughout our journeys, I would jot recipes and menu ideas on the back of napkins and spend my time snacking my way around the nearest town or village. We ate together as a family for virtually every meal for an entire year. That was something new for us, too.

It’s no secret how much I fell in love with Asian food, and, as a passionate cook, I was inspired to pursue my restaurant dream when we returned home. It was at that point I applied to take part in the BBC’s MasterChef. I wanted to find out if my cooking was good enough to make a living from and open my own world food-inspired café. Finding the courage to travel across Asia with my family had given me the courage to try to change my working life and pursue my passion for cooking.

I love everything about the Asian culture of food. I love how accessible it is and how central it is to people’s lives regardless of their background. Food, family and community come together every day, and, for us, food played a huge part of our experiences travelling as a family. I love the fresh flavours and how adaptable the food is to local and seasonal produce. And, as someone with a passion for vegan, vegetarian and sustainable food, I found that it re-ignited my love of cooking.

I have never really wanted my food to be labelled as ‘vegetarian’ or ‘vegan’. It’s a personal choice that I eat this kind of food. My passion is for food that tastes great and keeps us and our environment healthy. I want to create recipes that are adaptable to different produce and seasons, and that tell something about our journey along the way. Or maybe it’s the other way round, to tell the story of our travels and something about the food along the way.

SO WHY A VEGAN BOOK?

Generally, vegan food has a poor reputation when it comes to flavour, texture and substance. There are some fantastic recipes out there, but they tend to be hidden among meat and fish ones. Or they are dishes that could be easily tweaked to be vegan, but ideas for substitutions are thin on the ground, simply don’t work or are just too samey.

And this is often the source of the problem when it comes to bad vegan food: substitutions. In my experience, it’s one thing to use silken tofu in pastry instead of egg yolk, but when a cook approaches vegan food only from a meat-eater’s mind, they have a tendency to try to substitute the meat or fish. If I made a coq-au-vin, simply using textured vegetable protein instead of chicken, it would not taste good. There are chefs, like my food hero Yotam Ottolenghi, who transcend this. Chefs who create a plate of food that is simply about being delicious. The fact that it may be vegan or vegetarian is not the focus. This was where Asian food inspired me. Living in Manchester, I had eaten many vegan dals and curries over the years, but when we arrived in India at the start of our trip, I was absolutely blown away by what was on offer to my little vegetarian family. Not only were choices not confined to a tiny sub-section of the menu, or a substitution afterthought; they were the main act. It was now the meat or fish (and even dairy) that was confined to a sub-section. The tables had turned.

There is so much about Asian food that is more naturally vegan than Western fare, without compromising on flavour and texture. Western vegetarian food tends to centre around dairy. So much so, that my friend and I play ‘halloumi bingo’ when walking past the trendy restaurants in Manchester’s Northern Quarter. I don’t want to eat dairy as often as restaurants seem determined to feed it to me. Finding great vegan food can be a challenge when eating out, so this book aims to make sure it never happens at home.

When I started imagining this book, I thought it might be vegetarian. But once I started to write about the food from our travels that I had fallen in love with, so much of it was vegan, it seemed natural to bring that to the fore and write a collection of Asian and street food-inspired vegan recipes together in one place.

At a personal level, this has coincided with me wanting to eat more healthily, more often. Like most vegetarians, I eat too much cheese. I love creating dishes without dairy, and my fusion recipes are all about turning Asian flavours into something new and delicious. Over the last year or two, I also allowed my work-life balance to get a little out of kilter and the impact on my well-being has been notable. None of us need someone to tell us that we are what we eat. When we eat well, we start feeling (and looking) better. There’s a reason veganism is so popular among the Hollywood elite. You’ll live longer (and so will the planet). Over half of the planet’s population lives on a vegan diet and it isn’t food to be endured for health reasons. I want to celebrate vegan food in all its health-giving glory. Welcome to Vegan Street Food.

SINCE MASTERCHEF

My first year working in food (2012) was truly the mother of all crazy years! And that is really saying something given that I took part in MasterChef the year before. The food business has been the most challenging, unpredictable and rewarding thing I have ever been involved in (apart from parenthood, perhaps). It’s tough. Don’t let anyone ever tell you otherwise. But it’s also incredibly rewarding. The joy that comes from the journey of imagining a dish to delivering that dish to an appreciative diner is a wonderful feeling. It’s what brings the greatest chefs back to their restaurant kitchens every time.

At the start of 2012, I bought a 7-m/23-ft iconic Silver Bullet campervan and installed a kitchen in it. I took a commercial view of the menu and decided while it couldn’t be wholly vegan or vegetarian, I would turn the usual menu structure upside-down; the menu would be at least 60 per cent vegan and vegetarian. My plan was an Asian-inspired menu with some MasterChef flair; street food-inspired dishes that were good enough for a restaurant.

I then learned how to manoeuvre a two-tonne trailer and travelled the length and breadth of the country. I got rained on, a lot. I produced some very over-ambitious menus. I was runner-up in Best Main Dish at the British Street Food Awards. I finally nailed the menus (and that elusive gross product percentage). I worked the longest hours of my life (the record being over 100 hours in a week). What do you mean there’s no water access, electricity, waste disposal..?

There were some great events during 2012, some of the best ones being those you might least expect. Some of the more high-profile ones were often the hardest work with the smallest return. Smaller events that lucked out with the weather and a discerning crowd of foodies meant I got to enjoy the buzz of selling out. I drove ‘Barbarella’ (my kitchen on wheels) from Exeter to Edinburgh. I traded in city centres and remote villages, at food festivals, car rallies and sports events. And the feedback has been amazing, with people taking the time to tell me how much they enjoyed it.

During 2013, Barbarella had a semi-permanent location in the garden of a cask ale pub in Manchester. This gave me a chance to focus on the food rather than logistics; I immersed myself in the kitchen determined to produce restaurant-quality food with the best local produce.

I’ve also been running a fine-dining supperclub at my home occasionally. This has allowed me to develop new recipes, exploring the kind of fusion food I love to eat, and testing it on a discerning audience. I’ve included these recipes here, alongside dishes that inspired me from my travels.

A few ingredient basics

Buying Asian ingredients can be overwhelming, so here are a few essential tips. Here you will find a guide to buying spices, as well as advice on getting the best out of tofu, cooking perfect rice and making my vegan fish sauce.

THE SPICE RACK

There are many different spices and occasionally confusing variations. It’s worth remembering that interchangeable names are sometimes used on packaging depending on the brand, so they have been noted alongside to help you identify them. Buying spices from mainstream supermarkets can often be expensive. I recommend a special trip to a good Indian or Asian supermarket to stock up on the core spices. Invest in some airtight containers or food bag clips to ensure your spices stay fresh. Leaving them open to the air will degrade them more than you realize. What’s important to the cook is the taste, but many spices are also thought to have excellent health benefits, too.

ASAFOETIDA has a very pungent smell on its own and is used in very small quantities as a flavourenhancer, so a little goes a long way.

BAY LEAVES are common in Indian recipes, and Indian bay leaves are slightly different with a hint of cinnamon in the flavour. I always use fresh bay leaves, as it’s so easy to grow a bay tree at home.

CARDAMOM PODS can be green or black. Green pods are aromatic and floral, almost minty with a sweet edge. You can crush the pods to remove the seeds, and then pound the seeds to release all the flavour (at this point you will only need to use a very small amount). Black cardamom pods are larger and darker, with a peppery, smoky flavour.

CAROM (ajwain) has a thyme-like pungent and slightly bitter flavour, not dissimilar to cumin.

CHILLI/CHILE could have its own chapter! For the recipes here, I suggest using a good-quality chilli/chili powder, but if you can find it, buy some Kashmiri chilli/chili powder. It has a rich, deep flavour and colour, but far less heat, so it’s perfect for making family-friendly dishes. Dried red chillies/chiles are easy to rehydrate and very versatile. It’s also useful to have some kind of chilli/chili jam or sauce in the fridge. Either home-made (pages 33 or 101), or a store-bought sauce such as Sriracha.

CINNAMON can be powdered or whole bark. Cassia bark is very similar, with a rougher, darker-looking bark, but it is slightly sweeter with a hint of vanilla. I recommend cassia bark for Indian dishes.

CORIANDER (daniya) is available as seeds and powder. It has a warm flavour with slightly fruity citrus undertone. Always toast the seeds to release the flavour. Freshly ground powder from toasted seeds is the most delicious of all.

CUMIN (jeera) is available as seeds and powder. It is earthy and nutty, with a slightly grassy undertone. Black cumin (kala jeera) has a smokier flavour.

CURRY LEAVES release a nutty aroma and slightly citrusy flavour when fried. They are easy to find fresh in bunches from Indian or Pakistani grocers.

FENNEL SEEDS (saunf) have a warm and sweet aniseed-like flavour.

FENUGREEK has a maple-like aroma. The fresh or dried leaves are added to tomato-based dishes, and the seeds are an Indian essential.

FIVE-SPICE POWDER is a Chinese spice powder usually comprising star anise, cloves, Sichuan peppercorns, fennel seeds and cinnamon.

GARAM MASALA is a powdered Indian spice blend. It usually contains some or all of the following: black and white peppercorns, cloves, bay leaves, cinnamon or cassia bark, nutmeg (or mace), black and green cardamom pods and caraway seeds. A Punjabi mix may also contain cumin and coriander seeds, and dried ginger root.

GALANGAL (khaa in Thai) is similar to ginger but with a more peppery flavour and gentle pine aroma. The fresh root can sometimes be found in major supermarkets (usually as a paste in a jar) but more often in the fridge at a Chinese supermarket. It’s useful to have some powdered at home, too.

GREEN MANGO POWDER (amchoor) brings a sour note to Indian dishes. A small packet goes a long way.

KAFFIR LIME LEAVES are found dried in major supermarkets, but I recommend buying them frozen from a Chinese grocer for a zestier aroma.

MUSTARD SEEDS are often used in tempering in Indian cooking, giving a nutty flavour to the oil. You can also buy mustard oil.

PAPRIKA is a (bell) pepper powder originating from the Iberian regions. It comes in mild and hotter versions (like spicy Spanish pimentón). Recipes here refer to the standard variety of sweet paprika.

POMEGRANATE MOLASSES is found in Indian grocery stores or even major supermarkets.

POMEGRANATE SEEDS (anardana) are dried whole seeds that bring a tangy pop of flavour to dishes.

ROOT GINGER is easy to find in most supermarkets, but a good-quality paste can be very useful.

SICHUAN PEPPERCORNS impart a slightly mouth-numbing peppery heat. One of my favourite spices.

STAR ANISE is a flower-shaped spice often used in South-east Asian dishes. You can break up the star to release the seeds and then crush them. This releases the full hit of aniseed-like flavour.

SUGAR comes in lots of forms. I avoid using palm sugar as the farming of palm products is destroying the ancient forests and jungle in South-east Asia, especially Malaysia. Alternatives include jaggery, an Indian cane sugar, or unrefined brown block sugar from Chinese supermarkets. Both have a deep caramel-like flavour. You can also use unrefined soft brown sugar.

TAMARIND has a sweet, sour and tangy flavour. You can buy wet tamarind in blocks and then soak in boiling water to make a pulp. Even if it says seedless on the packet, make sure you strain it. You can also buy tamarind concentrate/paste in jars, which has a much darker colour and stronger flavour. I prefer to use the pulp for South-east Asian recipes and I use concentrate/paste for Indian recipes. Tamarind is available in most major supermarkets, and Indian and Chinese grocers.

TURMERIC (haldi) is one of my favourite spices. I adore using the fresh root in South-east Asian recipes, but the powder makes a great substitute, and tends to work better in Indian recipes.

MAKING TOFU TASTE GOOD

I decided on this title because so many people have told me they just don’t like tofu. I understand their point, as my early experiences (and some recent ones) were not good. One of the first things I didn’t particularly like was the texture, and there are several ways to achieve a good texture.

FRIED TOFU PUFFS are simply deep-fried cubes or triangles of medium or firm tofu, cooked until golden brown. The oil must be hot so as not to make the tofu greasy, and the pieces drained well on paper towels. The tofu pieces can also be lightly coated in cornflour/cornstarch before frying to obtain a crispier texture. Once cooled, these puffs can be refrigerated for up to a week (or frozen). You can also buy these pre-prepared at a Chinese supermarket in the fridge section, and they are suitable for home freezing.

BAKING AND MARINATING TOFU makes for a drier and crispier nugget. Tofu puffs tend to become chewy, whereas baked tofu maintains some crispiness. After marinating (such as in ginger, five-spice or chilli/chile), it should be baked in a medium oven on a well-greased baking sheet, turning pieces occasionally to ensure even cooking. Once cooled, it can be stored in the fridge for a week (or frozen).

FREEZING TOFU changes its texture. I freeze blocks for a few days, then defrost, carefully squeezing out excess water. The tofu changes colour and texture. The layers can become fragile, so handle with care.

MAKING PERFECT RICE

For me, a rice cooker is an essential component of the Asian kitchen. They are not popular in the UK, but as soon as someone gets one, I hear them say ‘I can’t believe I didn’t buy one earlier’. The fact is they make perfect steamed rice every time, are quick to use and easy to clean. They last for years too, and the cheaper ones are perfectly functional and long-lasting. I suggest buying online.

Most recipes suggest the perfect balance of rice and water is 1:2. I think a little less water and some extra time for steaming is more reliable. Boil the rice in salted water until the rice is about 80% cooked. Then turn off the heat but leave on the hot stove. Stir well, add a teaspoon or two of hot water then cover the pan with a clean dishtowel and place the lid on firmly. Leave to stand for 10–15 minutes, then fluff up with a fork to ensure the rice is evenly cooked. If not, add another tablespoon of hot water, and leave to stand for 5 minutes.

VEGAN FISH SAUCE

50 g/2 oz. seaweed (such as laver, dulse or arame), cut into small strips

500 ml/2 cups light soy sauce or tamari

8 black peppercorns

2 garlic cloves, peeled

1 dried Chinese or shiitake mushroom

Make a batch of this vegan fish sauce and keep it in the fridge for your vegan cooking.

Add 500 ml/2 cups of water to a medium pan and add the dried seaweed. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 30–40 minutes until the water has reduced by more than half. Let stand for an hour.

Strain the mixture, reserving the liquid in another bowl. Rinse the pan and add the soy sauce or tamari, then add the peppercorns, garlic and dried mushroom. Bring to a simmer, and add the seaweed reduction. Simmer for 30–40 minutes until the mixture has reduced to less than half again. Strain and store in a sterilized glass bottle in the fridge until needed.

INDIA & SRI LANKA

From left to right: Humayun’s Tomb, Delhi; Chandni Chowk market, Delhi; Toasting peanuts, McLeod Ganj; Devotees at the Golden Temple, Amritsar; Ganges riverbank in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh; Mysore Palace, Karnataka; Sunrise at the Golden Temple, Amritsar.

India

DELHI Nowhere smells quite like Delhi, quintessentially India to the nose. Intense in smells and activity. I had read books about lost empires, Mughal invaders and architecture, and magical djinns (spirits) that could take human and animal form. My first impressions and experiences didn’t resemble my reading. Our first stay in Delhi, as for many newbie visitors, was in Pahar Ganj. An old market area close to New Delhi train station and awash with guesthouses and cheap hotels, the area attracts an array of travellers and new arrivals. Our guesthouse was as shabby and soulless as they come. And since we had arrived during the worst rainstorms that Delhi had seen for fifty years, it’s fair to say Pahar Ganj wasn’t looking at its best either. Delhi can be a shock for new arrivals at the best of times. And I won’t lie. We were all fairly well stunned on our first stay.

On our next visit we headed to Chandni Chowk, so we could explore the oldest and busiest market in Delhi. Like most places in any Indian city, it was noisy, crowded and smelly but colourful, vibrant and exciting all at the same time. Built in the 17th century by Shah Jahan, the Mughal Emperor who built the Taj Mahal for his beloved third wife Mumtaz. The market haggling fascinated the children and the array of goods on offer was mind-blowing. We wandered amongst the lanes, drinking chai and snacking on samosas and jalebi, a rather sickly-sweet local delicacy. Needless to say the children loved it, and they were happy to find it piled high on the counter in the Indian deli back home.

It was Humayun’s Tomb that finally won me over. After a torturous few days in Agra, we’d returned to Delhi with temple fatigue. The last thing I fancied was more aggressive crowds, tourists and pollution. But I let Lee talk me into visiting this architectural precursor to Agra’s Taj. I’m very glad he did, as here, in this complex of tombs and garden haven, I decided there were some bits of Delhi that I really liked. I think it may have something to do with the hawkers laden with goodies, carrying trays of delicious snacks on their heads, which soon became part of our impromptu picnic.

Deep-fried fritters, pakoras and bhajis made with gram flour batter can be found all over India, and they are nearly always vegetarian, or indeed vegan. My favourites are mirchi vada. Large green chillies/chiles stuffed with dal or potato, dipped and fried in a crispy gram and turmeric batter. The children love bondas, mashed potato with coconut and green chilli/chile in batter. We first ate bondas in Sri Lanka, where they were served with pineapple, coconut and chilli/chile chutney. We had them again in the Punjab region of Northern India, usually with fiery pickles. I make a version of these for my street food menu. I like them fairly spicy, and serve them with hot and sweet homemade pickles, hence the name, Bad Ass Bondas!

BADASS BONDAS

SPICY POTATO & SPRING ONION/SCALLION BALLS WITH COCONUT, SESAME & CHILLI/CHILE

This is my take on potato bondas, which I served in the finals for ‘best snack’ at the British Street Food Awards in 2012. I serve them on my menu with a trio of chutneys and pickles. You can make them a little less badass by reducing the number of chillies/chiles.

2 tablespoons desiccated/dried unsweetened shredded coconut

1 kg/2¼ lb. all-purpose potatoes, such as Maris Piper/Yukon gold

2 teaspoons garam masala

2 teaspoons sesame seeds

10 green chillies/chiles, trimmed and finely chopped

8 spring onions/scallions, thinly sliced

15-cm/6-in. piece of root ginger, peeled and finely chopped

¼ teaspoon asafoetida powder (hing)

a handful of fresh coriander/cilantro leaves, roughly chopped

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sunflower oil, plus extra for deep-frying

pickles or chutneys, to serve

BATTER

200 g/heaped 1½ cups gram flour

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

½ teaspoon chilli/chili powder

¼ teaspoon salt

a pinch of asafoetida powder (hing)

½ teaspoon baking powder

MAKES 12–18

Put the coconut in a small bowl and cover with hot water. Set aside. Put the potatoes in a pan, cover with water and boil for 15 minutes or until tender, then drain and mash. Set aside.

Toast the garam masala in a dry pan over medium heat for 30 seconds, stirring occasionally, to release the aroma, then add the sesame seeds and cook until lightly toasted, stirring occasionally. Set aside. Squeeze out the excess water from the soaked coconut.

Put all the batter ingredients in a bowl and mix together, then add 240 ml/1 cup water to make a medium-thick consistency. Heat the oil for deep-frying in a wok until hot. Test the oil with a little batter mix, to ensure that it sizzles.

Mix the potatoes with the garam masala mixture, coconut and remaining ingredients, and mould into balls the size of golf balls. Dip in the batter and gently drop into the hot oil. Fry, in batches of four or five. Cook until golden brown, turning to ensure they are evenly cooked. Drain on paper towels. Serve with a selection of your favourite pickles or chutneys.

PANI PURI POPS

CHAAT-FILLED PURI SHELLS WITH TAMARIND & POMEGRANATE

Pani puri are also known as golgappa. We first tasted them at the festival of Dussehra. Hundreds of Gods descend from the mountain villages with their statue-carrying, trumpet-blowing and drum-playing support cast – which seemed to be the entire population of the region. They arrived into the Kullu Valley and it looked like Glastonbury had come to India, with tents, food stalls and crowds everywhere. We ate many delicious snacks that day, but this dish captures the best of Indian street food – deep-fried semolina puffs (puri), stuffed with chaat (usually made with spiced potato and sprouted beans) and filled with tamarind. You can buy the puri shells, if you like, because this dish is really all about the filling.

280 g/2 cups plain/all-purpose flour, plus extra to dust

100 g/scant ⅔ cup semolina

a large pinch of bicarbonate of soda/baking soda

a large pinch of salt

sunflower or vegetable oil, for deep-frying

TAMARIND SHERBET (PANI)

1 teaspoon ground cumin

200 ml/7 oz. tamarind pulp, or 1 tablespoon tamarind concentrate/paste

1 teaspoon dried mango powder (amchoor)

½ teaspoon salt

3-cm/1-in. piece of root ginger

1 tablespoon fresh mint leaves, finely chopped

1 tablespoon fresh coriander/cilantro leaves, finely chopped

POTATO FILLING

150 g/5 oz. potatoes, peeled and diced into 5-mm/¼-in. cubes

200-g/7-oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

½ red onion, finely chopped

¼ teaspoon chilli/chili powder

¼ teaspoon ground turmeric

a pinch of chaat powder salt, to taste

TO SERVE

Sweet Date Chutney (page 28)

Daniya (page 28)

2 tablespoons sev (fried chickpea/gram noodles)

natural/plain soya/soy yogurt

pomegranate molasses

fresh coriander/cilantro leaves

fresh pomegranate seeds

SERVES 8–12

Put the flour in a bowl and add the semolina, bicarbonate of soda/baking soda and salt. Add 400–600 ml/1¾–2½ cups water, a little at a time, to make a stiff dough. Knead and then leave to rest for at least 15 minutes and preferably 30 minutes.

On a flour-dusted surface, roll out the dough to about 3 mm/⅛ in. thick. Using a 4-cm/1½-in. cookie cutter, cut out about 24 small round puri discs.

Heat the oil in a wok or large, heavy pan until hot but not smoking. Gently slide 3–4 puri into the wok, using a ladle to press down gently and make them puff up. Once puffed and crisp, remove using a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Let cool.

To make the tamarind sherbet, toast the cumin in a dry pan over medium heat for 30 seconds, stirring occasionally, to release the aroma. Put the toasted cumin in a bowl with the other sherbet ingredients and 125 ml/½ cup water. Using a stick blender, process until smooth. Add 400 ml/1¾ cups water, and blend again. Chill for 1 hour.

Meanwhile, boil the potatoes in water to cover for 5 minutes or until tender. Drain and mix with the remaining filling ingredients. Add salt to taste.

Using a small sharp knife, crack a small hole in the centre of each puri. Fill with the potato filling, then add ¼ teaspoon each of chutney and daniya. Pour in the tamarind sherbet (a squeezy bottle is useful for this). Top with sev, and drizzle with soya/soy yogurt and pomegranate molasses. Scatter over coriander/cilantro leaves and pomegranate seeds and serve immediately.