Poori & Potato Masal

Several months back, these puffed up beauties were all over the blogosphere and were really taunting me... I tried to stay strong and not give in because I wanted to keep my 'no frying' streak go on as long as possible but with the Deepavali celebrations I've stepped into a land of no-return (atleast for the time being) and have been making and indulging in deep-fried goodies. I just love pooris (or Puris) and used to be able to tuck in quite a lot even as a kid. I remember eating as much as 10 when I was about 5 yrs old in an effort to compete with my older cousins... on who could eat the most. I would just get so excited when my mom soaked Channa Saturday morning before she left for work because I knew that we'd have Pooris and Channa Masala for dinner that night. Though that is a wonderful combination, Pooris and Potato Masaal (like the ones we get at south indian restaurants) is something both, my husband and I love. So, here's my recipe for that...

For POORIS:

Ingredients

Whole wheat flour - 2 cups

Salt, to taste

Water - as required

Oil - to deep fry

Method:

1) Mix the salt and flour lightly with your fingers. Then add water as required to make a stiff dough. This doesn't have to rest like chapathi dough and is best when made into puris right away.

2) Make small balls of the dough and roll out into small, slightly thick circles. Don't let these dry out. They will puff up well only when dropped in almost immediately. So, if you don't have a helping hand to fry these as they are rolled out, cover these and work in batches. Roll out about 10-15, deep fry and repeat.

3) Heat the oil and once it's hot enough [ Drop a small piece of the dough in and it should sizzle and rise up immediately]. Carefully drop the rolled out circle and press down with a slotted spoon. The puri, much like a teenager, will rise up under all that oppression and balloon. Turn over and cook for about a minute or two more. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to a plate covered with some tissue. Repeat this for the rest of the dough.

NOTE: I love the chewiness in the puris when they are made with maida or all purpose flour but whole wheat flour is healthier and also results in 96% puffed puris :)

For the POTATO MASAAL (Kizhangu) :

Ingredients:

Potatoes - 2 large, boiled, peeled

Onions - 2, sliced into thin 1 inch pieces

Green Chillies - 10 to 15, slit into two

Ginger - 1 inch piece, grated or minced

Curry Leaves - few

Coriander leaves - garnish

Besan - 1 tbsp, mixed with water to form a paste (optional)

Channa Dhal - 1 tbsp, soaked for a while

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Urad Dhal - 1/2 tsp

Asafoetida - a pinch

Turmeric - 1/4 tsp

Salt, to taste
Oil - 2 tsp

Method:

1) Heat oil, and season with mustard seeds, urad dhal, channa dhal, asafoetida and curry leaves. Then add the slit green chillies, ginger, and sliced onions. Saute until the onions turn transluscent.

2) Cut 1 potato into chunks and coarsely mash the other one. Add this to the fried onion mixture with turmeric powder and salt. Add a cup or two of water. Let this boil and cook covered for about 15 mins on medium flame.

3) Once the flavours have been absorbed into the potatoes, thicken the curry by adding the besan paste (if using) and allow to boil for some more minutes. Remove and garnish with coriander leaves.

Delicious Poori and Potato Masaal are now ready to be devoured: