Mangalore Aloo Bonda

Well...The winter has started to crawl slowly... The days are shortening... Sun is hiding behind the black-gloomy clouds. This is not a best part of the time for me. I'm not sure if its just me who feels this way. But no denying the fact that winter has its own charm...

Yesterday was one of those days...Dark, dingy and gloomy... By the time me and my hubby reached home it felt like 9 O'Clock at night, when actually it was just few minutes past 5. Both of were craving for something hot and spicy. I didn't have all that energy to start cooking after tiring day in office and long walk back home. But my fridge didn't put me down. I had potato bhaji which we had prepared for Masala Dosa for our breakfast and first thing came to my mind was Aloo Bonda. As the stuffing for Bonda is same as Bhaji for Dosa, all I had to do was prepare just batter and fry them.

Mangalore Aloo Bonda

Well... Aloo Bonda are deep fried balls made of potatoes, dipped in spicy gram flour batter. Aloo Bonda is similar to a samosa in that it's a fried spiced potato fritter-y thing. That's where the similarities end. The Aloo Bonda is a stunner when dipped into the coconut chutney. They are very popular in my home town Mangalore. When it comes to popularity, this street food is as popular as any other chats and chatpatas. In every nook and corner you will find Aloo Bonda Gaadi with Gaadiwala busy making these amazing hot bondas and dozens of people slurping hot cup of 'Kaapi' and enjoying Bondas.

Aloo Bonda

Ingredients:
2 medium Potatoes, cooked, peeled and mashed
1/2 tsp of Cumin Seeds
1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 tsp Urad Dal
3-4 Green Chillies, chopped finely
1/2 tsp Ginger, finely chopped
1 small Onion, finely chopped (optional)
1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder
2 tbsp chopped Coriander Leaves
Salt to taste
2 tbsp Lemon Juice
Oil for Deep frying

For Batter:
1 cup Gram Flour/Besan
1 tbsp Rice Flour
1/4 tsp Baking Soda(optional)
2 tsp Red Chilli Powder

Chai ke saath...Aloo Bonda

Method:
Heat about two tbls of oil.
Add mustard seeds and when the seeds start to crackle, add the cumin seeds, green chili, salt, ginger and garlic and fry for few seconds.
To this add chopped onion and turmeric powder.
When the onions tuen transparent add mashed potatoes, coriander leaves and lemon juice. Mix well and turn off the heat.
Let the mixture cool and then shape them into lemon sized balls.
Make a thick batter with Besan/Gram flour, rice flour, salt, red chili powder, baking soda and water.
Dip the potato balls into the batter and carefully drop in the oil.
Turn it every four minutes and remove from oil when it turns golden brown.
Serve with tamarind or green chutney or tomato sauce.

Aloo Bonda Filling

Variations:
Add few pieces of Cashew nuts with mashed potatoes. They make a big difference.
You can also add cooked green peas to it.