Lentil stuffed deep fried puffed bread or kachori or radhaballavi with spicy dum aloo dry version.
Ingredients
For Radhaballavi / kachori
for the dough
All purpose flour / maida : 2 cups / 200-250 gm
Salt to taste
Oil : 1 tbsp for kneading
Warm water / milk : ½ cup + / - use accordingly
for the filling
Urad dal dhuli / biuli dal / skinned black lentil : 1 cup
Cumin and fennel seeds : ½ tsp each
Bhaja masala / dry roasted powder : 1 tsp (see the note)
Ginger : 1 inch
Mace powder : ½ tsp or small pinch of Bengali garam masala
Sugar : ½ tsp + /- as per the taste
Salt to taste
Oil : 1 tbsp
Green chillies : 1 tsp chopped
Oil for deep frying the kachori
For spicy dum aloo
Baby potatoes (boiled) ; 250 gm
Tomato puree / tomato paste with a piece of ginger : 2-3 tbsp
Roasted cumin powder : 1 tsp
Roasted chilli powder : 1 tsp
roasted corainder powder : ½ tsp
Turmeric powder : ½ tsp
Salt and sugar to taste
Oil : 2tbsp
Cilantro chopped : ¼ cup
Cloves, cinnamon and green cardamom : 2-3 piece
Instructions
To make the lentil stuffing
Wash and soak the lentil overnight. This will ensure the creaminess of paste.
In a mixer grinder, add the lentils without any water, ginger piece, green chillies and salt.
Grind to a medium fine paste.
In the pan, heat the oil. Add the cumin and fennel seeds and let it sizzle.
Add the lentil paste, stir it gently. Mix in the sugar, roasted powder, mace powder, check for the salt and stir it gently on low heat, till the lentil paste coagulates and incorporates the spices and flavours well.
This will take 5 minute time. Take the pan off the fire, let it cool, knead it lightly, and divide it into small balls.
prepare the dough
In a wide bowl, sift the flour with salt. Mix in the oil, rub the oil well with the flour till it resembles bread crumbs.
Add the warm water or milk gradually and knead the dough until you get a stiff but pliable dough.
this will take some 10 -12 minutes.
Cover the dough with damp kitchen towel and let it rest for an hour.
Prepare the dum aloo / dry potato curry
Peel the boiled potatoes. smear it with pinch of turmeric and salt.
Heat the mustard oil in the pan / kadhai.
Add the cloves, cinnamon and green cardamom. Let it sizzle.
Add the potatoes, and fry lightly on medium heat till they get the golden brownish hue.
Add the roasted cumin powder, roasted chilli powder, roasted coriander powder and mix in well.
Stir in the tomato puree or homemade tomato and ginger paste. add more turmeric powder if requires.
Fry it on high heat, stirring continuously.
Check for the seasonings, add sugar and salt to taste.
Lower the heat, add half cup warm water, cover and let it cook for another 5 minute.
Once the gravy get soaked up, stir in the chopped cilantro leaves and take it off the heat.
Serve warm with radhaballavis / kachori.
to make the radhaballavis / kachori
Knead lightly the dough for 2 minutes. Divide the dough into equal golf ball size.
Flatten the dough ball slightly in your palm to form a cup, place the lentil stuffing in the center, fold along the edges and reshape it into a ball.
Flatten the ball slightly and roll it out into a circle on floured surface, taking care that the filling does not comes out of it.
Repeat it with all the dough balls. This will make roughly 12 kachoris.
Heat the oil in a deep bottom pan. Once the oil is heated to its smoking point, quickly lower the heat to medium. try to maintain an even temperature.
Carefully lower the kachoris in hot oil and fry one at a time. Lightly press down the sides to make them puff. Turn once.
Remove the kachori from the hot oil and drain them on paper towel.
Serve immediately with spicy dum aloo or cholar dal.
Notes
Note for Bhaja masla / dry roasted powder : Dry roast one kashmiri red chill. Dry roast one teaspoon cumin powder and fennel seed powder, all separately. Grind them in coffee grinder to a fine powder.
Recipe by saffronstreaks at https://saffronstreaks.com/recipes/radhaballavi-kachori-and-spicy-aloor-dum-for-bengali-new-year/