Taro root recipes?

[worm@work]

Hi,

A new grocery store just opened outside our house and I got so excited on my very first visit to the store tht I ended up buying a bunch of unusual vegetables that I never really use in my daily cooking :(. So now I need help - If anyone knows any Indian recipes for these veggies, please help! I basically bought some taro root (does anyone know if this is the same a chepankazhangu in tamizh?). I also ended up buying a bunch of different varieties of squash (I figured I could use them the way my mom used basic yellow and white pumpkin in sambhars and such).

Any ideas will be much much appreciated since I suddenly feel very sad and inadequate about the range of vegetables I use in my cooking :(.

-worm@work

[gingerly]

a slight variation in spelling'seppang kizhangoo' is what i find for taro in tamil.i have one favourite recipe that i will post a little later.

[bong]

We bengalis also eat the green stalks of Taro... its called "Kochu Shaak". Its one of my favorites. Its basically made by first boiling the stalks for a long time, then mashing it into a paste, fry it in oil with some chick peas. My wife is the one who makes it, I will try to coax the recipe from her.

We also eat the taro root itself, but that part is not my favorite.

And you can use taro leaves to wrap fish and cook the whole thing.

[worm@work]

gingerly,

my bad :). I was using my palakkad iyer spelling while a tamilian would spell it more appropriately as seppan kazhangu.. that makes the vegetable a lot more familiar for me :).

bong, that taro stalk recipe sounds wonderful and different frm stuff I've tasted. Please coax your wife to share the recipe. I love the way we use these leaves to steam fish and other delicacies. I still remember the white stuffed sweet coconut filled pancakes my mom would steam in banana leaves. I remember the filling would also have small bits of jackfruit in it... so off topic but so yummy too :p.

-worm@work

[gingerly]

i tend to favour dryish preparations of arbi.this is my current favorite-from the penguin delhi cookbook again-cook your arbi/taro-i prefer steaming to boiling.peel,halve lengthwise and flatten.fry in hot oil til golden brown and crisp(i use some ghee for flavour though the original calls for just ghee.) pour over seasoning- a pinch of asafoetida,1/2 tsp of ajwain fried together in ghee for a minute and 1/2 tsp of red chilli powder and salt to taste stirred in after removing from heat.cover and cook on low heat for a few minutes more.

[Rushina]

Very versatile plant this...

In Garhwali food the leaves are made into Patyud alocal version of the famous gujerati Patra/maharashtran aduwadi). (the leaves are spread with a lentil/rice paste flavoured with ginger, amchur, garlic and green chillies and rolled up. these rolls are steamed then sliced and either deep fried or stirfried.) In Garhwal these are eaten with hing ka achaar (aafeotida pickle)

The leaves are also chopped up with the leaves of a local Pumpkin, tempered with Jakhiya (a local spice) and cooked into a vegetable.

At the height of summer the stalks are coated with a paste of Urad, dried, cut into chunks and stored. These chunks called nal badi are then stored for the next year and usually cooked into a curry with onions potatoes and tomatoes. The curry is eaten with rice.

The roots are also made into a curry pindaloo ka saag (basically aloo saag but with arbi instead of potatoes.)

I once had a baked arbi that was very nice. My friend's mother had boiled the roots, peeled them and then marinated them in a spiced yoghurt. She then baked them.

PLEASE be careful when handling Taro. the juice from the leaves and stems can stain your clothes irrepairably. Also coat your hands witha layer of oil (we use mustard but anything should work) to protect from the juice of the taro root. Else your hands will itch.

Rushina

[worm@work]

Wow, thanks for that tip rushina. I remember my mom mentioning many years ago that we always cook Arbi with a little tamarind in it, since otherwise it could be itchy on the throat. Versatile vegetable indeed... Also, now that you've mentioned aloo wadi.. do aloo leaves have an english name and are they available in the US?

I would love to make some at home! Unfortunately, I only found the roots at the store.. would love to get a hold of the other parts and try some of these other recipes too!

[Rushina]

Tamarind Amchur any souring agent is a must. I remember having Alu wadi without enuff of a souring agent - suffice to say it was not pleasant.

Alu vadi is the maharashtrian version of the patyud, maybe Monica could elaborate. It is pronounced "ADOO" . (I might have the spelling wrong)

Rushina

[rajsuman]

My mother makes this arbi chaat with it. She part-cooks the arbi by boiling it, skins it, squashes it somewhat between the palms of her hand, then deep-fries it. She'll then toss it in a mixture of fried jeera, chat masala, lemon juice and coriander leaves.

There's a recipe for it in Dakshin that I sometimes use (if I'm lucky enough to lay my hands on the vegetable) -Cut into small cubes, shallow fry until crisp then add some sort of kari masala. I'm sorry these are vague instructions, but I haven't made it in a long time and my book is with a friend.

Konkanis make a curry called humman out of it. With the leaves we make pathravde (similar to the Gujarati patra that Rushina mentions, but with a different filling), for which you put a hot and sour moong and coconut paste over the leaves, layer them up, make tight rolls out of them, then steam them. You can have it sliced as a side dish, pan-roasted or deep-fried or put them in a curry. Mmmmmm just the thought of them makes me feel hungry. My Punjabi friend makes 'paan ka bhajiya' with the leaves - she stuffs them with a besan paste.

Rushina, I'd love to hear more about the hing ka achaar.

Suman

Edited to include the 'hing ka achaar' bit.

Edited July 11, 2004 by rajsuman (log)

[worm@work]

Well, here's what I finally did with my taro root - I made a traditional south indian seppan kizhangu sabzi my mom used to make when I was still in school.

Here's a terribly out of focus and bad-looking picture

I promise you, it tastes much better than it looks! Basically steamed taro root added to a tadka of curry leaves with a masala of freshly ground roasted chana dal, tur dal, dried red chilles and a small qty of diluted tamarind. The tamarind gives it a slight zing that I really like!

-worm@work

p.s. Apologise for the bad picture.. will try harder next time around

[Episure]

I make it this way:

Arvi/Colocasia kababs

Steam

Peel

Salt and deep fry

Let cool and slightly flatten

Deep fry till brown and

Serve dusted with amchur and red chilli powder.

After your vegetarian guests have eaten tell them that it was fish.

[Rushina]

Rushina, I'd love to hear more about the hing ka achaar.

I am going to be a little painful and describe the Hing ka achar on the Pickle thread because it deserves its place in the limelight!

Rushina

[Episure]

Rushina,

Taro recipe keeanh che?

[Suzanne F]

One question, if I may: are you all talking about the small (fist-size) taro or the American-football size monsters? Or can they be used interchangeably in these recipes?

[gingerly]

i've been using two kinds-one the size and shape of largish eggs and another smaller one which is the kind more common in india-like stubby little fingers.the latter i find are great for chips(being a little drier in texture and easily sliced into a nice chip size) and the former for those flattened 'faux fishcakes' that Episure alluded to.i haven't tried anything larger but these two should certainly be interchangeable.

[Rushina]

http://www.wcc.hawaii.edu/commsvcs/taro/recipes.htm

Heres something I found while surfing

Rushina

[Monica Bhide]

I make it this way:

Arvi/Colocasia kababs

Steam

Peel

Salt and deep fry

Let cool and slightly flatten

Deep fry till brown and

Serve dusted with amchur and red chilli powder.

After your vegetarian guests have eaten tell them that it was fish.

This really sounds good