Last weekend, while enjoying a cold beer, I noticed a beautiful byzantine-style mosaic featuring a design of a Colocasia leaf. The sight, combined with the bubbling beer, felt like a celebration. I thought it would be nice to pair the beer with something traditional and delicious in the rainy weather. So, instead of the usual peanuts and chips, I finished my drink quickly and went to the vegetable market to buy some fresh Colocasia leaves to make my childhood favourite dish, Alu Vadi.
Colocasia roots and leaves are rich in carbohydrates, protein, dietary minerals, and various micronutrients, and are consumed in various forms around the world. I prefer the leaves over the root, but I am curious to try Poi, a Hawaiian dish made from the starchy underground stem of the plant. Maybe I’ll even put my spin on the recipe. Now, let’s head back to the kitchen and make some delicious Alu Vadi.
P.S.: Next on my list is to make Kolokasi chips (that’s how they are pronounced in Rome) so when in Rome, do as the Romans do.
Alu vadi batter
Ingredients
Gram flour – 3 cups
Garlic cloves – 6
Ginger – small
Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Red chilli powder- 2tsp
Coriander powder- 2 tsp
Salt – as per taste
Fresh lemon juice – 1tsp
Oil-2tsp
- Take all the ingredients of the batter in a mixing bowl. add 50 ml of water.
- Stir and mix thoroughly to make a thick batter or paste. Ensure there are no lumps. Set aside.
- The consistency of the batter should be thick so that it can be spread easily on colocasia leaves. Preparation of colocasia leaves:
- Rinse a few times in water and later pat dry 20 medium to large-sized colocasia leaves with a kitchen napkin.
- Slice the stalk from the base of the leaf.
- Place the leaf with the veins facing you and slice the middle vein right through the centre, taking care not to break the leaf.
- Place the leaf with the vein sides facing downwards and the tip facing you. Apply the prepared gram flour batter.
- Before beginning to roll, sort the leaves and place the largest one at the bottom and continue to keep the medium and smaller ones as you stack them up
- Now, place another leaf with the tip in the opposite direction. Placing the leaves in the opposite direction helps them to roll easily.
- Apply the batter on the second leaf.
- Completely cover the leaf with the gram flour batter.
- Apply the batter on this leaf too.
- Finish off all the 5 leaves this way.
- Begin to tightly roll the leaves and keep on applying the batter with each fold on the top.
- I made 4 rolls from 4 batches of 20 leaves. Each roll had 5 leaves. Place these rolls in a greased steamer pan.
- Steam for 15 to 20 minutes in a steamer.
- The leaves and the batter will be completely cooked. The rolls will also hold shape and become firm after cooking.
- When warm or cooled, cut the steamed pathrode rolls into ½-inch thick spirals.
- Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a pan or kadai (wok). Keep heat to low or medium-low.
- Deep fry the alu vadi till it turns dark brown and keep aside.
- Garnish with coriander leaves and sesame seeds.
