Try this raw banana cutlet recipe for a guilt-free, scrumptious, onion and garlic free treat! Even kids who are not fans of plantains will surely devour these up in no time. Best of all, these are super easy to make!
Ingredients (makes around 12-15 cutlets):
- Raw bananas/green plantains (2 medium sized ones)
- Singoda flour (water chestnut flour) (3 heaped tsp) (can be replaced by bengal gram flour/besan)
- Raw peanuts (handful)
- Coriander powder (1/2 tsp)
- Cumin powder (1/2 tsp)
- Turmeric/haldi powder (1/4 tsp)
- Asafetida/hing powder (a pinch)
- Ginger (crushed) (1/2 tsp)
- Green chilies (crushed) (1/3 tsp or per taste)
- Salt (to taste)
- Lemon juice (1.5 tbsp)
- Coriander leaves (finely chopped) (1 tbsp)
Method:
- Pressure cook the raw bananas until they are well cooked, but not mushy. I cut them into 1 inch pieces and pressure cooked them for 2 whistles and 5 minutes on simmer.
- Let the cooked bananas cool down and grate them. Keep aside.
- Add singoda flour to the grated bananas.
- Dry roast/toast the peanuts until golden brown. Remove the peels and roughly crush them.
- Add crushed peanuts, dry spices, salt, ginger, green chilies, coriander leaves and lemon juice into the banana-flour mixture.
- Mix well, adjust tastes as necessary and shape them into tiny balls and flatten them.
- Shallow fry them on a pan using a little ghee/oil.
- Serve these delicious cutlets as is or sprinkled with some chaat masala and/or with a side of green chutney or tamarind/imli chutney!
Tastes (Rasa):
Sweet (raw bananas, flour, oil), sour (lemon), salty (salt), bitter (turmeric), pungent (ginger, chilies), astringent (raw bananas, asafetida).
Doshic Influence:
Plantains are good for both pittas and kaphas. If they are not cooked well, they can be vata aggravating due to their dry, cold nature. Adding digestive spices like ginger, coriander, cumin, turmeric, asafetida and such adds to the digestibility and enhances the flavor.
Effects on the Mind (Gunas):
This is an upvas/Hindu ritualistic fasting recipe since it is made using singoda flour and raw bananas. I have avoid adding garlic and onion to this recipe, making it a very sattvic one – mildly flavored and nourishing.