Potato bhaji latkes

We have taken the spices and flavours of an Indian-inspired potato bhaji to create a new Monday Morning Cooking Club Chanukah tradition: golden, spiced potato pancakes garnished with fresh coriander and red chilli. Guaranteed to shake up any Chanukah party.

Baji latkes by the Monday Morning Cooking Club. Credit: Alan Benson

• serves

  4

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  30 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 600 g Desiree potatoes
• 2 tbsp oil, plus extra to fry the latkes
• 1 tsp yellow mustard seeds
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 onion, halved and finely sliced
• 2 tsp  ground cumin
• 2 tbsp ground coriander
• ½ tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 tbsp plain flour (heaped)

To serve

• 1 long red chilli, chopped
• ½ bunch coriander
• chopped lemon wedges

Instructions

1. Peel and coarsely grate the potatoes. Place in a colander for 15 minutes to drain.
2. Meanwhile, in a large frying pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the mustard and cumin seeds and stir for 3 minutes. Take care, as the mustard seeds will pop. Add the onion and sauté gently for around 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add the cumin, coriander, turmeric and salt, and sauté for a further 3 minutes, stirring. Remove from the pan and set aside.
3. Squeeze the grated potato with your hands to remove any liquid and tip it into a large bowl. Add the egg, flour and fried onion mixture and taste for seasoning. If necessary, add salt and pepper. Mix well.
4. Add enough extra oil to the frying pan to reach a depth of about 1 cm (1⁄2 inch). When the oil is hot, carefully add a tablespoon of the potato mixture to make round potato cakes. Flatten slightly and fry over medium heat for a few minutes on each side until golden brown. Drain on a paper towel.
5. Serve hot, sprinkled with chopped chilli, fresh coriander leaves and a wedge of lemon.

 

Recipe from Now for Something Sweet by Monday Morning Cooking Club (Harper Collins 2020) and reproduced with permission of the author. Photo by Alan Benson.

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.