Garam Masala Tuesdays: Roasted Stuffed Potatoes

I started this blog in July 2010 mainly as a way to keep myself occupied and also to document the recipes I was trying as a newly wed. It helped, that as a result, my recipes would all be at one place. But, very soon it became my lifeline.

My mom used to love cooking. Now, not as much. She has had her share of kitchen time and now just wants to be at the receiving end.

Well, I couldn’t go through her whole collection but I got plenty to keep me going this year- and that means lot of new recipes from me to you.

More importantly, I got plenty spice for my weekly GMT too.

I know I have not been regular the past three months with my weekly Tuesday posts. But amongst my other new year resolutions, being regular with GMT is also there. Way up there.

Today, I thought I will share an Indian appetizer for Garam Masala Tuesdays.

These roasted stuffed potato recipe is from my mom’s collection.

Its actually from a paper that had this recipe printed and sent to her by one of the Air Force mess staff.

A version of this recipe is also made at my in-laws place during parties. My mom in law loves this recipe for its simplicity, ease to make and of course its taste. Whenever the cook at her house makes it, its an instant hit with her guests. And that’s what happened with me too.

I made these on my birthday for the small get together we had at our house.

When I made them I wasn’t able to photograph the final version before serving it to my friends.

I thought I would be left with some pieces to photograph the next day but nothing of what I served was left.

These small things were an absolute hit.

And rightly so.

I am not the one to blow my own trumpet, but when you stuff potatoes with a spiced cottage cheese filling and then roast it basted with butter, what you have is pure bliss in your mouth! And that, my friends, has to be shared with one and all.

Luckily I had some stuffing left, so I made them again for just V and me as a snack to have on the weekend (of course, the hidden motive was to get some shots for the blog). With chilled bottles of beer, and these to snack on, I could have not asked for anything else.

ROASTED POTATOES STUFFED WITH MASALA PANEER FILLING

Ingredients

• 8-10 potatoes of similar size (I used russet)

For filling: (the filling is good for 8 potatoes, but it depends on the size of the potatoes)

• 3/4 cup paneer/Indian cottage cheese (you can find paneer at your local Indian store or can make it at home as well. There are plenty recipes online. I have not made it at home yet but when I do I will definitely post about it. You could use soft tofu, if you would like and make it vegan)
• mashed potatoes which are leftover after scooping the parboiled potatoes,
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 4-5 green chillies, diced (deseeded, if you can’t handle too much heat)
• 1/2 tsp garam masala
• 1/2 tsp chaat masala, (see note below)
• 1/2 tsp amchur (both chaat masala and amchoor add some tang to the filling. You could substitute with a little lemon juice, roasted cumin powder and black salt, if you don’t have the above on hand)
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tbsp cashew (you could add raisins as well but I am not a big fan of them)
• 1/4 cup onions, diced
• 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 2 tbsp of finely chopped coriander leaves
• melted butter, to baste the potatoes

Directions

1. Parboil the potatoes for 10-15 minutes (It took me longer about 20 minutes since the potatoes I had on hand were quite big in size). You should be able to pierce them with a fork. Do not over boil the potatoes. You don’t want them too soft. Cover and keep them aside.
2. Scoop the potatoes with a round spoon or peeler.

Note: I used the peeler to scoop out the potatoes. I think a melon ball scooper would do the trick, but a peeler and a pairing knife works well for me. To scoop, first slice the potato in half.  With a pairing knife mark the part of the potato you would like to scoop out, leaving out 1/4 inch space around the edges. Carefully, scoop out the inside of the potato with the peeler/spoon or melon ball. (I have tried to explain it through diagrams- hopefully these help and not confuse you further!)

For the filling:

1. Preheat the oven to 250 C/450 F.
2. In a food processor, add the paneer, cheese, onions, coriander, cashew and the scooped out potato. Add all the masalas and pulse for a few seconds till everything is well combined. You can do this by hand in a big bowl. In case you do not use the food processor, finely chop the cashew and mash paneer and potatoes before adding them in.
3. Fill the scooped out potato with the paneer-potato filling.
4. Brush the side, bottom and top of the potato with melted butter. Brush it nicely with butter. Really that’s just how its done.
5. Bake for 30-40 minutes till golden brown.
6. Serve sprinkled with some spring onions and chilli flakes. You could also sprinkle some sea salt, for added measure.

Notes:

To Make Ahead:

• These can be made ahead. To reheat, you could put them back in the oven, or reheat on the stove top. If reheating on stove top, heat some oil in a pan, and saute them till they are well heated.

• You could also parboil the potatoes on a free day and keep them in your fridge (for about 48hrs) and peel and scoop them out only when ready to make.

To serve and variations:

• These can be served, cut in halves. If you are using bigger potatoes, you can cut into smaller pieces. I cut mine into 3-4 pieces.
• Instead of the oven, you could also roast these in a fry pan, with some oil, for 15-20 minutes till golden brown.
• This appetizer can be turned into a main dish by adding a  tomato gravy. You can also make them sweet instead of spicy by using pineapple and dry fruits.
• This can be made vegan by omitting the cheese and using tofu instead of paneer.

* There is a good description of chaat masala that I found online. The post also includes a recipe for your own homemade chaat masala. Click here for the post.