Gateau Piment or Mauritian Chili Fritters

SortedFood made them this week. They remind me a lot of Parippu vada from Sri Lanka.

But the base are yellow split peas not yellow lentils. This means soaking time in water is 24 hrs in stead of 40 minutes.

I saw this streetfood at some foodtruck in the South of Mauritius. Fried balls stuffed in a piece of bread.

Onion and green onions and lots of coriander is in these balls. Cumin, dried chili, salt, pepper and Mauritian Masala.

The drained yellow split peas go in a blender with onions and cumin seeds. Chop coriander and green from the onions very fine. Get everything mixed together and made in a paste. If it is too wet, add some panko breadcrumbs.

Form walnut size balls and heat up the frying oil to 180 C. Fry for 8 min. Serve on top of baguette with some sour cream spread.

Ingredients:

120 g yellow split peas - soaked 24 hrs

1 shallot, 2 green onions

1/2 bunch coriander

1 tsp salt, cumin, masala

1/2  - 1 tsp chili flakes, pepper

1 tsp baking soda

Frying oil

Baguette, sour cream

Pollock and Vegetable Oven Bake

Pollock was on sale yesterday at the fishmonger. The prices for fresh fish have gone so high, that I try to look for offers and use them instead of the more expensive seafood. 

This kind of fish will fall apart if you do too much with it. Putting it in a baking dish and covering it with veggies keeps the fish in one piece. At least as long, as you not try to get it out of the baking dish. But that is no problem.

Recipe for 1:

250 g pollock

Fish seasoning, pepper

Olive oil

1/2 red bell pepper

1 green onion

1 celery stalk

3 smaller tomatoes

5 Kalamata olives

Parsley, salt and pepper

Rice

Preheat the oven 220 C.

Get the rice cooker going.

Put a little oil in the baking dish. Season the patted dry pollock and place it in the dish.

Cut up the veggies and place them on top. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle more olive oil on top.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Okra and Tomatoes or Masala Bhindi

I was at a Turkish supermarket a 15 minute drive away. Our local one had closed its doors last summer.

I was looking for yellow lentils and yellow split peas and coriander. I found them, but show me someone going to a nice supermarket and not buying more stuff. I came out with a lot more, cheeses, sweets, canned stuff. Driving 15 minutes for just 3 items is a waste of gas/petrol.

Beside the coriander was a box with okras. Very rare to get here in other supermarkets. I nneded to buy some.

Recipe:

175 g Okra, top and tailed

3 small onion

5 smaller tomatoes

2 tsp garlic/ginger paste

2 tbsp grapeseed oil

1/2 tsp each ground cumin, coriander, tumeric

Salt and pepper

1/2 cup water

fresh coriander

Oil for deep frying

I had my pot with frying oil from the last 2 recipes still on the stove, covered with some foil for reuse. I heated it up and deep fried the ocra for 5 minutes. 

In a pan I started with heating up the grapeseed oil and sauteed the onions for 5 min. The garlic/ginger paste followed. Then the tomatoes cut in wedges. 

In with the spices and after 2 more min add the water. Reduce the heat and cook until the tomatoes are mush. Maybe add a bit more water. 

Season with salt and pepper and add the fried ocra to warm through. Finish with chopped coriander.

.

Liver Dumplings deep fried

A Bavarian kind of dumpling with an unusual way of preparing it.

These big and grey dumplings are often served as a starter in a clear beef broth with some parsley. As a main dish they are setved with sauerkraut and mashed potatoes.

I was not looking for a traditional dish and checked the internet for an other idea. Deep fried with a crunchy coating sounded good. Combining them with pappardelle and red pesto made the liver dumplings in a great Sunday dinner.

I bought the dumplings at my local butcher. Nobody is making them at home. But they are mostly common in the South of Germany. I was lucky to find fresh made ones here.

Coating:

1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs

1 egg, salt and pepper

2 tbsp flour

Coat them twice in egg and panko.

At 180 C in the deep fat fryer for 8 to 10 minutes

Serve with pesto pasta.

Yellow Lentil Balls vegan or Parippu Vada

This is Street Food from Sri Lanka.

This vegan dish reminds me a lot of the Falaffel of the Middle East. But the spices and lots of onions makes these Lentil Balls much tastier. 

Yellow Lentils or Dhal are not so easily found here. I needed to take a trip to a Turkish supermarket to buy these.

The lentils are soaked in cold water for about 40 minutes, then drained. All the gunk that floats on top of the water should go first. I fished it out with a strainer. Do not leave a lot of water in the bowl with the drained lentils, they should be dry before they go in the blender.

Add fennel seeds and curry leaves to the lentils and 1/2 tsp of salt. Make a paste, but not too fine.

Use gloves, otherwise you have the chili on your hands. 

Add all other finely chopped ingredients and mash that with your hands to a sticky paste.

 Form it to balls or patties. 

Put oil in a pot to deep fry or use a deep fat fryer. At 180 C until the balls are nicely brown.

Eat them as they are or with some soy yogurt dip.

Air Fryer Pork Belly with Maple Mustard Sauce

Depending on the size of your air fryer, you have to do multiple batches.

But for a single serving, on run was enough. The skin gets very crackly and I recommend using some air fryer paper to get out all of the grease as easy as possible.

The slices of pork belly are patted dry with some kitchen paper, seasoned with salt and pepper and sprayed with a little avocado oil.

At 200 C for 20 min baking time.

Sauce:

50 ml maple syrup

2 tsp Dijon mustard

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

I served it with a unsweetened yeast dumpling and a red bell pepper salad. 

Spaghettini with Guanciale and Mortadella Panini

I was shopping at an Italian Mercato a couple of miles outside of the city.

Using a testdrive for an electric car, it brought me here without any difficulties and I enjoyed my drive.

The food haul started with awesome fresh bread and very thin cut Mortadella sausage. A huge piece of sausage was cut up. Then I bought a chunk of pork cheek, Guanciale. Some Pecorino came then.

All other stuff I bought was random.

For lunch I took some if the sesame covered bread, added some goat cream cheese and lots of slices of Mortadella. 

For dinner a pan with Guanciale gave smoke to my kitchen. With some grated Pecorino, an egg yolk and some of the grease from the pan and a little pasta water a creamy sauce for the spaghettini was created.