Bengali Veg Chop is a croquette made with beetroot and potatoes . This Bengali speciality has a soft interior and crispy exterior and tastes fabulous .
These chops were one of the first ones to be made for this marathon . Deep fried chops ! I was so hesitant to make , hubby would clearly say No ! Why didn’t you use the air fryer ? Is it only for show ? And so many more questions and accusations ! Well , whenever I am making some new dish , i like to go the authentic way – so fried I made . The reaction on serving – fried ? I kept shut for a minute – just taste , don’t eat . Hubby had a bite and said – what is it ? It’s really good , really crunchy ! After that bite he had two of these chops . I was happy that he liked them , so did the rest . Sometimes I wonder why so much fuss ! It’s okay to have fried food in moderation .
I made the bhaja masala and loved the flavour it imparted to these chops . I wish I had made a big batch to add this flavorful spice to my curries and sabzis . Anyways it can always be made when required , it surely is simple and so quick to make . Besides the fresh masalas always impart a wonderful aroma to the dishes .
These chops are made with beetroot and potatoes , beetroot being sweet , it’s best to keep them little on the spicier side . Once the rolls are done they have to be dipped in a very thin besan batter . The batter consistency should be really thin else it will taste like a pakora ! Once dipped coat it generously with bread crumbs , after frying these bread crumbs give an excellent crunch and texture to these chops . While frying make sure you do not fry all together . Fry two or three chops at a time and the heat should be adjusted accordingly . Serve the chops right away and I assure you they will vanish in a jiffy !
Jiffy ! Yes this is the last day of the Mega Marathon and I feel it’s really got over in a jiffy ! Well this is how life is … each day just flies !
We have come to the end of one more marathon , though this time the number of participants was less , but we are looking at a better number in April 2020 ! Where we have a very interesting and my favourite theme of Thalis !
Thanks Valli for picking up this theme , thank you friends for all the wonderful recipes , it has been a great learning experience .
Recipe Source ; Bong Mom
Bengali Veg Chop
Ingredients
3 potatoes
1/4 cup roasted peanuts
2-4 green chillies , pounded
2 tbsp ginger , pounded
3 tsp bhaja masala
2 tsp red chilly powder
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves
For coating
1/4 cup chickpeas flour
Salt to taste
For rolling
Bread crumbs
Method
Peel and chop the beetroots and carrots .
Pressure cook till tender , drain theroadted peanuts , excess water .
Mash the vegetables .
Boil the potatoes , peel and mash them .
Mix the beetroot, carrots and potatoes .
Heat 2 tbsp oil .
Add the peanuts and roast them lightly .
Add the green chillies and ginger paste .
Sauté for a minute and add the mashed veggies .
Add bhaja masala , red chilly powder , salt to taste .
Mix everything well so that there is no moisture and the mix is completely dry .
Remove the mix in a wide plate , let cool .
Add the coriander leaves , mix again .
Check the spices and adjust according to your taste .
Make rolls and keep aside .
Coating
Make a very thin paste of chickpea flour and water . Add salt .
For rolling
Pulse the bread slices and make bread crumbs. Assembling
Dip the prepared rolls into the watery chickpea batter . Roll them into breadcrumbs .
Heat oil and deep fry the chops till golden and crisp . Serve hot with tomato ketchup .
Bhaja Masala
Ingredients
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 tsp coriander seeds
4 cloves
1 cardamom
1/2” stick cinnamon
10 peppercorns
2-3 whole red chillies
1 bay leaf
Method
Roast all the ingredients over slow flame till crisp and aromatic . Cool and grind them to a fine powder .
Here are some more dishes from this cuisine –
Week 1 Sweets
Day1 Gajjar Halwa Spring Rolls
Day 2 Gajjar Halwa Cups with Badaam Pista Kesar Ice cream
Day 3 Motichoor Cheese Cake
Day 4 Kesari Mango Shrikhand with Roasted Almonds
Day 5 Kesari Phirni with Mango & Nuts
Day 6 Rabdi
Week 2 Gujrat – City Specific Specialities
Day 7 Dry Fruit Kachori – Jamnagar Special
Day 8 Papad nu Chavanu – Khambat Special
Day 9 Tum Tum – Nadiad Special
Day 10 Tikha Ganthia – Bhavnagar Special
Day 11 Leelo Chevdo – Vadodara Special
Day 12 Limbu Mari ne Sev
Week 3 Gujrat Festival Special
Day 13 Bajri na Vada
Day 14 Methi Poori
Day 15 Fulwadi
Day 16 Farsi Poori
Day 17 Sada Khakhra – in a griller toster
Day 18 Besan Sev
Week 4 State Specials
Day 19 Pappu Chekkalu -Andhra Pradesh Special
Day 20 Handvo – Gujarat Special
Day 21 Ratlami Sev – Madhya Pradesh Special
Day 22 Kotambir Vadi – Maharashtra Special
Day 23 Kalmi Vada – Rajasthan Special
Day 24 Ooty Varky – Tamil Nadu Special
Day 25 Dahi Gujiya – Uttar Pradesh Special
Bengali Veg Chop
Ingredients
For Chops
- 3 potatoes
- 1/4 cup roasted peanuts
- 2-4 green chillies pounded
- 2 tbsp ginger pounded
- 3 tsp bhaja masala
- 2 tsp red chilly powder
- Salt to taste
- coriander leaves
For coating
- 1/4 cup chickpeas flour
- Salt to taste
- For rolling
- bread crumbs
Bhaja Masala
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
- 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
- 4 cloves
- 1 cardamom
- 1/2 stick cinnamon
- 10 peppercorns
- 2-3 whole red chillies
- 1 bay leaf
Instructions
For Chops
- Peel and chop the beetroots and carrots .
- Pressure cook till tender , drain theroadted peanuts , excess water .
- Mash the vegetables .
- Boil the potatoes , peel and mash them .
- Mix the beetroot, carrots and potatoes .
- Heat 2 tbsp oil .
- Add the peanuts and roast them lightly .
- Add the green chillies and ginger paste .
- Sauté for a minute and add the mashed veggies .
- Add bhaja masala , red chilly powder , salt to taste .
- Mix everything well so that there is no moisture and the mix is completely dry .
- Remove the mix in a wide plate , let cool .
- Add the coriander leaves , mix again .
- Check the spices and adjust according to your taste .
- Make rolls and keep aside .
Coating
- Make a very thin paste of chickpea flour and water . Add salt .
For rolling
- Pulse the bread slices and make bread crumbs. Assembling
- Dip the prepared rolls into the watery chickpea batter . Roll them into breadcrumbs .
- Heat oil and deep fry the chops till golden and crisp . Serve hot with tomato ketchup .
Bhaja Masala
- Roast all the ingredients over slow flame till crisp and aromatic . Cool and grind them to a fine powder .
Beautiful presentation and that chop platter looks tempting. At my home, I hesitate to fry and my husband is deprived of fried food. I pushed these chops, gujiyas, and one more fried item till the end but ended up doing veg chops twice. BTW the word thaali scares me but my husband would jump with joy if I mention about the theme. 🙂
I adapted mine from her’s too and enjoyed it. Your chops have turned out great Vaishali. Since I made two versions, I still have some frozen!..What a marathon its been Vaishali! Time surely flies and with so many questions and hesitations, we still managed to complete. Thanks to your push, I even managed to both the blogs!..hahaha..Looking fwd to the next bang!
Fantastic Vaishali. Those chops look amazing. Your presentation has been a highlight of this marathon. Your props and your sense of styling is excellent. It was truly a learning experience.
Beautifully done chops Vaishali and of course your presentation is simply mind blowing. I agree with Harini, your presentation of dishes has been a highlight.
Lovely presentation Vaishali, veg chops looks just awesome. It was great being a part of this mega marathon with you, loved all your dishes.
Drooling over the pictures. Loved the way you have used besan flour for coating and Bhaja masala surely takes it to next level. I used garam masala next time should try with bhaja masala.