Saturday, February 6, 2010

Yam Fry






I think highly starchy foods like potatoes, yam, sweet potatoes etc etc have to rank highly on the popularity scale. Potatoes needless to say will top the list worldwide. Though much maligned now because of all the health conscious folks out there. But in my opinion there has to be some good to it too. Most foods eaten in moderation are good for you. Yams have a lot of pluses. They contain small amounts of Vitamin B and lots of vitamin C. They also provide iron. They are a very good source of energy. They need to be paired with other foods to balance out the lack of other nutrients.
They can be stored for long periods of time without going bad.

But there are a few local vegetables that are unique to each country. I think this is one of those "local " vegetables. It is also known as Kanda in Telugu, Sena Kizhangu in Tamil and Suran in Hindi.

Ever since we turned vegetarian, one thing that my husband misses is fish fry. He used to enjoy it so much. But now he cannot imagine eating it at all.
Yam fry is a very suitable vegetarian substitute for fish. It looks like masala fried fish and tastes somewhat like it too. Very simple to make. This was introduced to us by our cook lady who makes it really well. It is a very sought after dish at our lunch table.








Ingredients:


500 grams Yam
lime sized tamarind soaked in 1/4 cup of water and juice extracted
1 teaspoon red chilli powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
salt to taste
Oil to fry

Method

Peel and slice the yam into 2" X 3 " X 1/2 " pieces.
Boil in lightly salted water till almost cooked (do not over cook as it may disintegrate while frying)
Mix the tamarind juice and the powders.
Soak the boiled yam in this for an hour or so till it absorbs the flavors.
When ready to serve, heat a pan. Place the pieces on a medium hot pan in single layers. Pour little oil over each piece. Turn over when golden brown and fry the other side.
Serve hot.

ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!!