I like to butter the base for a super toasty finish without it getting too dry (I use soft vegan butter from a tub or you can use regular butter if you’re not vegan). These vegan sesame toasts are loosely based on the much-loved Sesame Prawn Toasts or Shrimp Toasts you get in Chinese restaurants.

So what replaces the shrimp?

I spent ages thinking about what could replace the sticky shrimp that tops the bread before it gets dipped in a sea of creamy-coloured sesame seeds. Mogo (also known as cassava) was the winning answer! The rich texture of mashed mogo (pronounced Muhogo in Swahili to those from East Africa) is the perfect natural glue to capture hundreds of tiny sesame seeds. It also has a neutral flavour so you can spice up the mixture however you like. I went for a bit of a Desi Chinese/Indo Chinese mix, using ginger, spring onions, chillies, coriander, lemon juice and soy sauce. You can also add a pinch of garam masala or Chinese 5-spice if you like. After slathering sliced white bread (or brown bread if you prefer that) with the spiced mogo mash, I pressed it face-down in a sea of sesame so it stuck to it like beads to glue. It reminded me so much of doing arts and crafts at school! Of course, you can use any bread you like, as long as it’s thin or medium thick slices from a loaf. Super chunky rolls might throw the bread:filling:sesame ratio off.

The beauty of these golden toast triangles is that they’re not deep fried like conventional sesame toast from takeaways and restaurants. I popped them right into the basket of my air fryer for a crazy-crispy finish without all the grease. They’re light, buttery and so perfect as a party starter or just with chai. If I was throwing a vegetarian Indo-Chinese dinner, I’d make these Air Fryer Mogo Toasts alongside Chilli Paneer, Vegetable Momos, Garlic Mogo, and Tofu Noodles.

It’s such a simple recipe to make.

I start by boiling frozen mogo (cassava) in salted water until very tender, then drain and mash immediately using a potato masher. You can use fresh, peeled mogo if you have access to that. If not, pick up a bag in the frozen section of your local supermarket. It is sometimes labelled Yuca too. The reason why you need to mash it straight away is because as it cools, the starches in the mogo get to work, making it difficult to mash effectively. I don’t recommend using a food processor because it will become glue-like in consistency. Just go in with a potato masher and remember that a few small lumps are fine.

Next, I add the following ingredients: finely chopped spring onions (white and green parts), chopped chillies, grated ginger, lemon juice, chopped fresh coriander, light soy sauce and a little bit of salt if required. Taste the mixture to see if it needs the salt before you add it as the soy sauce is salty. Like potatoes, mogo calls for a generous amount of seasoning. You can also add a pinch or two of garam masala or Chinese 5-spice if you like but it’s great without if you don’t have it. I personally like to make it without. Give everything a good mix.

Now, take a slice of bread and butter one side with softened butter. I use softened vegan butter from a tub but you can also use regular butter if you’re not vegan. This buttered side will be the base of the toast. Place it on a plate, buttered side down (some of the butter might come off onto the plate a little but don’t worry about that). Spread the naked (unbuttered) side with 2-3 tablespoons of the spice mogo mash and use a knife or the back of a spoon to spread it out evenly. Be sure to take it right to the edges of the bread.

Pour out some sesame seeds on to a separate plate and place the bread, mogo face down right on top of the seeds to encrust the entire surface. Pick the bread up and make sure all the seeds are pressed in (be gentle!). Set aside and repeat for the remaining bread slices. My recipe should make 6 full slices of toast (to be cut into triangles later) but it will depend on the size of your bread slices. In any case, the recipe should feed 4-6 people as a starter/appetizer.

Pre-heat your air fryer to 200ºC for 3 minutes to get it nice and hot and place your first slice directly into the basket, sesame side up. Cook for 4-5 minutes or until nicely golden all over. You can remove it halfway to dab some extra butter on top for extra toasty sesame seeds but that’s a personal choice. Remove from the air fryer using a large flat spatula and with a sharp knife, slice into four even triangles. Repeat this process for the remaining toasts. You can keep the toasts warm in a low oven while you make the rest. Serve immediately, garnished with extra chopped spring onion greens.

Don’t have an air fryer? Cook the toasts in a conventional oven at 200ºC. Just place the slices on an oven-safe wire rack with a baking tray underneath. This will ensure the heat circulates around the toast evenly, preventing a soggy base.

Ready for the recipe? Let’s go!

Print

Air-Fryer Sesame Mogo Toast

My lighter, vegan take sesame prawn toast using lightly-spiced cassava or mogo.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine African, American, Indian

Keyword african, cassava, healthy, mogo, vegan

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Author Sanjana

Ingredients

• 6 slices white or wholemeal bread
• 2 tbsp vegan butter
• 40 g white sesame seeds
• 250 g frozen mogo (also known as cassava or yuca)
• 2 spring onions (finely chopped)
• 2 tsp grated ginger
• 2 chillies (finely chopped)
• 2 tbsp fresh coriander (finely chopped)
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1/4 tsp salt
• Juice of 1/2 a lemon
• Extra chopped spring onion greens, for garnishing

Instructions

• 1. Boil the mogo in salted water until tender. Drain and mash whilst hot (it won't mash if it's cold). You're after a puréed texture but some small lumps are fine. A potato masher is the best tool for this - don't use a food processor or it will become like wallpaper paste.
• 2. Add the spring onions, chilli, ginger, lemon juice, coriander, soy sauce and salt. Mix thoroughly.
• 3. Spread one side of a bread slice with butter. Flip it over and spread 2-3 tbsp of the mashed mogo mixture on top, right to the edges. Repeat for all of the bread slices. Remember, the buttered side should be on the base.
• 4. Place the sesame seeds on a plate and place the cassava side of the bread face down, directly into the sesame seeds to encrust the entire surface. Pick the slice up and keep aside on a tray whilst you repeat for the remaining slices.
• 5. Place the toast in the air fryer at 200°C/400°F for 4-5 minutes until golden brown. I had to cook one at a time due to the space limitations in my air fryer. You can also cook in a pre-heated oven at 200°C/400°F for 10-12 minutes or until crispy.
• Slice into triangles and serve sprinkled with extra spring onion greens. I love these with chai but they also make for a delicious starter for parties.

Love Sanjana

The post Air Fryer Sesame Mogo Toasts appeared first on Sanjana.Feasts.

Our naasto (snack) jar is the equivalent of a cookie jar — one minute it’s full and the next only a few crumbs remain at the bottom. It’s most often filled with chakri (savoury rice sticks), gathia (spiced chickpea flour noodles) and chevdo (the spicy-sweet-sour mix of dreams). The moment when you sit down to masala chai and ‘naasto’ is when troubles fizzle away. The soothing, milky masala tea erases the furrows in your brow and the crunchy, savoury, sweet and spicy snacks are a welcome cuddle from the inside. It’s the kind of home comfort that becomes an occasion without even trying. Flawless.

Of course, there is no naasto time without chevdo.

Chevdo is a crunchy, savoury Indian snack in which every ingredient is fried or baked to golden perfection before being tumbled together with salt, turmeric, cinnamon, cloves, sugar and chilli. The ingredients vary from recipe to recipe but the essentials include: potato sticks, roasted moong daal, corn flakes, nuts, crispy curry leaves and sultanas. You’re probably thinking that this sounds similar to that notorious bar snack, Bombay mix? Let me assure you that it’s not the same.

Bombay mix is a form of chevdo in the sense that it’s a load of sweet, spicy, salty, crunchy ingredients but traditional chevdo isn’t made up of mainly chickpea flour noodles like Bombay Mix is. The flavours aren’t as complex in Bombay Mix which usually includes salt and chilli.

I’ve created a quick, lightened up version of chevdo using a mix of unsweetened breakfast cereal and much less oil than the traditional recipe (which involves a lot of deep frying of everything). It includes all the usual spices for an explosion of flavour without all the deep frying.

The crispy curry leaves and spices are tempered in rapeseed oil and then mixed thoroughly with the cereal, nuts and potato sticks. My recipe makes 1.5kg — it sounds like a lot but in our home, it’s traditional to bag it up and share with friends and family, especially during special occasions.

Serve with masala chai or a cold beer for snacking that goes above and beyond your usual bag of nuts down the pub.

Print

Baked Cereal Chevdo

A spicy-savoury Indian snack mix using breakfast cereal, nuts and seeds.

Course Snack

Cuisine Indian

Keyword baked, cereal, chevdo, easy, healthy

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 1 kg

Ingredients

• 375 g unsweetened multigrain cereal loops
• 375 g unsweetened cornflakes
• 500 g unsalted baked potato sticks or crisps
• 150 g cashews
• 85 g almonds
• 85 g redskin peanuts
• 12 g curry leaves approx 50 leaves
• 5 green chillies
• 50 g sesame seeds
• 30 g coconut
• 25 g raisins
• 25 g coriander leaves
• 20 g fennel seeds
• 10 g cinnamon sticks 1 stick, broken
• 2 g cloves 15 cloves
• 5 g citric acid don’t substitute lemon/lime juice as they will add moisture and affect the shelf life of the chevdo
• 12 g salt
• 70 ml oil
• 6 g turmeric 2 tsp

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 200C/400F.
• Place the cereal on a large baking tray and bake for 6-8 minutes until golden and toasted. Allow to cool.
• Place the nuts on a large baking tray and bake for 6-8 minutes until golden and toasted. Allow to cool.
• In a large container, add the cereal, nuts and potato sticks.
• Heat the oil in a pan. Add the remaining ingredients and saute for 2 minutes until aromatic. Mix this with the cereal and nuts and toss well to coat everything well.

Notes

Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. The chevdo will keep well for a month.

Pin it for later!

A lighter take on Indian trail mix with a surprising ingredient… breakfast cereal! Add a mix of nuts, spices, chilli and crispy curry leaves for a snack you simply can’t stop eating.

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All of this was true up until the point of discovering the ‘Rolex’. Nope, we’re not chowing down on eye-wateringly expensive watches for breakfast; We’re eating spicy omelettes with onions, chillies, shredded cabbage and tomatoes, all wrapped in hot, flaky flatbread.

Found on the bustling, buzzing streets of Kampala, Masaka and dozens more towns and cities in Uganda, Rolex is one of the most delicious and underrated street foods you’ll come across in East Africa. A beautiful combination of textures and flavours, in a portable roll for eating on the go. It’s so popular, there’s an entire festival dedicated to it. Any festival dedicated to something that resembles a burrito is my kind of festival.

One day we’ll all go there and stuff our faces. Deal?

Like many words in the Swahili language, this dish is named after the way it sounds. The term ‘Rolex’ comes from ‘rolled eggs’. If you say it as quickly as you would eat it, it all makes perfect sense. This is what I love about listening to people speak in Swahili.

Growing up, much of the Gujarati we spoke at home was influenced by the Swahili language. It was woven so deep into our vocabulary that if you asked me now what the Gujarati words for everyday things are, I wouldn’t be able to tell you. That’s because I’ve been replacing them with the Swahili words my whole life.

How cute is this little giraffe I bagged during my last trip to Mombasa?

In our family, we mash up Gujarati and Swahili words left, right and centre, creating a sort of pidgin Gujarati peppered with the Swahili nuances and colloquialisms our parents and grandparents once embraced.

Here are some of my favourite Gujarati-Swahili words that have made it into our everyday conversations:

Sufariyu (Bowl)
Fhangusa (To mop the floor)
Sahani (plate)
Pasi (Iron)
Kata (to cut) – we use this to refer to thorns on plants. For example, Bharti ben ne kejje ke laal phool nahi adhe, boh kata che.”

It works the other way, too. Gujarati words have been adopted by the Swahili language. The word, ‘goti’ meaning ‘knee’ has been adapted to ‘gotli’ to refer to the stone inside a mango, because it literally resembles a small kneecap. Gujarati convention simply inserts an ‘L’ to indicate the diminutive. So to Gujaratis in East Africa, ‘Gotli’ = mango stone/little knee.

You’ll notice that a tonne of these hybrid words relate to eating and sleeping; the favourite pastimes of every Gujarati.

Let’s get cracking with the omelettes, shall we? Sorry, but I love a pun. My omelettes have been veganized using super-healthy tofu, blended up with chickpea flour, spices and then laced with veggies. The result is soft and light with just the right kind of wobble and texture you’d expect from a traditional omelette. They also hold their shape like a dream. Each vegan omelette is then wrapped in a Kenyan-style Chipati (flaky flatbread) and rolled into a cigar. You could also use a tortilla wrap or paratha if you like. I stuffed them with a rainbow of shredded vegetables which isn’t entirely traditional but it’s good for you and tastes divine.

Kenya-style chipati is a version of Indian chapattis. They’re made with plain flour and rolled thinly for a slightly chewier texture in comparison to Indian chappatis. Make them first and the omelettes second before rolling up the Rolex. The Kenya-style chipati are delicious with dishes like Sukuma Wiki and are perfect for rolling up with these tofu omelettes inside. If you’re not up for making your own chipatis, you could also use the frozen chappatis or paratha you get in your local Indian supermarket. I’ve tried this recipe with this brand before and it works a treat.

And there you have it – a crazy-delicious breakfast or brunch treat to go along with masala chai. Serve them with chips for a tea-time treat you’ll crave at least once a week.

P.S. Breakfast burritos, I’m over you.

Ugandan Rolex – East African Breakfast Wraps Rolled with a Vegan Omelette Inside
Makes 6-8

Ingredients

For the vegan omelettes
500g medium firm tofu, pressed
80g chickpea flour
1 tsp cornflour
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp black salt
2 green chillies, chopped finely
2 inch ginger, grated
Pinch of salt
1/2 red onion, chopped finely
1 tomato, chopped finely
100g cabbage, chopped finely and cooked
100ml aquafaba (water from a can of chickpeas)

To roll inside the rolex
½ small red cabbage, shredded
200g spinach leaves
3 carrots, grated
100g radishes, sliced finely

Method

1. To make the omelettes: Blend the tofu until smooth.

2. Place the chickpea flour, cornflour, aquafaba, turmeric, black salt, green chillies, salt and ginger in a large bowl. Add the tofu and whisk until smooth. Set aside for 10 minutes.

3. Grease a non-stick frying pan with oil and heat the pan over a medium/low flame.

4. Place a ladle full of vegan omelette batter in to the pan. Scatter with chopped onion, cabbage and tomatoes. Cook until the top of the vegan omelette sets lightly but still has a little bit of a wobble. The base should be golden.

5. Flip and cook the other side for 20-30 seconds.

6. Place a chipati directly on top of the cooked vegan omelette while it’s still in the pan. Remove the chipati and omelette stack and place on a board. Fill with shredded red cabbage, spinach, carrots and radishes. Roll tightly and wrap in foil. Allow to sit for 5 minutes before serving. This ensures the wrap doesn’t fall apart.

7. Repeat for the rest of the rolex.

For the Kenya-style Chipati

Ingredients
250g plain flour, plus more for rolling
40ml sunflower oil
125ml boiling water, or enough to make a soft dough

Method

1. Add the flour to a large bowl and make a well in the middle.

2. Pour the oil into the well and top up with the boiling water.

3. Use a spoon to mix the dough until it’s cool enough to handle. Use your hands to bring the dough together. Knead for 5 minutes until smooth and soft.

4. Make small ping pong ball-sized pieces with the dough. Keep some flour on a plate for rolling.

5. Get another plate lined with kitchen paper and keep your butter handy.

6. Place the cast iron hot plate or a frying pan on a medium heat. Leave it for 5 minutes.

7. Get your rolling board and rolling pin ready. Keep a wet sponge under the board so it doesn’t move.

8. To start rolling, take a piece of dough and roll it between your palms, flattening it slightly. Dip each side in flour.

9. Roll it once up and down with the rolling pin and then take a pinch of flour. Place it in the middle of the dough and then use your index fingers and thumb to pinch it closed, starting from the outer edges. This step isn’t something everyone traditionally does but is what my mum taught me for soft chipati that rise.

10. Next, flatten the dough using your palm and again, dip each side in flour. Now, begin rolling the dough in a circular motion, teasing the dough to move around with your rolling. If you can’t do this, pick the chipati up with one hand and move it around yourself. The aim is to create a perfectly round, even surface and a flatbread that’s around 2mm in thickness and 6-7-inches in diameter.

11. Place the chipati on the cast iron hotplate and cook until little bubbles appear on the surface – around 10 seconds. Flip it.

12. Cook it on the second side until small, even brown spots appear all over the bottom of the chipati – around 30 seconds. Flip it.

13. Now, this is the rising side. Don’t worry if your chipati don’t rise the first few times you try it. It comes with practice. They’ll still taste delicious. Cook until darker, less evenly-spread patches appear on the bottom. Around 15-20 seconds. Flip it and place it this side up on your kitchen paper-lined plate.

14. Repeat this process for all of your chipati until you have a stack.

Love Sanjana

The post Ugandan Rolex: East African Breakfast Wraps Rolled with a Vegan Omelette Inside appeared first on Sanjana.Feasts.

This dish of fluffy, buttery rice with peas alongside a bowl of kadhi encapsulates everything it means to be Gujarati. Ever been to a Gujarati wedding? If so, you’ve probably eaten this before. You’ve heard me say it a hundred and one times before but I know I’ll be saying it again and again; hot, sweet, sour, savoury, fresh and aromatic. These are the flavours of matar bhaat and kadhi and the flavours of Gujarat. I’ve eaten these dishes so many times that a fillet of Sanjana probably tastes similar. That’s not an invitation- you know very well that this is a vegetarian blog.

Well, you get the picture. Hot, sweet, sour… blah, blah, blah.

(serves 6)

Ingredients

170g fresh peas, washed and shelled with both the inner and outer membranes removed (you could also use mange tout with a handful of frozen peas)
350g white basmati rice
300g new potatoes, washed and quartered
¼ tsp turmeric
2 ½ tbsp ghee
2 tsp cumin seeds
8 curry leaves
¼ tsp asafoetida
2 tsp salt (or to taste)
700ml boiling water

Method

1. Gently wash the rice around 5 times in cold water. This will help to remove some starch and give you perfect fluffy rice. Leave the rice to soak in a bowl of cold water for 30-40 minutes and drain before you need to use it in step 3.

2. Boil the potatoes in salted water with ¼ tsp turmeric added for colour until al dente. Drain and set aside.

3. Heat the ghee in a large non-stick pan (one that comes with a lid). Add the cumin seeds, curry leaves, asafoetida and peas. Sauté for a few minutes then add the rice. Combine gently until the rice is coated in the ghee and spices.

4. Add around 700ml boiling water, 2 tsp salt and the boiled potatoes. Bring to the boil. The water should come up about ½ an inch to an inch above the surface of the rice.

5. Turn the heat to low/medium and cover the entire surface of the rice/water mixture with a piece of tin foil. The foil should just sit on top of the contents of the pan so that the steam doesn’t escape.

6. Cover the pan with a lid and leave on a low/medium heat for 10-15 mins. I would suggest checking the rice after 10 minutes. If it is almost, but not quite done, turn the heat off and put the foil and lid back on for a further 5 minutes. The rice should finish cooking perfectly in the steam.

7. Inhale the beautiful earthy, sweet scent of the steaming rice. Note: Don’t burn your face.

8. When your rice is perfectly cooked, allow it to cool for a little while and then gently separate the grains with a fork.

The post Matar Bhaat- Fluffy Basmati Rice with Fresh Peas appeared first on Sanjana.Feasts.

I used small Indian lemons from my local Indian grocers as they are the perfect size for this preserve, and they pack a huge punch. They’re tiny, yet lethal. Rather like myself.

Ingredients

10 small unwaxed Indian lemons
250ml lemon juice
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
2 tsp ground sea salt
¼ tsp turmeric powder

Method

1. Gently scrub each lemon under warm water, rinse and dry.

2. Halve the lemons and put them in a sterilised glass jar.

3. In a small saucepan heat the lemon juice and add the sugar, salt and turmeric and heat until the salt and sugar have completely dissolved. Boil until slightly syrupy.

4. Pour the lemon juice mixture over the jar of lemons and allow this to cool before putting a lid on top.

5. When cool, put on the lid and place the jar in the fridge.

6. Leave the jar in the fridge for at least two weeks before consuming, shaking every day until the lemons become beautifully syrupy and are ready to eat.

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This recipe was requested by Max- A reader with an inspiring passion for Gujarati food.

Prepare yourselves to be psychologically transported to Gujarat with this hearty daal dish. Urad daal (also known as black gram) are used all over India, in a huge variety of dishes. They make hearty lunch or dinner stews in Northern and Western India, whereas they grace the breakfast tables of South Indian homes in their skinned-split form. These lentils are so versatile; they can be used whole, split or ground to make curries, soups, steamed savoury cakes (idlis) and even those notoriously delicious lentil pancakes (dosa).

The earthy, iron-richness of the whole lentils make a traditional and popular meal for peasant workers on Indian farms, and can be served with a variety of breads like naan, chapattis and rotla, and also plain basmati rice. Add plenty of butter or ghee at your will (and mine), although this will not be necessary to add creaminess to the dish. When cooked, urad daal bleed a thick, glutinous liquid which will make your finished dish rich, creamy and thoroughly delicious. Butter or ghee will give your urad daal a beautiful flavour which marries delightfully with the spiciness of the dish.

Some Hindus believe that urad daal should be traditionally made into a stew like this on Saturday, for Saturday represents the day of the monkey god, Lord Hanuman. Lord Hanuman is worshipped each week on this day, and belief has it that he gathered his otherworldly strength from eating such lentils. Urad daal is packed with vitamins, protein and iron, so move over Popeye- Hanuman’s in town and he brings with him the strength of one thousand elephants, and karahi’s full of spicy urad daal!

Gujarati-Style Urad Daal
(Serves 4 people as a main dish or 6 as a starter or side)

Ingredients

1 ¼ cups whole urad daal, soaked in warm water for 2-4 hours
3 cups hot water (or more to cook the lentils if you don’t have a pressure cooker)
1 ½ tbsp garlic, minced
4-5 hot green chillies, minced (or to taste)
1 tbsp ginger, minced
½ cup tomatoes, pureed
2 tbsp ghee (plus more for serving- optional) or oil for a vegan option
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
8-10 curry leaves
¼ tsp asafoetida (optional)
½ tsp turmeric
1 ½ tsp salt (or to taste)
½ tsp dried, powdered sour mango (amchur) or 1 tbsp lemon juice
Extra 2-3 cups hot water
½ cup fresh coriander, chopped

Method

1. Boil the urad daal in plenty of water until just past the al dente stage (they need to be quite soft to ooze that glutinous liquid). If you have a pressure cooker, use 3 cups of water and wait for about 10 whistles. Set this aside.

2. In a large pan, heat the ghee (or oil for a vegan option) and add the mustard seeds. Wait for them to pop, and then add the cumin seeds, curry leaves and asafoetida.

3. Quickly add the tomatoes, garlic, ginger and chillies. Cook this mixture out on a medium heat for around 5 minutes. Add the turmeric and cook for a further minute.

4. Add the cooked urad daal and mix thoroughly. Add around 2-3 cups of hot water and stir constantly for -2 minutes to gain a glutionous, creamy consistency.

5. Add salt and amchur powder or lemon and taste for seasoning. Stir in the coriander and serve hot with lashings of butter or ghee.

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