This heart shaped veg cutlet is the best vegetarian snack to serve on a dinner party at home! They not only look super-cute, but also super-healthy and super-delicious!
These gorgeous vegetables cutlets didn’t let me sleep in peace for quite some time! You are wondering why? Because I was not happy with the delay in sharing this amazing recipe with you all even though it was beyond my control it! First my laptop crashed and went to service center for a week; then I was not getting the right slideshow format to appropriately show the step by step process of making the veg cutlet! Hence the utter delay. Finally I got the things in place and today I bring the recipe of this beautiful veg cutlet to you all! They not only look so gorgeous but are also fetishly delicious and mind-bogglingly easy to make!
I had similar veg cutlet in first food joints which are lying around every corner across the country and are diligently satisfying our street food cravings. Some fancy ones make similar heart shapes too but you will majorly see the fat round ones. I think the cute heart shape is far more appetizing and if you serve these veg cutlets to your guests on your next party, they won’t stop praising your culinary skills and that’s a guarantee from me. Plus this veg cutlet is very healthy as I have used steamed vegetables and not boiled; if you already know that steamed vegetables are far healthier than boiled ones because steaming help retain the nutrition inside the veggies whereas while boiling, majority of nutrition is drained out in the boiling liquid if you are throwing it out. So always opt for steaming wherever possible.
Veg cutlet is very much freezer friendly too. You can make a large batch of the mixture and store it in the freezer upto a month or so. Only additional step you will need to take after you thaw the mixture is to quickly sauteing the mixture in a kadhai/wok with 1 teaspoon of oil until all the moisture is absorbed which had released after thawing; otherwise you may not be able to shape the veg cutlet perfectly. This way you can make these fantastic party snacks a day ahead and fry multiple batches on the D-day in a jiffy to feed a large crowd.
All in all this veg cutlet is a win-win recipe in the true sense. A super-healthy snack which is insanely tasty and ridiculously easy – what more do we want! Also the veggie mixture is totally customizable – you can add your favorite vegetables or you can even hide those which your picky kid does not like to eat. Trust me they will never taste the beetroots but will be attracted towards the bright red color and will ask for more. If you are worried about it being deep fried, you can shallow fry the veg cutlet too – just skip dipping the cutlets in flour-batter and directly coat the cutlets with breadcrumbs and shallow fry with little oil in a non-stick frying pan. But do keep in mind that shallow fried veg cutlet won’t be as crispy and golden as the deep fried ones but will definitely carry much less calories! Happy snacking!
- Potatoes – 3, large
- Beetroot – 1, large
- Raw banana – 1
- Green peas – ½ cup, boiled
- Corn kernels – ½ cup, boiled
- Roasted peanuts – ¼ cup, lightly crushed
- Grated coconut – ½ cup
- Fresh coriander leaves – ½ cup, finely chopped
- Ginger paste – 1 tsp
- Garlic paste – 1 tsp
- Garam masala – 1 tsp
- Amchur / raw mango powder – 1 tsp
- Salt – 1 & ½ tsp or to taste
- Maida / all-purpose flour – ½ cup
- Breadcrumbs – 1 cup or as required
- Vegetable / sunflower oil for deep frying
- Peel the potatoes, beetroot and raw banana and cut them into medium size cubes. Place them on a colander and put the colander on top of a saucepan full of simmering water. Cover the colander and steam the vegetables on medium flame until they are completely soft. This would take about 30 minutes or more. [Alternatively you can steam the veggies using a steamer if you have one.]
- Take a large bowl which should be big enough to hold all the ingredients mentioned under cutlets. First, grate all the steamed vegetables in it.
- Then add the boiled green peas and corn kernels. Next add the crushed roasted peanuts.
- Then goes in the freshly grated coconut and freshly chopped coriander leaves.
- Next add all the flavoring ingredients – ginger and garlic paste, garam masala, amchur or raw mango powder and salt to taste.
- Mix everything well to make a nice and firm mixture with a dough like consistency. Just in case your dough is not firm enough, add some breadcrumbs and mix well. Then rest the mixture in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to firm up before shaping the cutlets.
- Once your mixture is firm enough, take them out for shaping. Brush some oil on a cutting board and place the cookie cutter on it. Brush some oil on the inner side of the cookie cutter too for easy release of the cutlets.
- Then take about ¼ cup of the vegetable mixture and press it firmly inside the cookie cutter. Make sure there is no gap, otherwise the cutlet will fall apart after you remove it from the cookie cutter. Take the cookie cutter out and carefully place the shaped cutlet on another greased plate. Shape all the cutlets similarly and rest them in fridge for another 15-20 minutes to firm up.
- Once you are ready to fry, heat enough oil for deep frying in a deep wok/kadhai.
- Make a thin batter by mixing the maida and water in a medium size bowl. Make sure the batter is lump-free. Spread the breadcrumbs on a plate and you are ready to fry the cutlets.
- Take one cutlet at a time and first dip it in the flour batter. Lift it up and let the excess drip off. Then place it on breadcrumbs and coat it evenly on both sides making sure there is no gap.
- Tip the breaded cutlet into the hot oil and fry them on medium-low heat until golden brown on all sides. Take them out and place on a plate lined with absorbent kitchen towel.
- Serve the hot veg cutlets with tomato ketchup. Enjoy!
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