Sunday, February 14, 2021

Air Fried- Kananga Sonto/ Sweet Potato (Ratalu) Masala Fries (Crispies).


“Air Fried- Kananga Sonto/ Sweet Potato (Ratalu) Masala Fries (Crispies)” … while you want to cut down on deep frying yet want to eat those traditional deep fries then this is the best option is to try out Air frying as it enables frying/ cooking of veggies by cutting down oil to minimum and thereby making the dishes healthier … tried our very own Kananga sonto today in Air Fryer … Yummilicious …

** Kananga Sonto are actually sweet potato spiced and deep fried crispies from Konkani Saraswat Cuisine. I have already posted the recipe of the traditional deep frying method 5 years back that tastes awesome and can be stored for a few weeks. I am often given a sound hearing for my craze of deep fried dishes as I tend to go overboard preparing them often as both hubby and me love anything crisp and deep fried. But then these days health is something one has to really think about so I try to cut down as much as possible. A very difficult task I must say as just a few days into deprive makes me once again bounce back with vengeance.

** My air fryer is almost 3 yrs old now and except for a few dishes I have hardly given it a try as the major problem faced is cleaning it. The wire mesh is really difficult to get completely cleaned and that completely puts me off. You can soak it in hot water and do the needful but still I find it not so convenient, but then when it comes to overall health one has to compromise, so I am earnestly finally giving it a try. Tried out Kananga sonto my favorite snack which I was missing very much and it turned out great though not completely as deep fried texture. I guess minute differences will be there, but then I am sure I will get the catch of it with a few trials.

** The recipe is same as the one I posted before, but I will repeat the same as the preparation method is slightly different coz. this one is prepared it air fryer. I will be trying out the same soon again in microwave too as I really want to get it to perfection with deep fried ones. I had prepared just a small batch of one medium sized sweet potato which was over within 2 days so I really do not know if it stays good for a few days. That will also be my next venture, which I will update when I am able to get good sweet potatoes. But this one tasted great and if you have an air fryer, just go for it for one serving and enjoy with family and friends, Its really Yumz.

** Here is simple method of preparing “Air Fried- Kananga Sonto/ Sweet Potato (Ratalu) Masala Fries (Crispies)” … my style, that can relished as a snack as it is anytime of the day …. tastes wonderful and the plus point is it is healthy ….

** Peel/ Slice the outer skin as thinly as possible of a medium sized thick sweet potato/ kananga/ ratalu, say about 300- 400 gms. Cut it into strips of 1/3 inch in thickness and 3 inches in length. Soak them immediately in plenty of water with some salt and let stay for about 25-30 minutes. This helps in loosening of starch content in sweet potato, so do follow this step.

** Drain water and once again rinse the sweet potato well and then put it on a thick cloth and pat it a little bit dry and then put it in a wide bowl. Add in ½ tsp of haldi (turmeric) powder, 2 tsp of kashmiri red chilly powder or as per taste (mirsange pitti/ mirchi powder), ½ tsp of hing (asafoetida) powder, ½ tsp of fennel (badisep/ saunf) powder, 1 tsp coriander (dhania/ kothimbir) powder, ½ tsp cumin (jeera) powder, 1 tsp of vinegar (Optional) and salt to taste.

** Mix the above well and then add in about ½ cup of besan (chane peeta/ chana dal powder) and 2 tblsp of rice flour (tandla pitti/ tandul pitti). Mix all the ingredients well, sprinkling some water to ensure that the masala mixes well with the sweet potato strips and coats them evenly. If need be you can add in some more besan and further mix it well. Do not make a thin coated mixture or the same will stick to the mesh in air fryer, so be careful with addition of water.

** Preheat Air fryer for 5-8 minutes at 180 deg.C. Now add in 1-2 tblsp to the prepared and kept sweet potato mixture and mix well. Also slightly brush the wire gauge/ mesh of the air fryer with a little bit oil and then place half of the masala smeared sweet potatoes evenly in a layer in the air fryer and run the machine for 7-8 minutes on 180 deg. Open, mix well to toss the sweet potato and then once again run the machine for another 5-8 minutes or till done.

** Remove them on a plate and continue the same procedure with remaining sweet potatoes and till done. Do keep checking in between if necessary and toss them a bit. I am not sure of the procedure as each machine has its own mechanism and I am mentioning that of mine which is Phillips model. Once again, do follow the instructions in case of heat temperatures too as that may also differ, just check on booklet for potatoes, usually it is the same.

** “Air Fried- Kananga Sonto/ Sweet Potato (Ratalu) Masala Fries (Crispies)” are done and ready to be served. You can just relish them as side dish/ snack with any dishes of your choice for lunch or as snack served with some tomato ketchup or any dip of your choice too. Best served fresh as these are air fried unlike deep frying method wherein it remains good for over a week. Somehow I found them turning softer with time, so I recommend them fresh.

** Air Fryer is a good investment and luckily now they are available in larger sizes sufficient for larger family. Mine is small and the most commonly available one and serves for 2-3 persons depending upon the prepared dish. But when you consider the health aspect then anything is worth it even if you need to prepare in a few rounds, so I am going to now try more dishes and try to make them if not perfectly as deep fried one definitely somewhere close by.

** Sharing my link below to deep fried version of “Kananga Sonto/ Sweet Potato Fries” … do check it out if you want to try that method, also it has step pictures which will give you better understanding of the preparation ….

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