Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, this crispy arbi masala recipe has been a personal favorite ever since my mother had to first trick me into eating this ‘new kind of potatao!. The list of ingredients doesn’t run long and neither does the method; the trick to get the dish correct is patience. It needs to be cooked at a very low flame for a very long time. Cook it at high and the outside will burn before the inside has cooked properly; cook it for less time and it will be all soft everywhere.
The first time I had arbi, my mom had to masquerade it as potato vegetable because I was such a fussy child that I never went beyond potato and okra! To her surprise, I really liked this “new kind of potato” 🙂 and it was only then that its real name was revealed!
Crispy Arbi Masala
By Ashima Goyal Siraj
Preparation time: |Cooking Time: |Serves: 2
200 gms arbi/arvi/taro/colocassia root
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp ajwain seeds
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp amchoor (dry mango) powder
1 tsp kashmiri red chilli powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
Handful of fresh coriander leaves for garnish
- Pressure cook arbi for just 2 whistles. It should not become too soft.
- Once the steam has escaped, open the pressure cooker and remove arbi in a bowl. Keep aside to cool.
- Once cooled, peel the arbi and cut into ~2cm thick slices and lightly press each slice between your palms.
- Prepare the spice mix by mixing all the spices (except ajwain) in a bowl. Coat each arbi slice in the spice mix.
- Heat oil in the flat frying pan on medium heat. Add ajwain seeds.
- When the seeds start to sputter, add the arbi slices one by one. Reduce heat to low and cover the pan.
- Keep checking after every 8-10 minutes or so to flip the arbi slices and also to move them around the pan. Cook covered for about 30 minutes till the arbi is dry and crispy.
- Remove in a platter and garnish with fresh coriander leaves. Serve with hot rotis or paranthas and some plain yoghurt to complete the menu.
Health Benefits of Arbi/ Taro: Arbi or Taro like potato is a root vegetable, high in starch but with better nutritional qualities. It has 3 times more dietary fibre. It’s an excellent source of potassium and also contains calcium, Vitamins A, E &B, magnesium, manganese and copper.
However, taro root contains calcium oxalates, associated with gout and kidney stones. It is thus inedible raw and must be cooked properly by boiling for sufficient amount of time to reduce the oxalates.
Hey,
This is the only time I have seen someone else make arbi/arvi like this! My mom makes this type and it tastes so yummy :-)…and that’s how I learnt to make it too! (pressing between palms isn’t sthg that I have seen others do).
It reminds me she also uses another preparation – thin stalks of arbi (if you cut horizontally and vertically in thin strips u get those)..the rest is similar, except it’s not boiled I think.
And this is the only why I’ve always had arbi.. it was only recently that I came across gravy preparations of arbi..
btw can you check with your mom if she doesn’t boil the arbi in her other preparation?