Vegetable patties

Growing up in India, cutlets and patties (also known as pattice), both vegetarian & non-vegetarian (not to forget, the samosa ) were made often when we had guests over for a party.

Patties and cutlets formed an important part of the thaal style of eating meals. In my sub-culture, during special occasions, food is served  from a large stainless steel elevated circular plate, known as a thaal, around which 7-8 people sit together and enjoy a truly exotic meal. Exotic because the meal can go upto 10 courses for very special occasions, with a specific order to serving the dishes. Savory & sweet dishes are alternated and all the courses usually end with a serving of assorted fruits and nuts. You have to experience this style of enjoying Indian food yourself, to truly appreciate and understand what the thaal style of eating is all about.

Writing about my sub-culture and its traditional food and recipes is another blog post altogether, so I’m going to leave you with this much, just to give you some background into my recipe for Veggie patties.

Thaal – an elevated stainless steel plate around which a family of 7-8 people sit and enjoy a 6-8 course meal

Vegetable Patties

This recipe for Vegetable Patties serves 5-6 adults as an appetizer.

You will need:

• 5 medium sized yellow potatoes
• 1 small bag or 2 cups of frozen, assorted veggies (carrots, peas, corn, beans)
• About 1/4 cup thick, white cheese sauce – for the recipe, see here
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 2 slices stale bread, with borders removed
• Italian Bread crumbs for coating
• Vegetable oil for shallow-frying
• Salt & pepper to taste

Method:

• Boil the potatoes, peel, mash and keep aside
• Boil the mixed frozen veggies, mash well and mix into the mashed potatoes
• Crumble and mix in 2 slices of stale, dry bread
• Add in the white sauce, chili powder and mix well
• Add salt to taste and pepper, of you want the patties spicier. I suggest adding lesser salt since the breadcrumbs will be seasoned
  
• Once the mixture for the patties is ready, keep a plate with the Italian breadcrumbs and a baking sheet, ready for making the patties
• Make small balls of the mixture, around the size of a meatball. Gently flatten each ball after you’re done rolling it
• Cover the flattened patty with the breadcrumbs, on both sides and keep aside on the baking tray
• Finish making all the patties and keep aside in the fridge for about 30 minutes

Veggie patties on a tray

• After 30 minutes, start shallow-frying the patties. Heat some oil in a large frying pan
• Fry on medium heat till the patties are golden-brown on each side

Shallow-fry the patties till golden-brown on each side

Serve with some Coriander chutney or Tomato ketchup

Extra Tip: To make these Patties non-vegetarian, you can add some shredded chicken or about a cup of dry and cooked, mince beef or lamb.