So the April spree begins. There is a lot of stuff going on at both house front and work front. But still, I signed up for this month-long marathon. Coming to think about it, that’s what made me sign up for this mega marathon and to pick this theme – ” A – Z Kids-Friendly Lunch Box Recipes.” This entire month, I will be posting what I pack for vaandu in the alphabetical order. Luckily, only for few alphabets, I had to look for recipes. For the rest, I played with Tamil – English names. :-)
I took a break from blogging marathon and resumed last month. I was skeptical if I should participate in the April month or not. I am not prepared. I still have recipes to do and click. But as its day-to-day lunch box recipe and nothing exotic, I decided to go for it. I hope I can make it. As you all know, what Santa gave us last Christmas – A golden retriever pup. Rhino joined as the fourth member of our family on 24th December 2017. Jan and Feb were very crazy, and my schedule was in a whirlwind. Both husband and I were working on an insane schedule so that vaandu and Rhinos schedule are not messed up. Just because of this craziness, we cannot keep ordering food from outside. So I tried a lot of quick new recipes with the help of both instant pot and pressure cooker till my in-laws came. And surprisingly 90% of it was approved by kiddo. I cook mostly in the evenings, and we have the same for dinner as well as for the next day’s lunch. Yes, I do give leftovers for the kiddo. And, if you are a regular reader, this doesn’t come as a surprise, as I have mentioned this before as well, especially in this post.
Before getting into the recipe, let me share few key things. I think I wrote a lot, so let’s dive into the recipe details right away,
Aloo Frankie
A kid-friendly and lunch box special version of the favorite street food prepared with potatoes – Aloo Frankie. Wheat rotis stuffed with yummy potato patties.
Ingredients:
Potato – 2 Onion – ¼ or chopped onion – 3 tbsp Chopped green bell pepper – 2 tbsp Chopped orange bell pepper – 2 tbsp Water – ¼ cup Red chili powder – ½ tsp Salt – 1 tsp Garam masala – ½ tsp Chaat masala – ¼ tsp Coriander powder – ¼ tsp Cumin powder – ¼ tsp Turmeric powder – ⅛ tsp Oil – 2 tsps Roti – as required. I used 6 Shredded carrot – a handful Ketchup – 1 tsp for each roti Chopped Cilantro – 3 tbsp
Prep – Work:
I prepared the rotis well ahead (a day before) and just warmed it up before stuffing. You can either make them fresh or use tortillas as well. So make sure you have sufficient rotis or tortillas. Wash and boil the potatoes in your preferred way. You can either microwave them or boil them on the stove top or pressure cook for one whistle. I microwave them under potato setting and let it cool.
Peel the skin and mash the potatoes. Chop the onion, cilantro, bell peppers, and set aside required amount. Grate the carrots and set aside. Take all the dry spice powders including (red chili powder, garam masala, turmeric powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, chaat masala and salt) in a bowl.
Add the ¼ cup of water and mix it well without any lumps.
Steps:
Heat a pan or kadai and add oil. Once the oil is hot, add the chopped onion and bell peppers and cook until the bell peppers are tender and soft.
Now add the spice water mix and stir well.
Then add the mashed potatoes.
Slowly, mix the mashed potatoes and ensure the spices are all incorporated well.
Let it cook over medium flame for five minutes. Add chopped cilantro and mix again. Turn off the heat and allow it to cool.
Assembling:
Now take a roti and warm it up. Spread about a tsp of ketchup over the roti.
Add some shredded carrot in the middle followed by few cilantro.
Now take a small lemon sized portion of the potato masala and shape into a small oval or like a tubular structure.
Place this in the middle and now fold the roti into a roll.
I usually fold the bottom first and then the sides. Finally, place them on the aluminum foil and wrap the bottom of the roll similarly.
That’s Aloo Frankie is ready for packing.
Notes:
Shredded carrots are optional. Also, instead of that, you can add chopped lettuce or a mix of lettuce and carrots. Mixing the spices in the water helps in combining them well with the potatoes. Adjust the salt and spices as per your preference. As I mentioned, instead of rotis, you can use tortillas too. I have prepared the stuffing with potatoes and did not include any other veggies except bell peppers. But the sky is the limit here. Depending on your child’s taste preference, you can add other vegetables, or paneer or tofu even. How do I pack for us? Instead of ketchup, I used dates and tamarind chutney spread and also on top of the aloo masala I add some green chutney and make it little spicier.
📖 Recipe
