Hara Bhara Kebab - True to its name !!!

When i told my mother today, that i have started with a food blog, she said " Sanjeev Kapoor zindabad "!!! Yes, i truly adore that man and love his recipes. I followed a lot of his baking recipes and they always turned out yummy ! Recently, i am also hooked on to the Food Food channel. Not only his recipes, but he hosts the show so well. All respects and love to him !

I remember he mentioned in one of the shows that he loved kebabs. So here's a dedication to him..Lets make Hara Bhara Kebabs today.

True to its name, this kebab is all greens... yes, a combination of palak, green peas and you can even add beans if you like ! Greens are always healthy and i have had these kebabs a lot of different restaurants ! Infact once i had decided to try out hara bhara kebabs in all the restaurants in my area and choose the best. Every restaurant had a distinct different taste and shape... yes some had even made rounds balls of them and deep fried !!!! 

Hara Bhara kebabs are easy to make... Just boil the vegetables, mix in the spices, make tikkis and stir fry ! 

Ingredients

1 medium bunch spinach 

2 medium sized potatoes ( Boiled )- Mash or grate them.

1 cup green peas/ if you are adding french beans take 1/2 cup beans and 1/2 cup green peas ( Boiled)

1 tsp amchur powder or according to taste

1 tsp chaat masala or according to taste

2 green chillies chopped finely

3 tbsp besan ( gram flour) - Dry roast this till the nutty smell goes away. Dont make it too dark. You can even use cornflour for binding

Salt to taste ( i prefer rock salt - sendha namak- to normal salt as its healthy and enhances taste too )

Oil to shallow fry

Recipe

Remove the stems of spinach and wash it 2-3 times. Boil some water with a pinch of salt. Add spinach leaves and boil for 3-4 minutes. Drain and immediately put the leaves under cold water or immerse them in cold water. This is called blanching.

Squeeze extra water from the leaves and chop them finely.

Mix spinach, boiled peas and potatoes. Add the green chillies and all the dry masalas. You can even add 3-4 pieces chopped ginger and 1 inch grated garlic for taste if you want. Mash the mixture well, add besan and  mix everything together with masher or spoon or hands.( I always prefer hands as i love to feel the food on my hand, guess it adds personal touch :))

Apply some oil on your palms and shape medium sized tikkis. Heat oil in a tava/ pan ( around 2 tbsp) and place the tikkis over them and shallow fry from both sides flipping them. Make them little dark golden brown as they turn crispier this way. Do not cover and cook.

The kebabs are ready!!! You can serve it with green chutney or ketchup. If you like tangy taste, put some lemon juice on kebabs.

And yes, sprinkling "Pepper " on top ??? No, not in this one !!! :)))

Happy Cooking :)