I remember the time when I was in Mumbai, I had prepared this huge list of places to see and eat. Food was my top-most priority, given the vibrant street food culture of the city. Living in another part of the country, you often hear only about a select few dishes from a place. It was vada pav and pav bhaji of Mumbai for me. However, I discovered some interesting dishes once I was there. Leisurely strolling on Juhu beach on a packed Sunday night, my friends and I gulped down pavs along with bhaji and didn’t even count. Then we headed to another stall where we saw ragda pattice mentioned on the menu. Intrigued, we ordered for a plate.
The common notion would lead us to believe that it must be a patty like the flaky ones we usually eat in other metros. Instead, we were served a plate of potato cutlets mashed with a pouring of white chickpeas and onions. Perplexed, we tasted it once and realized that it was nothing but the tikki chole of Delhi. This curried preparation of cutlets was known as ragda pattice but why? The name comes from the spicy curry which is ragda in local language. The method of churning and stirring continuously to bring together a mélange of flavours in the process is the essence of ragda.
I was reminded of this incident with Soni Razdan’s recent indulgence. A mother to one of the leading actresses of Bollywood today, Soni Razdan has also acted and directed many films. The half-British actress was seen enjoying a plate of homemade ragda this Sunday and we are drooling. It looks absolutely stunning and can’t wait to show you a glimpse of her Instagram story.
To make street-style ragda pattice at home, here are a few tips that would come in handy.
1. It is better to soak the white peas overnight. This helps to make them soft and mushy. If you do not find white peas, you can opt for green peas too.
2. Cooking the potatoes and white peas together in a pot works well. Avoid using a pan because it will take a lot of time to cook properly.
3. For the potatoes, make sure that they are cooked well. To check this, insert a fork in the potatoes and if it goes in easily, the potatoes are boiled properly.
4. The ragda needs to have a slightly thick consistency. Mashing the peas while simmering them would be helpful to attain the desired consistency.
5. The potato patties should be shallow-fried to attain a crispy texture.
6. Serve the patties with a generous amount of ragda and some sweet chutney drizzle. Ensure that it is hot or atleast warm at the time of serving.
Now that you have all the tricks in place, here is a delicious recipe to try.