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Bataka pauwa

Adapted from Prashad Indian Vegetarian Cooking by Kaushy Patel, Saltyard Books 2012 Flakes of flattened or beaten rice are often used in Indian cooking as a convenience food, and can be soaked, steamed, baked, fried or even made into porridge. You can find it in Indian supermarkets and online. From: The Guardian SERVES 4

dried green chillies 2-3
garlic cloves 1-2
root ginger 4cm long, peeled and roughly chopped
medium-thick flattened rice 250g
sunflower oil 130ml
cumin seeds or powder 1 tsp
brown mustard seeds ½ tsp
dried curry leaves (if you have any in the cupboard) 15
large red-skinned (or other waxy) potato 1, cut in 1cm chunks
turmeric ½ tsp
salt 1 tsp
sesame seeds 4 tsp
tinned chickpeas 200g, drained
sugar 2 tsp
fresh coriander 2 handfuls, rinsed and finely chopped (if you've got some growing in a pot – if not, 2 tsp of coriander powder)
warm water 30ml

Crush the chillies, garlic and ginger together with a pinch of salt with a pestle and mortar (or in a blender) to make a fine masala paste.

Soak the rice for a minute in enough warm water to cover it, then drain.

Heat the oil in a wok or large frying pan over a medium heat, then fry the cumin seeds until they start to darken. Tip in the mustard seeds and once they start to pop, add the curry leaves. Stir together, reduce the heat to low and stir in the potato chunks, turmeric and salt.

Turn the heat up slightly, cover and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the potato starts to soften.

Stir in the masala paste, sesame seeds, chickpeas, sugar and either a handful of fresh coriander or the 2 teaspoons of coriander powder. Cover and leave to cook for 4-5 minutes over a low heat until the potato is cooked through.

Add the drained rice and warm water and stir gently – the pauwa will start to turn the yellow colour of the turmeric. Cover and cook for a further couple of minutes, stirring occasionally to stop anything sticking to the pan. Continue to cook covered until the pauwa has absorbed all the liquid and the dish has a loose rice-like texture.