Since I made Raita sauce yesterday, I wanted to find a recipe where I could use it so I thought the Potato and Kale Rolls with Raita would be perfect! I didn't have kale but I had some spinach so I made a little substitution and ended up with Potato and Spinach Rolls instead.
This recipe was a little more intense because it calls for making Roti, which is similar to tortillas, first. I suppose I could have just bought some tortillas but what would be the fun in that?
This recipe was a little more intense because it calls for making Roti, which is similar to tortillas, first. I suppose I could have just bought some tortillas but what would be the fun in that?
I have to admit, I was a bit intimidated by making my own tortillas from scratch... that's like something that REAL cooks do. But when I read over the recipe and realized there were only 3 ingredients, it really didn't seem all that bad.
I began by putting the ingredients in a bowl and mixing them with my hands. Once I had it pretty well kneaded, I formed a ball and covered it with a damp paper towel and set it aside. The recipe said I could set it aside for 10 minutes to an hour so I thought this would be a good time to start prepping the Potato and Spinach Rolls.
I began by putting the ingredients in a bowl and mixing them with my hands. Once I had it pretty well kneaded, I formed a ball and covered it with a damp paper towel and set it aside. The recipe said I could set it aside for 10 minutes to an hour so I thought this would be a good time to start prepping the Potato and Spinach Rolls.
I gathered all the ingredients and began chopping up the potatoes, onion and garlic.
Then came the ginger.... I had never worked with ginger before so I wasn't exactly sure to get it "finely grated". I figured I should start by removing the skin so I attempted to do this with a small knife. Ginger isn't exactly a normal shape so I had a bit of trouble with this. After almost cutting my finger off a few times, I finally got it done but I'm thinking a vegetable peeler might be a good future investment.
Next, I attempted to grate it, this wasn't an easy task either. Ginger has a weird texture and doesn't come out of the grater like cheese or carrots. It's sticky and a little mushy. Idk, maybe I didn't do it right but either way, I eventually ended up with a tablespoon of ginger mush.
Once all this was prepared, it was about time to get back to the Roti.
Then came the ginger.... I had never worked with ginger before so I wasn't exactly sure to get it "finely grated". I figured I should start by removing the skin so I attempted to do this with a small knife. Ginger isn't exactly a normal shape so I had a bit of trouble with this. After almost cutting my finger off a few times, I finally got it done but I'm thinking a vegetable peeler might be a good future investment.
Next, I attempted to grate it, this wasn't an easy task either. Ginger has a weird texture and doesn't come out of the grater like cheese or carrots. It's sticky and a little mushy. Idk, maybe I didn't do it right but either way, I eventually ended up with a tablespoon of ginger mush.
Once all this was prepared, it was about time to get back to the Roti.
The first step was to divide the dough into 16 balls. Next, I sprinkled the counter and one ball with flour.
It was at this point I realized that we didn't own a rolling pin. After a bit of searching around the kitchen for something to use, we finally settled on the salt container. Maybe not the best choice but all of our bottles were either too small, or in the fridge/freezer and I didn't think it would be good to use something cold so salt it was.
Once the balls were flattened out, we put a pan on medium heat and threw the dough in for about a minute or two on each side. I let Ian take this over while I went back to the Potato and Spinach Rolls.
It was at this point I realized that we didn't own a rolling pin. After a bit of searching around the kitchen for something to use, we finally settled on the salt container. Maybe not the best choice but all of our bottles were either too small, or in the fridge/freezer and I didn't think it would be good to use something cold so salt it was.
Once the balls were flattened out, we put a pan on medium heat and threw the dough in for about a minute or two on each side. I let Ian take this over while I went back to the Potato and Spinach Rolls.
I started by mixing the garlic, ginger, turmeric, coriander, chili powder, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Next I melted the butter in a skillet and added the cumin seeds and onion. After this cooked for a couple of minutes, I added the previously mixed spices and cooked for a couple more minutes before adding the potatoes. Finally, I added a cup of water and was ready to cover but then I realized we didn't have a large enough lid to fit our pan. After moving everything to a pot, I finished it up by letting it cook for about 15 minutes.
While this was cooking, I chopped up the spinach and waited. I wasn't sure exactly when the potatoes were considered done. I just took my best guess based on Leanne's description in the book then mixed in the spinach and called it done!
I think I might've jumped the gun a little bit. The mixture was maybe a little too moist but I don't guess that really mattered since it still tasted pretty good :)
While this was cooking, I chopped up the spinach and waited. I wasn't sure exactly when the potatoes were considered done. I just took my best guess based on Leanne's description in the book then mixed in the spinach and called it done!
I think I might've jumped the gun a little bit. The mixture was maybe a little too moist but I don't guess that really mattered since it still tasted pretty good :)
All we had left to do was scoop it into the roti, add some of the Raita sauce from yesterday, and we had us a dinner made entirely from scratch!
In the end, it turned out looking NOTHING like the picture.. the roti was much darker and grainier and the potatoes and spinach looked a lot different as well but overall I think it turned out pretty good. Besides, Ian liked it and that's all that really matters, right ;)
In the end, it turned out looking NOTHING like the picture.. the roti was much darker and grainier and the potatoes and spinach looked a lot different as well but overall I think it turned out pretty good. Besides, Ian liked it and that's all that really matters, right ;)
As far as the cost, I was shocked by how cheap the Roti turned out to be! It cost $0.38 total.. that's $0.02 each! Waaay cheaper than buying tortillas at the store!
The filling of the rolls ended up costing $4.28 total for 8 rolls so around $0.55 per roll.. not bad.. :)
The filling of the rolls ended up costing $4.28 total for 8 rolls so around $0.55 per roll.. not bad.. :)