Herb-stuffed potato cakes

 

Difficulty:  Easy Serves:  4 at home or 24 tastes in the classroom Fresh from the garden:  potatoes, coriander, mint, garlic, lemon, egg
Equipment metric measuring spoons and cups chopping boards & non-slip mats 1 medium knife food processor small frying pan large non-stick frying pan potato masher scales bowl serving plates large teaspoon	Ingredients 1 kg potatoes 1 tsp turmeric 1 tbsp black mustard seeds 1 egg 50 g coriander 40 g mint 1 green chilli 2 tbsp tamarind paste 2 cloves garlic ½ tsp caster sugar 2 lemons, cut into wedges sea salt canola oil for pan frying

What to do

• Set out your ingredients.
• Heat the small frying pan over medium heat and toast the mustard seeds until they begin to pop. Remove from heat and set aside.

Prepare the potatoes

• Peel and halve the potatoes.
• Add to a large saucepan, cover with water and bring to the boil. Cook for 15 minutes, until soft.
• Drain well and transfer to a mixing bowl with the turmeric, mustard seeds, 1 egg and ¼ teaspoon salt. Mash well and leave to cool.

Prepare the herb paste

• Place the coriander, mint, chilli, tamarind, garlic, sugar and ¼ teaspoon salt in the food processor and blitz to form a smooth, dry paste.

Shape the cakes

• Shape a small handful of the potato mixture (about 40 g) into a ball. Place the ball in the palm of one hand and use the thumb of the other to create a dent large enough to fill with 1 teaspoon of the herb paste.
• Once the paste is added, shape the potato back into a ball, with the stuffing sealed inside, and then flatten it between both hands so that the cakes are 1.5 cm thick.
• Continue with the remaining potato and herb paste to make cakes.

Cook the cakes

• Heat the frying pan over medium heat and add a little oil.  Fry the cakes for about 3 minutes on each side until they are light golden on the outside.
• Serve at once with lemon wedges.