Swiss Chard Aloo Vadi {Patra, Pathrado}

Swiss Chard Aloo Vadi is recipe is my take on the Maharashtrian Aloo Vadi that is traditionally made with colocasia leaves. These spicy, sweet, and tangy Vadi's are pan-fried with sesame seeds for a tasty snack or appetizer.

Colocasia Leaves

Also known as Patra in Gujarati or Pathrado in Konkani, this dish is traditionally made with Colocasia leaves. Colocasia leaves are large green leaves that are often found in Indian grocery stores and can be hard to find in regular US grocery stores.

Swiss Chard for Patra

Every time I visit our local farmers' market I see the fresh, colorful bunches of swiss chard leaves. So one summer I decided to try using them in place of colocasia leaves. The idea was to turn the traditional Aloo Vadi into Swiss Chard Vadi. I followed the exact recipe that I use for the traditional aloo Vadi made with colocasia leaves.

When my husband and mother-in-law tasted the crispy Vadi, they could not guess that I had not used colocasia leaves. I was excited to have found the greens that are easily available year-round. They make a healthy protein-packed side dish or snack that we all love.

Benefits

These swiss chard spiral are not only delicious but also packed with nutrition:

• Packed with fiber, protein, and folic acid these Vadi make a yummy gluten-free snack or appetizer
• The rolls can be steamed ahead of time and simply pan-fried when ready to be served.
• The steamed rolls, as well as pan-fried Vadi, can be frozen, so they make for a perfect make-ahead snack.

Process

Step by step recipe to make Aloo Vadi, Patra or Swiss Chard Vadi:

• Get a fresh bunch of chard leaves with vibrant yellow, red and pink stems.

• Trim the thick stems and wash the leaves a couple of times. Pat dry each leaf with some paper towels. Then fold each leaf into the half with the stem vein running in the middle of the leaf. Carefully cut the thicker vein, while trying to keep the leaf in one piece. Sometimes the leaves do split into two on the top, which is ok. The key is to trim thicker stems which makes rolling the leaves easy.

• Mix gram flour, red chili powder, turmeric powder, tamarind pulp, jaggery, and salt with some water. Make a smooth paste that is not too thick or thin. Add water a little bit at a time, to get a good consistency that is slightly thinner than peanut butter.

• Each roll can use 10-12 leaves. So depending on how many leaves you have, divide up the leaves into different piles, each having leaves that go from smallest to biggest leaf. I had about 24 leaves, of all different sizes so I decided to make 2 rolls.

• Start with the biggest leaf and lay it upside down on a large cutting board. Apply about 1 tablespoon of the gram flour paste evenly to the leaf using your fingers. Put another leaf that is slightly smaller or the same size on top of the first leaf.  Apply the paste to the back of the second leaf. Repeat this process for the first 10-12 leaves, starting from the biggest leaf to the smaller ones. Then roll the stack of leaves starting from the narrow end. Roll as tightly as possible, folding any thin edges inward. Keep the roll aside.

• Repeat the same process for the remaining leaves and make another tightly folded roll. Arrange the rolls in a lightly greased steamer rack.

• Add some water to the steamer pot and put on medium-high heat. Put the steamer rack with the rolls in them in the pot. Cook covered for 15 mins. Turn the heat off. Let the rolls cool down completely.               

Steaming in Instant Pot

Add 1 cup of water to the stainless steel insert. Place the steamer basket inside and close the lid with a pressure valve to venting. Select a Steam option and cook for 10 minutes with an external timer.  Turn the Instant Pot off and open after 5 minutes as the rolls finish cooking. Open the Instant Pot and take the steamer out.

• These rolls can be refrigerated upto a week or frozen individually in zip lock bags for later use. Cut each roll into half and then cut each half into 6-7 pieces about ¼ inch thick slices also known as Vadi.

• Heat a skillet on medium high heat and lightly grease with some cooking oil. Arrange the vadi on the skillet. Sprinkle half of the sesame seeds on top. Cook for 4-5 mins, spread remaining oil over them and then carefully flip each vadi. Sprinkle remaining sesame seeds on top. Cook for another 4-5 mins or until the vadi's are golden brown and crispy.

• These Layered swiss chard spirals or Aloo Vadi can be optionally garnished with chopped cilantro and freshly grated coconut. They taste best served hot!

Love these healthy, make ahead snack and appetizers? Here are some of our favorites:

• Kothimbir vadi
• Rava Dhokla
• Dudhi Muthia

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Recipe

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Layered Swiss Chard spirals {Aloo Vadi}

Layered Swiss Chard Spirals are spicy, sweet and tangy rolls, pan fried to perfect crispiness and sprinkled with sesame seeds. 

Prep Time25 mins

Cook Time15 mins

Total Time40 mins

Course: Appetizer, Snack

Cuisine: Indian

Servings: 6

Calories: 166kcal

Author: Archana Mundhe

Ingredients

• ▢ 24 large swiss chard leaves
• ▢ ¾ cup gram flour
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Kashmiri red chili powder
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
• ▢ 2 tablespoons tamarind pulp
• ▢ 3 tablespoons jaggery brown sugar
• ▢ 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ 2 tablespoon avocado oil
• ▢ 1 tablespoon brown sesame seeds
• ▢ 2 tablespoons cilantro chopped optional
• ▢ 1 tablespoon frozen grated coconut optional

Instructions

• Trim the thick stems and wash the swiss chard leaves a couple of times. Pat dry each leaf with paper towels. Fold each leaf into half with the stem vein running in the middle of the leaf. Carefully cut the thicker vein, while trying to keep the leaf still in one piece. Sometimes the leaves do split into two on the top, which is ok. The key is to trim thicker stem which makes rolling the leaves easy.
• Mix gram flour, red chili powder, turmeric, tamarind pulp, jaggery and salt with some water. Make a smooth paste that is not too thick or thin. Add water slowly to get a good consistency that is slightly thinner than peanut butter.
• Each roll can use 10-12 leaves. So depending on how many leaves you have, I would divide up the leaves into different piles, each having leaves that go from smallest to biggest leaf. I had about 24 leaves, of all different sizes so I decided to make 2 rolls.
• Start with the biggest leaf, lay it upside down on a large cutting board. Apply about 2 to 3 teaspoons of the gram flour paste evenly to the leaf. After the first leaf has a thin layer of paste applied all over, take another leaf that is slightly smaller or same size as the first leaf. Put it on top of the first and apply some paste to the back of the second leaf. Repeat this process for the first 10-12 leaves, starting with the biggest leaf to the smaller ones. Then start rolling the stack of leaves starting from the narrow end. Roll as tightly as possible and folding any thin edges inward. Keep the roll aside.
• Repeat the same process for the remaining leaves and make another tightly folded roll. Arrange the rolls in a lightly greased steamer rack.
• Add 1 cup of  water to the steamer pot and put on medium-high heat. Put the steamer rack with the rolls in them in the pot. Cook covered for 15 mins. Turn the heat off. Let the rolls cool down completely. Then cut each roll into ¼ inch thick slices. 
• Heat a skillet on medium high heat and grease with 1 tablespoon oil. Arrange the slices on the skillet. Sprinkle half of the sesame seeds on top. Cook for 4-5 mins on medium heat, spread remaining oil over them and then carefully flip over. Sprinkle remaining sesame seeds on top. Cook for another 4-5 mins or until the Vadi are golden brown and crispy.
• Layered swiss chard spirals or Aloo Vadi can be optionally garnished with chopped cilantro and fresh grated coconut. Enjoy hot!

Notes

Notes:

To steam in the Instant Pot, add 1 cup of water to the stainless steel insert. Place the steamer basket inside and close the lid with pressure valve to venting. Select the Steam option and cook for 10 minutes with an external timer.  Turn the Instant Pot off and open after 5 minutes as the rolls finish cooking. Open the Instant Pot and take the steamer out. 

Nutrition

Calories: 166kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 4g | Sodium: 829mg | Potassium: 920mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 12145IU | Vitamin C: 57.8mg | Calcium: 128mg | Iron: 4.8mg

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