Kele Ke Kebabs – (Raw Banana Patties)

Food not only tells tales but evokes such strong emotions too. Most of the times when I cook certain dishes, it’s like a time travel into the past where I find myself relishing mom made dishes or even stealing food right off the pan. Ah!  How I love reminiscing the good old days that brings an unconscious chuckle on my face! Raw Banana dishes are hot favourite at my home. Everyone just loves to gorge on them. There are numerous dishes that one can make with raw bananas that I have lost count of it. But one dish that disappears from the plate as soon as it’s served is “Kele Ke Kebabs” or “Raw Banana Patties”.  

Kele Ke Kebabs

Everyone in my family shares an unequivocal love for “Kele Ke Kebabs”. They are called “Kancha Kadali Bara” in Odia (As you all know by now that I belong to Odisha). It is a very common dish in many Odia households but the method of cooking varies a bit. Not many are aware of the fact that people of Eastern parts of  India also cook many raw banana dishes like their Southern counterparts. 

It was never in my wildest dreams that I thought I would be in the “Land Of Kebabs” – Lucknow after marriage. While I love grubbing onto the famous Galawati Kebabs, I can safely call my “Kele ke Kebabs” the vegetarian variant of it because of the texture it provides. If cooked properly, it almost renders the same “melt-in-your-mouth” kind of taste. 

Drooling much? Read on for the recipe!

INGREDIENTS:

• Raw Bananas – 2  (Medium Sized)
• Chopped Onions – 2 (Medium Sized)
• Chopped Green Chillies – 3-4 (Depends on how spicy you wish to make it)
• Chopped Coriander Leaves – 2-3 tablespoons
• Gram Flour – 1 1/2 tablespoons
• Turmeric Powder – 1/2 teaspoon
• Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder – 1 teaspoon
• Garam Masala / Whole spices powder – 1/2 teaspoon
• Salt to taste
• Vegetable Oil – 5-6 tablespoons

METHOD OF COOKING:

• Boil raw bananas till it becomes very tender. Take out and let it cool down a bit.
• Mash the bananas properly till it turns into a thick paste.
• In a mixing bowl, add chopped onion, green chillies, coriander. Add mashed bananas into it. 
• Add the other spices and gram flour in it. Add salt to taste and mix it all together.
• Make patties of the mixture and pan fry them till both the sides cook properly and turn golden brown.
• Saviour it with sliced onions, lemon and mint / coriander chutney.

Kele Ke Kebabs  or Kancha Kadali Bara are an absolute delight to have. Your vegetarian friends will simply go gaga over this variant of “Galawati Kebab”. Out of all the vegetarian kebab variants, what makes this one special is the texture that boiled raw banana gives to the kebabs. I can certainly say that the taste is something that will make you drool for sure. On a rainy afternoon, it can be the perfect monsoon snack with a hot cup of tea.  A sip of tea with a kebab dipped in  mint-coriander chutney with sliced onions is something what can make monsoon evenings more enjoyable. 

I love “Kele ke Kebabs” (Raw Banana Patties) so much that I devour a couple of them as soon as they’re off the pan, one more before we actually settle in for eating and then comes the time of actual indulgence where I would blissfully love to lose the count of it. I hope you love the dish as much as I do. This is one easy -peasy, non fussy kind of recipe which gets ready in very less time. Keeping my ears and heart open for all the feedback and suggestions folks!

Till then Happy Munching & Keep Smiling!

Love,

Shobhna