Pan cooked, crunchy Kacche Kele Ki Tikki or Raw Banana cutlets is a hearty, satisfying, and delicious savory snack. These gluten-free and vegan tikkis are perfect for social gathering.
For months, I’ve been trying to find raw bananas or plantains in our area, but no luck. Growing up, Kacche Kele Ki Tikki or raw bananas cutlets (made by mom) was my favorite snack. Mom used to shape them like cutlets (long in shape), and these were so delicious that we would devour them all. This Navratri, I was lucky to get my hands on four raw bananas and thought of giving this recipe a try.
Just like sweet potatoes and bottle gourd, raw bananas make a excellent fasting ingredient. Combine it with few basic spices and create a crispy and crunchy vegan snack perfect for Navratri.
My mom made this kacche Kele ki Tikki or cutlets with lots of onion and garlic but to match up with vrat guidelines I have improvised the recipe and swapped non vrat ingredients for vrat flours without compromising on taste and flavor.
Did you know?
Plantains or raw banana are a great source of fiber, beta-carotene, calcium, vitamin A and C. They are very nutritious and offer several health benefits in addition to their delicious flavor. Isn’t this a good reason to include raw bananas or plantains in your regular diet.
How to make Kacche Kele Ki Tikki or Raw Banana cutlets?
These kacche kele ki tikki are easy to make. To begin with, pressure-cook the bananas and potatoes with their peel on. Cook for about 3 whistles or 10 mins. Do not rush through this process as we want the bananas to be soft and tender to make a smooth mash.
Allow them to cool. Peel and discard the skin. Using a fork or potato masher make a smooth mash. Combine all the ingredients together to form a soft dough. Shape like tikkis and pan-cook them until crispy and brown.
For crispier tikkis, add enough oil to cover the outer layer of the tikkis. Cook tikkis for 8-10 minutes on low flame, occasionally turning until evenly browned on both sides.
Perfect Make-Ahead Appetizer!
These tikkis or cutlets can be made ahead of time and stored until you’re ready to serve. Simply, shape them like tikkis or round cutlets and store in airtight container in your refrigerator. When ready to eat, cook as directed and serve immediately. Leftover cooked tikkis make a great snack the next day. The best part, these tikkis freezes beautifully for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge and then cook them off as needed.
How to serve these Vegan Raw banana Tikkis?
These cutlets are my favorite tea time snack and pair fantastically with vrat ki green chutney.
I encourage you to give this recipe a try and share your feedback! If you have questions related to this recipe, send me an email, and I would be happy to answer them. We’d love to hear from you. ?
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Thanks for reading.?
Kacche Kele Ki Tikki
INGREDIENTS
FOR TIKKIS
- 2 small Plantains (Raw Banana)
- 2 medium Potatoes
- 1/4 cup Tapioca flour or any other gluten-free flour
- 1 teaspoon Red chili powder
- 1 teaspoon Dried mint leaves , crushed
- - - Himalayan salt
- 3 tablespoons Oil
SERVE WITH
- 1 cup Vrat ki Green chuteny
INSTRUCTIONS
- This is how raw banana looks like.
- To begin with, pressure-cook the bananas and potatoes with their peel on. Cook them for about 3 whistles or 10 mins. Do not rush through this process as we want the bananas to be soft and tender to make a smooth mash.
- Remove from water and allow them to cool. When comfortable to touch, peel potatoes and banana. Transfer it to a big bowl.
- Mash potatoes and banana with a fork or potato masher.
- Stir in all the spices.
- Add Tapioca flour.
- Mix until combined.
- Grease your hands and shape tikkis out of the dough.
- Heat a heavy bottomed pan and add tikkis to it.
- Cook tikkis for 8-10 minutes on low flame, turning occasionally until evenly browned on both sides.
- Serve with vrat ki green chutney.
- Serve immediately. These tikkis make great leftovers the next day.
RECIPE NOTES
- Plantains can be substituted with Sweet potatoes or regular potatoes.
- I have pan-cooked these cutlets, but feel free to fry these cutlets in oil or bake in an air fryer.
- Instead of tapioca flour - buckwheat flour (kuttu flour), Chestnut flour (singhara flour), or Amaranth flour (rajgira flour).
If I don’t have a pressure cooker can I steam the plantains/bananas?
You sure can. Karen, if you have Instantpot, you can steam the plantains in that too.