Jalapeños Stuffed with Cashews & Coconut

By MooK

Ingredients

• 2 cups vegetable oil
• 1 pound russet potatoes
• 1/3 cup raw cashews, coarsely chopped
• 1/3 cup sweetened coconut flakes
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 12 jalapeno peppers
• 1/2 cup gram (chickpea) flour
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp carom seeds
• 1/4 cup water

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Spray a baking sheet with oil and arrange the potatoes on top. Bake until a bit overcooked, about 45 minutes. Let sit until cool enough to handle, then peel and cut in half.

Pass the potatoes through a potato ricer or grate them on the large holes of a box grater. Place potatoes in a medium mixing bowl.Combine the potatoes, cashews, coconut, cumin and 1 teaspoon salt. Cut a short slit into each jalapeño pepper. Remove as many seeds as possible with a small spoon. Stuff the jalapeños with the potato mixture.

In a small bowl combine both flours, the carom seeds and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and mix well. Slowly add water, about 1/4 cup, to the flour mixture, whisking constantly, until the batter has a slightly thickened and has a very smooth consistency.

Line a baking sheet with paper towels. Heat a deep-fryer or a large saucepan filled with at least 2 inches of oil to about 350ºF. Test the oil by putting a few drops of batter in the oil. The batter should begin to bubble and brown within 1 minute.

Dip the jalapeños in the batter and carefully drop them into the hot oil, frying in batches of 6 to 8 at a time; cook for 5 to 7 minutes, turning to brown evenly. Remove from the oil and drain on lined baking sheet. Serve hot.