Category:
Snacks

Shallot Panisse

Ingredients:

besan (chick pea) flour
sea salt
green mango powder (amchoor)
shallots
finnochio (fennel, bulb anise)
olive oil

The smooth and savoury texture of this dish beggars description.

Put half a cup of besan, or gram flour made from chick peas or channa dahl into a measuring cup. If you are feeling fussy, sieve it to break up any lumps.
Add a teaspoon of green mango powder and a half teaspoon of sea salt.
Using a whip or a wooden spoon, mix the ingredients while dry.
Add a quarter cup of cold water and mix vigorously into a smooth paste. When you are satisfied that no lumps remain, add another quarter cup of water and incorporate it. Continue to add water until there is a total volume of a cup and a quarter. Let this stand for a half hour.
Meanwhile, peel and slice a large handful of shallots thinly. Remove all the green stalk from a small bulb of fennel (or just remove a couple of layers from a larger one,) cut them lengthwise into evenly sized chunks and then slice across very thinly.
Preheat a medium sized heat proof casserole or cast-iron pan in a hot oven. When it is hot, add a teaspoon of olive oil and carefully tilt the pan until bottom and sides are coated.
Put the pan back into the hot oven for two minutes to heat the oil.
Keeping the hot pan level, stir the batter and pour it in. The bottom will set immediately. Sprinkle the pieces of fennel bulb onto the still liquid surface. Sprinkle all of the shallots over the fennel.
Bake in a hot oven until the shallots are a bit browned, about forty minutes. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Notes:

Traditonal recipes incorporating besan flour into a similar batter can be found all around the Mediterranean, including the South of France and Sicily. None of them are quite like this one, though.

Recipe Index

More Snacks:

Pound Down Purée  | Fava Snacks  | Picquant Pepitas  | Baked Plantain Slices  |