Indian Lentil Patties with Cricket Powder
Thank you to our friend Christine at CROBAR for this unique and delicious recipe made with cricket powder (cricket flour)!
These gluten-free Indian lentil patties are my go to recipe for dinner parties, when I would rather serve a few, delicious snacks rather than a main meal. Both vegetarians and meat- lovers have praised them, and everyone agrees that the addition of the cricket powder gives them a lovely, savoury tone, which really enhances the flavour. Try them with a dipping sauce of yogurt and chopped coriander, but actually they are delicious on their own, and taste just as good the next day. You could even experiment with adding other spices like fennel seeds or Italian herbs.
Ingredients
500 g small red or yellow lentils
2 onions, finely chopped
200 ml milk
160 g gluten-free oats
30 g cricket powder
2 tsp salt
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
Sunflower oil for frying
Directions
Place the lentils in a saucepan and cover them with water. Bring to the boil, and simmer for 30 minutes while stirring occasionally. Once they are cooked through, drain the water so you are left with about 350 g mashed up lentils. Let the lentil patty mix cool to room temperature.
Now add all the other ingredients and mix thoroughly. Taste if the salt content is right. The mixture should be quite firm, and has to hold together as patties.
Now add 2 tbsp oil to a pan, and put it on medium-high heat. When the pan has heated up, place a tablespoon sized dollop of the mix on the pan. On a big pan you can fit about a third of the mix.
Check after 5- 10 min of they have become golden brown, and then turn over the patties. The mix is quite fragile, so if in doubt, lower the heat and give the patties longer on the pan so they don’t burn. You will have to add some more oil. Repeat for the next lot.
Add the lentil patties to a baking tray, covered with kitchen paper to absorb any excel oil. They are delicious served with a yogurt and chopped coriander dipping sauce