Stuffed Buns / Aloo Buns / Potato Buns

Bakeries seem to be something very unique to Bangalore, or perhaps to the states in the South of India. I don't mean the fancy ones with croissants, macarons, cheesecakes, etc...I am talking about the ones with khara biscuits, masala bread, puffs, egg rolls and buns with different stuffing !
Anyone from Bangalore would know exactly what I mean. The residential localities are dotted by such bakeries, dishing out these goodies at a really reasonable price, all through the day...



Here, in Gujarat, you get a lot of snacky food, made mainly of chickpea flour / besan like ghantiya, fafda, sev in various flavours, but I haven't come across any bakery that sells buns with filling, masala bread and those lovely puffs...
For me, the bakeries in Bangalore really rock !!



There is this 'Iyengar bakery' right down the road from my Ma's place..When I was working back in Bangalore, during the monsoons, I would go straight to the bakery and pick up these aloo buns / potato stuffed buns and then call Ma and tell her I am on my way and she would keep the tea ready. Savouring these buns with the hot chai and a nice conversation with my Ma was just the perfect thing to do on a rainy evening.
Its quite obvious that these buns mean so much more to me than just a snack, and I never miss a chance to go pick them up every time I visit Bangalore



I have been raving about these Iyengar bakery special aloo buns to my friend here for a while now. I've been wanting to try these from this recipe on Champa's blog, but have been postponing it. Finally got down to making these yesterday, when my friend was here. They turned out really well and I was pretty happy with the browning too, which has been a big challenge in my convection microwave oven.



I am leaving for Bangalore in a couple of hours, and will get to eat these there again, but for all of you who love the aloo buns of Bangalore, give this recipe a try, its almost like the real deal !

Sending this to Susan's weekly YeastSpotting

Aloo Buns
Recipe source - Champa's Versatile Vegetarian Kitchen

Here's my slightly modified one

What you need -

For the stuffing

3-4 medium size potatoes
6-7 green chillies
1" piece ginger
1 tbsp oil
a handful of chopped coriander leaves
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
a pinch of turmeric powder
salt to taste

For the dough

1 cup APF / maida
2 cups wheat flour (or use any other combination of flours to make 3 cups)
1.5 tsp instant yeast
1 cup warm milk
2 tbsp oil
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
4 tbsp melted butter

What you do with it -

For the stuffing -
Boil the potatoes, peel and mash coarsely
In a pan, heat the oil and add the mustard seeds, allow to splutter
Add the green chillies, chopped ginger and the turmeric powder
Add the mashed potatoes and sprinkle some water over it
Add salt and allow to cook for 3-4 mins
Add the chopped coriander leaves
Turn off the heat and keep it aside

For the dough

Add the salt and sugar to the warm milk
Stir in the flours, oil and yeast and knead well
If using dry yeast granules, add it to the warm milk with the sugar. Allow it to proof. Once the water gets bubbly, add the flours
After kneading for about 5 mins, add the melted butter and knead again for 3-4 mins
The dough turns a little springy at this stage
Cover with a damp cloth or a cling film and allow it to rise in a warm place for about 45 mins to an hour
Once the dough has risen, punch it down and knead for 2-3 mins
Then make equal size balls. I got about 14 such balls
Grease a pan with some oil
Flatten each ball and roll it out with your palm
Add a ball of the stuffing and then cover the dough from all sides and seal it
Repeat with all the dough and place the stuffed dough with the seam side down in the greased pan
Allow it to rise for another 30-45 mins
Keep the dough balls spaced apart, so that they don't stick to each other as they rise
Pre-heat the oven to 180 C and place the pan in the oven
Before you pop them into the oven, brush the dough with some melted butter and milk
Bake for about 20 mins
Brush with butter again if you'd like and enjoy it with a hot cup of tea !