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Seppankizhangu roast - Arbi or colocasia boiled and fried until it is browned and seared on all sides. A spicy roasted cheppankizhangu commonly made in the South Indian Tamil homes.

Seppankizhangu Roast

Seppankizhangu roast or fry - A spicy roast commonly made in the South Indian Tamil homes. Arbi or colocasia are boiled and fried until it is browned and seared on all sides. Alternately, you can deep fry them as well. One of the many wonderful ways to prepare a veggie side dish.

Course Main Course
Cuisine Indian, Tamil Nadu
Keyword Arbi roast, Colocasia roast, Roast
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Resting Time 15 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings 3 to 4 persons
Calories per serving 125 kcal
Author Nisha

Ingredients

  • 450 grams arbi | seppankizhangu | colocasia
  • 4 tablespoons oil
  • Few curry leaves optional

For the Masala

  • ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
  • 1 teaspoon red chilli powder refer notes
  • ¾ teaspoon salt refer notes
  • ¼ teaspoon asafoetida powder
  • 2 teaspoons oil

Instructions

  1. Pressure cook the seppankizhangu for about 10 minutes on high (or 2 whistles max in Indian pressure cooker). Alternately, you can boil it in a saucepan until it is firm yet tender. A knife should easily slice in. 

  2. Cool and peel the skin. Cut them into bite sizes (quarter each). 

  3. In a mixing bowl, mix all the ingredients mentioned under for the masala. Now, carefully coat the seppankizhangu in the masala. Mix gently so that each arbi is coated evenly. Let them rest for min 15 minutes or even more.

Pan frying method

  1. Heat oil in a cast iron pan (or non stick) over medium flame. Once the oil is hot, add the masala mixed arbi. 

    Gently spread them in a single layer. Do not over crowd the pan. 

  2. Cook it on low to medium heat and gently toss them in between until it sears and browns evenly on all sides. It might take about 15 to 20 minutes to get a nice roast. 

Deep frying the seppankizhangu

  1. Heat oil on a medium high flame for deep frying. Add the masala coated seppankizhangu and fry them until they are half cooked. Repeat and finish the entire batch. 

  2. Then once again fry everything for the second time in batches. This time fry them until they are golden brown and crispy. Drain the excess oil on a blotting paper.

    Deep frying twice gives the most crunchiest sepankizhangu.

Serving

  1. As this is a spicy side dish, pair it with a Sambar or Mor kuzhambu or any mild gravy and rice in a traditional south Indian way. 

    You can also have it as a side of a salad or any flat breads and wraps instead of potato wedges. 

Recipe Notes

  1. This amount of red chilli powder & salt yields a medium-spiced roast. Adjust the amount if you want. 
  2. Make sure to cool the arbi completely and then mix them in the masala. This ensures they don't mash up. 
  3. Keep cooking as per how much you want the veggie to be roasted. 
  4. Serve this sepankizhangu roast with mor kuzhambu or sambar or any mildly spiced kuzhambu varieties. 
  5. First and foremost, cook the seppankizhangu to the right consistency. This is very important as it decides the final outcome of the dish. If it is over cooked then it might become mushy when frying.
  6. The arbi must be tender yet it should hold the shape perfectly.
  7. You can pressure cook or boil it in the stove top. If you are pressure cooking, take care not to over cook it.
  8. Marinate the boiled and cubed arbi for min 15 minutes. Marinating the arbi absorbs the flavour evenly.
  9. You can also add a tablespoon of corn starch to make it more crispier (in the pan frying method). Add it halfway through the cooking. Alternatively you can use rice flour or gram flour (besan). Adding besan will slightly change the taste of the dish, nevertheless it is yummy. 
  10.  

Calories: 1 serving is 125 grams. Calorie count is only an estimation.