Taro - Culinary Use - India

India

In India, Taro or Eddoe is a very common dish served in many ways.

In Himachal Pradesh, a northern state in India, Taro is known as ghandyali in Mandi district. The dish called patrodu is made from the leaves of the ghandyali.Also in the capital Shimla, using gram flour a pancake style dish is made called patra or patid.

A tall-growing variety of taro is extensively used in the western coast of India to make patrode, patrade or patrada, literally "leaf-pancake". In Dakshin Kannada district in the state of Karnataka this is used as a morning breakfast dish. It is either made like fritters, or steamed. In the state of Maharashtra the leaves, called alu che paana, are de-veined, rolled with a paste of gram flour, tamarind paste, red chilli powder, turmeric, coriander, asoefotida, salt and steamed. These can be cut into pieces, eaten as such or shallow fried and eaten as a snack known as alu chi wadi. Alu chya panan chi patal bhaji,(अळूच्या वड्या आणि आळूच्या पानाची पातळ भाजी किवा अळू चा फदफद), a lentil and colocasia leaves curry, is also popular. In the Indian state of Gujarat the leaves of the plant are to make patra, a dish with tamarind and other spices. Sindhis call it kachaloo; they fry it, mash it and re-fry it to make a dish called took which complements Sindhi curry.

In Kerala, a state in southern India, taro corms are known as ചേമ്പ് കിഴങ്ങ് chembu-kizhangu. It is used as a staple food, as a side dish, or as an ingredient in various side dishes like sambar. As a staple food it is steamed, and eaten with a spicy chutney of green chillies, tamarind and shallots. The leaves and stems of certain varieties of taro are used as a vegetable in Kerala.

In other Indian states, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, taro corms are known as sivapan-kizhangu(Seppankilangu OR Cheppankilangu), chamagadda or in coastal Andhra districts as chaama dumpa in Telugu, and can be cooked in many ways, deep fried in oil for a side item with rice, or cooked in a tangy tamarind sauce with spices, onion and tomato.

In the East Indian state of West Bengal,taro roots are thinly sliced and fried to make chips called 'kochu bhaja'.The stem is used to cook up a very tasty saag,often eaten as a starter with hot rice.The roots are also made into a paste with spices and eaten with rice. The most popular dish is a spicy curry made with prawn and taro roots.

In the East Indian state of Orissa, taro root is known as saru. Dishes made out of taro include saru besara (taro in mustard and garlic paste). It is also an indispensable ingedient in preparing the heart of Oriya cuisine, the dalma, where vegetables are cooked with dal. Taro roots deep fried in oil and mixed with red chili powder and salt, are known as saru chips.

In the Indian state of Uttarakhand and neighbouring Nepal, it is considered a healthy food with a variety of cooking styles.The kumaon region of uttarakhand calls it "gaderi". The most common style is boiling it in salty water in iron cooking pots until it becomes like porridge. Another style is to steam the young leaves called gava, sun-dry them and then store for later use. For another variety, the taro leaves and stems are used raw as an ingredient for pickles. The leaves and stems are mixed with black lentils and then dried as small balls called badi and used later on. The stems are also sun-dried and stored for later use. On one special day, women worship saptarshi ("seven sages") and have rice with taro leaf vegetable only.