Aloo Tikki

Aloo tikki is mashed, spiced potato shaped into a flat patty and pan-fried until the outside turns a deep golden crust. It's North India's street-food potato cake, and the name says exactly what it is — aloo for potato, tikki for a small flat cake — sold plain with chutney from dedicated stalls or piled with yoghurt and tamarind into a full chaat plate.

What it really is

Boiled potato mashes with a little cornflour for binding, along with boiled green peas, cumin, coriander and green chilli worked through, then shapes into a flat, round patty. It pan-fries in a shallow layer of oil until both faces turn deep golden and genuinely crisp, while the inside stays soft. The crust matters as much as the filling — a properly made tikki should crack slightly when pressed, showing the contrast between the crisp shell and the soft potato inside.

The crisp crust, not just the spiced filling, is what separates a good aloo tikki from a mediocre one. A patty that's merely warmed through without developing a real crust misses the textural point — the crisp shell against the soft interior is the whole reason it's pan-fried rather than simply boiled and mashed.

How it's served

• Hot, with tamarind and mint chutney, plain or as a snack.
• As part of a chaat, topped with yoghurt, chutney and sev.
• As a street food snack, sold from dedicated stalls.

How to write it on the menu

• It's naturally vegan and vegetarian.
• No major allergens are inherent to the base recipe.
• Say if it's served plain or as part of a fuller chaat, since the two are different orders.