How to make shingara

Snackfoods are an integral part of everyday life in Bangladesh. Railway stations, bus stations and bazaars are full of people selling, snackfoods, and shingara is one of the most popular. It is a vegetable and coconut spiced mixture in a pastry coating.

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1. PREPARE INGREDIENTS

1.25kg of flour

1kg of potato

1kg of coconut

1/2kg of onion

1/4kg of garlic

1/4kg of peanuts

2 to 3 pieces of green chill)

Small amount of coriander leaf

1/2 teaspoon of turmeric

1/2 teaspoon of coriander powder

Oil (soybean)

2. MIXING

Mix salt, 50gm oil with the flour and add water. Peel and cut potatoes into small pieces. Split a fresh coconut, cut into small pieces (1cm). Mix in turmeric powder, coriander, garlic, onion and coconut pieces with the potato. Fry this mixture in oil. Mix peanuts with cooked potato mixture, (vegetables such as beans, cauliflowers, carrots may also be added to flavour). Cool cooked potato mixture.

3. SHAPING

Take a small ball (2cm in diameter) of dough and roll it (fig 1). Cut into two pieces (fig 2) and fold in half along the straight edge, pinching it together to close (fig 3). Keeping the round shape upward pour some potato mixture into the hole. Close the round side with other corners to make it look like a triangle (fig 4). Heat the oil in a deep pan and fry shingara until crisp and brown in colour. Allow to cool and serve with sauce.

4. PACKAGING

Generally none is needed. People sell fresh shingara in the market, which has been made the same day.

by Shaheda Azami, Intermediate Technology, Bangladesh

Step 1,2,3,4