"patra"-curried taro leaves

patra is a gujarati specialty,an icon of gujerati cuisine. flavourfull, smokey and spicy. the chief ingredient for the recipe and the way the dish is prepared is extremely interesting to watch. when I was young and had gujerati neighbours, I used to believe that the colocassia leaves were actually lotus pads. they were humongous. i surfed and tried to find an easy recipe. here it goes for those who are learners like me:

preparation time: 20 mins
cooking ime: 60 mins
serves 4

ingredients
for the patra
6 black stemmed colocassia leaves(any other big edible leaf will also do)
60 g besan
1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tbps jaggery
4 green chillies
1 tsp sesame seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 inch piece ginger, grated
3 tsp tamarind paste
2 tsp oil
salt to taste
handful of chopped coriander leaves
for The Garnish
1 tsp grated coconut.

now the hard part:
wash and dry the leaves.grind the green chillies and ginger. sieve the besan. make a pulp with the tamarind paste and jaggery. make a thick batter with the gram flour and the pulp. add the spices and baking soda. take one leaf and place on the wrong side. spread the batter evenly over the leaf and place another smaller leaf on top of the spread batter. place yet another leaf and more batter. now roll over from the base to the tip of the leaf. repeat for other leaves. Steam for an hour in a steamer or a water bath. leave until it cools down. slice the rolls into half- inch thick slices. temper mustard seeds in oil and sprinkle these on the patra slices and saute for thirty seconds.
garnish with coconut and coriander.

have a good time making the patras.