GO BOLD IN THE KITCHEN

Nisha Katona presents big flavour twists to classic dishes in her cookbook Bold (Nourish, $48).

BENGALI HASH BROWNS

Vegetable oil, for frying

1½ tsp panch phoron (Bengali five spice)

2 small onions, finely sliced

650g/1lb potatoes (a floury sort works well for extra crispiness)

2 green chillies, finely sliced (leave the seeds in)

1 small egg, beaten

Salt and black pepper

Raita and/or chutney, to serve

Heat a sauté pan (or a deep frying pan) over a low-medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of oil. Fry the panch phoron and onions for 10 minutes until the onions are soft and beginning to caramelise. Leave to cool.

While the onion is cooling, peel and grate your potatoes and tip them onto a clean dish towel. Gather up the edges of the towel and squeeze over the sink to remove any excess moisture from the potatoes, then add them to a large bowl. Tip the cooked onion into the bowl, followed by the chillies and beaten egg. Season generously and mix everything together.

Wipe out the frying pan with a bit of paper towel.

Add more oil to the pan to a depth of about 1cm/½ in and heat over a medium-high heat.

Scoop amounts of the potato mixture (each about the size of a golf ball) and roll into balls, then flatten them a little to form patties of an even thickness.

Once the oil is hot and shimmering, and working in batches, cook several of the patties in the hot oil for a few minutes until browning well underneath. Once cooked on the bottom, flip them over with a spatula and cook until the other side is well browned. Remove them from the hot oil and leave to drain on paper towels while you fry the rest.

Serve hot with raita or chutney for dipping.

CHICKEN AND BANANA KORMA

100 ml/scant ½ cup vegetable oil

2 onions, diced

4 garlic cloves, crushed

2 thumb-sized pieces of fresh root ginger, peeled and grated

2 tbsp garam masala

¼ tsp chilli powder

1 tsp ground turmeric

1½ tsp salt

600g/1 lb chicken (breasts or thighs), diced

2 bananas, peeled and chopped into thick slices

100g creamed coconut

200ml/scant 1 cup crème fraiche

3 tbsp ground almonds

1 tbsp sugar (any type)

Fresh coriander/cilantro

Cooked rice, to serve

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a low-medium heat and add the onions. Cook for 6-7 minutes, stirring frequently, until they are beginning to soften and caramelise. Add the garlic and ginger and cook a couple of minutes more.

Add the dried spices and salt to the pan, followed by the chicken pieces. Cook for a few minutes, again stirring frequently, until the chicken is browned all over.

Pour 300ml /1¼ cups water into the pan and stir. Bring to a lively simmer and cook, uncovered, for about 10 minutes. Add the bananas and cook for another 2-3 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened.

Reduce the heat to low and stir in the creamed coconut, crème fraîche, ground almonds and sugar Be careful when you stir so that you don’t break up the banana, which may get soft. Cook for a minute just to warm the crème fraîche through, then serve straight away with cooked rice, sprinkled with fresh coriander.

PLUM-TAMARIND STRUDEL

90g unsalted butter

50g cup fresh breadcrumbs

400g ripe plums, pitted and chopped into large dice

1 tbsp tamarind paste

A pinch of ground cloves

125g/ generous ½ cup caster/superfine sugar, plus extra to sprinkle

6 sheets of ready-made phyllo/filo pastry

Icing/confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

Cream or vanilla ice cream, to serve

Preheat the oven to 375°F and line a heavy baking sheet with baking parchment.

Melt 30g of the butter in a frying pan. Add the breadcrumbs and stir so they are all well coated in the butter. Cook over a medium heat, stirring frequently, until they are golden brown. Remove from the heat.

Put the plums in a bowl and add the tamarind paste, cloves, caster sugar and breadcrumbs. Stir until the plums are well coated with everything

Melt the remaining butter, either in a pan or in the microwave. Lay a sheet of filo pastry on another sheet of baking parchment and brush it with the melted butter, then sprinkle it lightly with caster sugar. Lay another sheet on top and repeat the process. Continue to lay, brush and sprinkle until you have used all your pastry sheets.

Pile the plum filling along one long edge of the filo stack, leaving the ends clear by about 4cm. Fold the pastry at the ends in, then roll up the strudel, keeping the ends tucked in as you go. Carefully transfer the strudel, seam-side down, onto the prepared baking sheet, using the parchment to help you, and brush it all over with more melted butter.

Bake the strudel for 45-50 minutes, until golden brown all over and the filling is piping hot. Dust with icing sugar and serve in slices with cream or ice cream on the side.