ExploringDisruptively

Passport & Plate - Gateau Patate

Mauritius | Friday, March 6, 2015 | 3 photos

Ingredients
4 sweet potatoes (about 1kg)
4 tablespoons white flour
¼ cup white sugar
1 cup shredded coconut
Vegetable oil

 

How to prepare this recipe
1. Wash sweet potatoes and boil in a pot until soft to mash. Peel the sweet potatoes and mash until a smooth paste is formed removing large clumps.
2. Add 2 tablespoons of flour to the sweet potato paste and knead into smooth dough. Add another 2 tablespoons of flour while kneading until the sweet potato dough is smooth. If necessary, sprinkle more flour but avoid making the dough tough.
3. Make 30 balls from the dough. Roll individual balls into flat rounds (6 centimetres in diameter and 1/2 centimetre thick) on a floured surface.
4. Add ¼ cup of sugar to 1 cup of shredded coconut and mix in a bowl. You can add more sugar to taste. Allow to sit for a moment.
5. Place a spoonful of coconut filling in the centre of each dough circle. Fold into a semicircle and seal edges using your finger.
6. Bring the oil to medium heat and deep fry one sweet potato cake. Turn over for 1-2 minutes until golden brown on both sides.
7. Allow to cool for a couple of minutes on a dry paper towel.
8. Now prepare yourself for some sweet coconut oozing out of a deep fried sweet potato cake.

 

The story behind this recipe
There is only one flavour profile that brings an instant smile to anyone. That is sweet. Whenever I seek comfort especially in cold weather like the current bitter Canadian winter. There’s one thing that I want, and that is my mother’s ‘Gateau Patate’. Mauritian food is the definition of perfect balance in flavour. It’s truly magical just as the island in the Indian Ocean looks. Spicy, bitter, sour, sweet is perfectly balanced and never over powering in each Mauritian dish. That is what makes Mauritian food unique even as it draws inspiration from India, China and France. There’s one fried pastry that will bring any family closer. Gateau Patate is boiled sweet potato rolled into dough and stuffed with a sweet coconut filling and fried in good old oil. The final result is pure fried gold. Forget donuts! When my mom makes this beautiful pastry, she takes her time rolling the sweet potato into dough and cutting them in simple circles. The love she pours into stuffing the coconut and the delicate touch of frying the pastry. It’s pure appreciation for her family and the love she receives back. That is why I wanted to share this recipe. It’s simple magic that makes Christmas or whenever my mom is in town, extremely special. One bite into this fried sweet potato and a chunk of oozing sweet coconut makes you want to swim in a pool of this stuff. Seriously! Not only is gateau patate a special bond between my mother and me, but it is also a way of appreciating my parent’s nation, the beautiful island of Mauritius.