So, do you remember me saying about a special recipe that we tried along with Samosas? This is it!!! It's a meat lover's treat! When I gave it to Jose the first time, he thought it was meat quiche :) Actually, it's very similar to a crustless quiche.
Jose's quiche reference got me thinking… The two recipes (this one and quiche) come from completely different cultures and use two different cooking styles, but somehow ends up having similar taste. Yet again, I'm amused at how food can bring together people by connecting them with familiar tastes!
Pola is a traditional Malabar dish, which is similar to cake, but made without an oven. It can be sweet or savoury. You can make a wide variety of Pola using eggs, bread, banana, apples, meat etc; I remember bookmarking a Kaipola (banana pola) recipe long time ago, but never got to try it.
This is a very simple recipe and absolutely easy to put together. If you have some left over meat dish, it's even easier to make. We thoroughly enjoyed this dish and I'm sure I'll be making it again and again and again…you got the point right? You can have it for brunch or as a snack or for lunch like we did ;)
If you are planning to make something special to celebrate Eid, please check out the following recipes:
Erachi Pathiri, Erachi Pidi, Mutta Kabab, Nei Choru, Mutton Pepper Fry, Mutton Biriyani, Chicken Biriyani, Beef Biriyani, Prawns Biriyani, Fish Biriyani, Egg Biriyani
Eid Mubarak to you and your loved ones!!Â
Please see the video recipe below:
Here is the recipe…
Heat oil in a pan and add chopped onion. When onion becomes soft, add green chilli, ginger and garlic. Cook for 2-3 mins. Add chilli and turmeric powder and cook for a min…
Add shredded beef and coriander leaves to this and mix well. Cook for 2-3 mins, till everything is well combined…
Blend together eggs, milk, plain flour, salt and pepper powder in a mixie or blender, till it's smooth without any lumps…
Heat the pressure cooker or a saucepan and reduce the flame to the lowest. Pour the egg mixture to the cooker and add the cooked beef mixture to it. Close the cooker and put the weight on. Cook on the lowest flame for 10 mins. After 5-7 mins, you can open and see whether it's done. Insert a toothpick in the centre and see whether it's done…
Please read the notes before trying the recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup Cooked beef (refer notes)
- 2 medium Onion (chopped)
- 2-3 Green chilli (chopped)
- 1/2 tbsp Crushed ginger and garlic (each)
- 1/2 tsp Chilli powder
- 1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
- 1 tbsp Chopped coriander leaves
- 3 Eggs
- 1/2 cup Milk
- 1/2 cup Plain flour (Maida)
- 1/4 tsp Pepper powder
- Salt
- Oil (I used coconut oil)
- 1/2 – 1 tbsp Ghee
Instructions
- Shred the cooked beef using hands or fork. Keep aside.
- Heat oil in a pan and add chopped onion. When onion becomes soft, no need to brown, add green chilli, ginger and garlic. Cook for 2-3 mins. Add chilli and turmeric powder and cook for a min. Add shredded beef and coriander leaves to this and mix well. Cook for 2-3 mins, till everything is well combined.
- Blend together eggs, milk, plain flour, salt and pepper powder in mixie or a blender, till it's smooth without any lumps.
- Generously grease a pressure cooker (refer notes) or a sauce pan with ghee. Heat the pressure cooker or a saucepan and reduce the flame to the lowest. Pour the egg mixture to the cooker and add the cooked beef mixture to it. Close the cooker or the sauce pan and put the weight on, if using cooker.
- Cook on the lowest flame for 10 mins. After 5-7 mins, you can open and see whether it's done. The cooking time may vary depending on the size of the cooker or saucepan you use. Insert a toothpick in the centre and see whether it's done.
- Once it's done, remove from fire and transfer it to a serving plate.
Notes
I cooked the beef with a little turmeric powder, chilli powder and salt. Make sure the beef is not overcooked or dry. If you want you can add a small tomato (chopped) while making the masala. Add it after adding green chilli, ginger and garlic.
Make sure you dont overcook the erachi pola, it should be soft and moist and not rubbery.
I used a 2 ltr pressure cooker (6.5 inch width) to make the above qty. If you are using a sauce pan, make sure you use a deep pan, since it tends to rise while cooking. The top may look a bit undercooked, but it's okay (refer the 4th step by step picture). If the sides are cooked and leaving the sides of the pan and the inserted tooth pick comes out clean, it's done.
Hi Maria,
Can I make this in an oven?
hi..glad to see good reviews..I have some questions – 1) you have said pressure cook for 10 mins. & check it at 7 mins., will we able to open the pressure cooker in between? Wont pressure build up, as we will be putting the weight?
2) If in case we open in between & it is not cooked, do we put the lid back on with the weight for rest of the cooking time or cook it open?
Thanks in advance
Hi Merlin,
My apologies for the delayed reply.
If you are cooking it in a steamer, you can check it in between. If you are cooking in a pressure cooker, you may need to wait till the pressure drops and if it’s not cooked yet, you need to put the lid back on with weight and cook for some more time.
Hi Maria,
Tried this last week. loved it totally.
however, it got stuck to the base of the cooker. i guess a bit more ghee was required. But anyway, it was awesome!!
Hi Gemini,
Thank you very much :) It’s one of our fav’s too. Yeah you need to be a bit generous with ghee ;)
Cheers
Maria
Thankuuu so much…. It was great… When I saw sides getting brown, I thought it was gone… Still it was great
Thanks Parvathi :) I’m glad it came out well for you..
Cheers
Maria
Hi Maria, I tried this recipe today.. it tasted awesome.. but my bottom crust completely got burnt and stuck to the pressure cooker.. any idea what could have gone wrong.. I cooked it in a 3 ltr pressure cooker with the whistle on for 7 minutes.. when i opened, one half was cooked well and the other half was uncooked.. please help
Hi Aswathy,
Thank you :)
Did you make sure to grease the pressure cooker nicely? Also did you happen to cook it on high flame? Make sure you grease the cooking dish nicely. Also make sure that cooker is positioned in such a way that there is equal distribution of heat.
Hope this helps..
Cheers
Maria
Hi Jeena,
Thank you so much for your comment :) I’m really glad that this recipe was a super hit with you.
Thanks a lot for sharing the pic too..
Cheers
Maria
Hi Maria, how do you remove the erachi pola out from the cooker? Would you suggest to put a baking sheet at the bottom of the cooker before pouring the egg mixture? Also how do we cook this in the saucepan? same time?
Hi Ann,
My apologies for the delayed reply, I was on a small break. You can transfer it to a plate, just like you remove a cake from a cake tin.
There is no need to put baking sheet, make sure you grease the cooker nicely and pour the mixture. Yeah, it’s same time for saucepan too.
Cheers
Maria