Marinated Taro Root

Not your average snack, but one that frequents our home. I love eating these while binge watching television late at night. It makes me feel less guilty and tastes great! Plus the process it takes to make them, ends up working well with late night snacking.
WHAT DO THEY TASTE LIKE?
A slimy but firm flesh with a tart flavor from the marinade. Since it is marinated in yogurt, it is eaten cold. You can cut it into thin slices and remove the flesh or dice it and eat it with red chili powder, chili lime seasoning, or chaat masala.
When shopping for Taro Root look for firm and small roots. The younger the roots are the thinner the skin will be. Look for soft oval shaped roots or ones that do not have additional smaller knots on them.
Preparing these roots, in this particular dish, is time consuming but worth it! Wash the roots really well. I do a good indian burn on them to get as much fuzz off as possible.
When you think they are clean, clean them one more time. Then place small slits with a knife in each root. This will help them to marinate well.
I steamed the roots in an Instant Pot, but you can also use a traditional pressure cooker. The roots need to be fully submerged in heavily salted water during the cooking process.
Once they are cooked, strain the water and marinate the roots for a minimum of 4 hours. You can refrigerate the roots for a couple of days, but I wouldn’t suggest anything more.
When ready to eat, peel the skin, and enjoy the flesh. You can eat it as is, or with a chili lime seasoning. Craving more of a desi flavor? Try chaat masala with red chili powder! I personally, like them as is!
RECIPE
A marinated snack that can be used to replace late night bad habit cravings!
- 8 small taro roots
- water
- salt
- 1 cup yogurt, mixed with enough water to submerge roots (add salt)
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Wash the taro roots well.
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Slightly cut a slit into each root, but not big enough to split the root into two pieces. This will allow the water and marinade to go into the taro root.
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Place the taro roots in an Instant Pot (or traditional cooker) and submerge them with heavily salted water.
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Close the lid and set the vent to sealing (no air should escape). Program the Instant
Pot to 4 minutes high pressure.
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Mix yogurt, salt, and enough water to submerge the roots. Set it aside.
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Once the Instant Pot cools down, open the lid and strain the water.
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Place the taro roots in a storage container and pour the yogurt mixture over the roots. Be sure to submerge the roots fully in the mixture. Hence, add more water at this point if needed.
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Let it marinate for at least 4 hours or overnight for best results. Enjoy the roots within 48 hours of making.
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How To Eat: Peel the skin and enjoy as is or topped with red chili powder/chili lime seasoning/chaat masala+red chili powder.
- I recommend over salting the water and yogurt mixture with this dish.
