Taro And Cassava Chips With Eggplant Dip - cooking recipe

Ingredients

For the chips
1 fresh cassava or 1 taro root, bulb
oil (for deep frying)
salt
For the eggplant dip
1 large ripe eggplants or 3 -4 small island eggplants
1 large onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves
2 small chili peppers
1 lime, juice of
salt and pepper
4 tablespoons coriander

Preparation

For the chips.
Peel the root vegetable and slice very thinly using a mandoline or food processor.
Heat the oil until it just starts to smoke.
Place the dried chips in a wire basket and in batches of about a handful, plunge into the hot oil and cook for about 90 seconds until crisp and golden.
The timing will depend on the temperature of the oil and the thickness of the chips.
Before beginning the second and subsequent batches, bring the temperature up again, as cool oil does not allow the chips to become crisp and light.
Drain well and sprinkle with a little salt.
For the eggplant dip.
Bake the eggplant at 180\u00b0C until very tender.
This should take about 40 minutes, depending on the size.
Finely chop the onion and cook in a frying pan with the oil until the onion is soft and golden.
Near the end of the cooking process add the finely chopped garlic and chilli.
Take the cooked eggplant and scoop out all the flesh, discarding the skin and stem.
Place the eggplant flesh in a bowl and gently stir to break it up.
Add the onion mixture and lime juice and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Stir through the fresh coriander and pile into a serving bowl.
Serve with taro, cassava or potato chips.