In the days before burgers and pizzas descended on Bombay’s food landscape, there was the Frankie.
The Frankie is a delicious, flaky wrap stuffed with veggies or meat. It was ridiculously popular, especially among the city’s modern young crowd, perhaps because — with a name like Frankie– it appeared less homely than a vada-pav or a pav-bhaji, other popular street snacks.
My favorite place to grab a sizzling hot, just-made Frankie was at the super-busy Churchgate station, before I could hop on the train home. Eating a Frankie in this, one of the busiest railway stations in one of the world’s most crowded megalopolises, as commuters literally elbowed past you — almost knocking the food out of your hands– was an experience by itself.
I still remember those wonderful, tantalizing tastes: the smokiness of the peppers and the spices and the soft, crispy texture of the wrap. There really was no flavor quite like it.
One of the key reasons a Frankie tastes as unique as it does is an egg wash that is brushed on to both sides of the wrap, after which it is baked on a super-hot griddle. The eggs give the Frankie a distinctive brown pattern on the outside and its crispy, flaky texture. I’ve seen vegetarian versions of a Frankie that do away with the egg wash altogether, but, frankly, all you are left with is a vegetable wrap that is not a Frankie.
So before making a vegan Vegetable Frankie at home, I spent a lot of time wondering what would make a good egg-wash substitute. Then it hit me.
Tofu. Tofu is high in protein like egg which would help with the browning and the texture and, when beaten, it has about the same thickness that makes it spreadable without being too drippy. So tofu it was, mixed with a tiny bit of oil to make it more spreadable, and I think it did a great job of emulating the egg without the eggy smell.
To stuff my vegan Vegetable Frankie, I used a mouth-tickling, tangy tamarind chutney and a mix of colorful, healthful vegetables including red bell peppers, potatoes, carrots and mushrooms. You can try almost any vegetable that cooks fairly fast but retains a nice bite. I would have preferred the flavor of green bell peppers in the Frankie, but I used red since I had those on hand, and they were quite delicious. But if you have a choice, go with the green.
So here’s the recipe. Hope everyone had a great, meat-free Thanksgiving and here’s looking forward to the holiday season. Enjoy, all!
- For the tofu wash:
- 1/4 cup silken tofu
- 1 tsp vegetable oil
- For the wrap:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (resist the urge to sub with whole-wheat because you won't get the right texture)
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 1 tsp salt
- Water
- For the filling:
- 1 large bell pepper (capsicum , cut into thin, long strips
- 2 small carrots , julienned, or cut into thin, long strips1 red onion, sliced lengthwise
- 8-10 button or crimini or portabella mushrooms. Cut the mushrooms into thin slices. If using portabella , cut the cap lengthwise into long strips.
- 1 large potato , cut into skinny, french-fry-like strips
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 2 tsp chaat masala
- 1/2 tsp red chilli powder (or more or less per your taste)
- 1/2 tsp or more of ground black pepper1 tbsp canola oil
- 2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
- For the tamarind chutney:
- 2 tbsp tamarind extract (bought at the Indian store)
- 1/2 cup water1/2 tsp finely powdered fennel seeds
- 1/2 tsp finely ground cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp finely ground coriander seeds
- Salt to taste
- 2-4 tbsp grated jaggery (an unrefined Indian sugar)
- Make the tamarind chutney:
- Place all the ingredients in a small skillet and, over medium heat, bring to a boil. Lower the heat and let the sauce simmer for another 8-10 minutes or until the sauce has thickened. Taste and add more jaggery or salt if needed.
- Turn off the heat before the sauce is too thick-- it will thicken more on standing.
- Make the dough for the wrap:
- Mix the flour, oil and salt by hand until you have a grainy texture.
- Now, adding a little water at a time, knead the flour until you have a firm dough. Cover and set aside.
- Make the filling:
- Heat the canola oil in a skillet.
- Add the onions and potatoes and cook, stirring, until the potatoes start to turn golden-brown.
- Add the remaining veggies and stir-fry for a few minutes until they are tender enough but still have a good bite. You don't want mushy vegetables in your Frankie.
- Add the powdered spices, stir together to mix well, add salt, and turn off the heat. Stir in the coriander leaves. Set aside.
- To make the tofu wash, beat together the silken tofu with the vegetable oil. Set aside.
- To make the wrap, take a ball of the dough around 1-inch in diameter. Using some flour, roll it into a circle about 7-8 inches in diameter.
- Transfer the circle to a hot cast-iron or non-stick griddle brushed lightly with oil.When bubbles begin to appear on the wrap, flip it over. Brush the top with the tofu wash-- you want a thin layer and you want it to spread as evenly as possible without lumping in places.
- Now flip over the wrap again and brush the other side similarly with the tofu wash. Wait until the underside of the wrap is nice and golden brown and comes off easily with a spatula before you flip it one last time.
- Spread a little tamarind chutney (recipe follows) in the center of the wrap. Now place some of the vegetables in the center. Then, working carefully and using the spatula, fold the edges of the wrap over the filling. Press down on the top of the wrap with the spatula for a minute to ensure it stays in place.
- Remove from the griddle and eat hot.
Looks spicy and delicious..this will be good for grab and go breakfast..
Wow.. Tofu wash is a great idea. Frankie looks delicious.
Thsi is a favorite oe for me. I love to make frankie.
Nice and simple recipe.
It looks delicious!
Debra @ Vegan Family Style
ps please check out the cookbook giveaway on my blog!
Vaishali,
You narratives always bring back all my foodie memories of Mumbai. I used to go with a hostel girl friend to Churchgate just about every Sunday to eat a Frankie and later catch an English movie at the theater, the name of which escapes me.
I haven’t had or made a frankie in years but yours is a cool idea. I am wondering if instead of rolling it out, it would work with fresh made corn tortillas I recently bought at Central Market.
Infact, I think I am going to try it now. I don’t have any peppers so onions, potatoes and mushrooms will have to do. We also used to eat a paneer version, but that wouldn’t be vegan, right?
yummy… this looks sooo good.. must try!!
Very Tempting recipe I must say..I love frankies and wraps, they are just too convenient for me to fix a lunch or snack when my kid demands for some deviation from regular sabzi-roti combo..any dry veggie, goes into the stuffing, and humble wheatflour roti turns into a wrap..kid happy, me happier…
I completely agree with the maida part, it gives such a crispy flaky feel to the frankie, but I got a tip from some Tv Show, that smearing the wheatflour roti with besan paste(besan+salt+red chilly powder+some water to make paste) and then cooking the roti, gives it the thick texture and body to hold the stuffing.I follow the same since then and am extremely happy with it.Though it do not taste as divine as maida roti but it do taste pleasantly different from the wholewheat rotis.
Applying tofu instead of egg is really a superb idea…lovely frankie and a nice recipe of it …
This looks epic! I am going to have to make this for sure, I love wraps filled with delicious veggies, and the flavors you’ve got going on in here are just gorgeous. Thanks for another great recipe!
Thanks for sharing the Churchgate nostalgia…will try the tamarind chutney version when I make it the next time around.
Delicious frankie, looks prefect!
Madhu, Thanks.
Jaya, the name of the cinema right outside Churchgate is Eros. It’s still around and the last time I was in Bombay they thankfully hadn’t converted it into one of those ugly multiplexes.
You can definitely use a tortilla for the wrap although wheat might taste more authentic. And yes, paneer would not be vegan 🙂
Pavani, Avisha, Thanks.
Debra, thanks, and I’ll check it out.
Betty, thanks.
Alka, that’s a great tip. Thanks for sharing.
Sushma, Mansi, Voracious: Thanks!
Sigh….if there’s one thing I miss about Mumbai, its Frankie – and you know what makes it so tasty – Tibb’s masala – there is nothing to replace that taste. Believe me, I have tried!
Those are some tempting pictures Vaishali. I have never tasted Frankies before. I think I’ll be trying this very soon.
Brava! Tofu wash instead of egg, what a wonderful idea, Vaishali!
It looks delicious!
Gosh…you brought back Bombay memories! I used to have mine at Linking road. I like the use of tofu..will try it out for sure the next time I make frankie, which I think is gonna be soon.
I remember eating these way back in time. 🙂 Were they delicious or what?
The tofu wash sounds like an excellent idea. Thanks.
Nice pictures Vaishali…I too made frankies for dinner yesterday..I went with the usual method…the tofu wash sounds very interesting…definitely a healthy alternative too…thanks for sharing this awesome idea 🙂
Looks Inviting to grab and eat.
Cool, I’ve never heard of a Frankie. It looks delicious, and your tofu-instead-of-egg-wash idea is brilliant!
Coating with tofu looks exactly like egg! None will believe is purely vegan!
Vaishali,
Looks Yummy as always. I am always hungry after reading your blog. 🙂
and I just ate!!
We had a vegan Thanksgiving, it was great!
Ha ha! I recall how frankie stands made quick moolah outside colleges and theatres those days! They work now too but burgers and pizzas are bigger hit these days:).
Didn’t know about the egg wash thing. The tofu wash seems a great substitute seeing those fabulous pictures!
hi vaishali, vege frankie looks great, grt idea with tofu wash. going to try it out.
I tried this last night and totally loved it. I also added a little hummus for the sauce along with the tamarind paste you’d suggested. I’ve been trying quite a few recipes from your blog lately and they’re all wonderful. Thank you for taking the time to put these up and I do hope you keep making such healthy innovations in the years to come.
Mathura, thanks for your very sweet and kind words. I am so happy you are enjoying the recipes, and feedback like this makes all of this worth the time and effort to me. Take care.