Frankie Recipe (Veg Frankie)

This delicious frankie recipe is a snack that everyone will enjoy and is a popular vegetarian street food option across India. While there are many variants of this snack, I share a tasty vegetarian version of thin, soft wheat roti stuffed with crispy Aloo Tikki (potato patties), grated carrots, onions and yogurt raita.

About This Frankie Recipe

I have fond memories of eating Frankies. After long shopping trips with friends, we’d normally stop at Linking road, Bandra, Mumbai at a small joint that served the best Frankies!

We don’t usually eat Frankies in our home as we prefer to have our roti with vegetable dishes or lentils, but a few family members are fond of wraps so I make them from time to time.

This is an easy to assemble Frankie recipe made with whole wheat flour (atta) flatbreads (Roti), mouth-watering Aloo Tikki, freshly shredded carrots, onions and yogurt raita.

Here I use raita as a quick alternative to sweet tamarind chutney. The sweetness from the raita goes very well with the spiced potato tikki making it a great recipe for kids too!

There are many ways a frankie recipe can be made. Some folks like to wrap the sabzi/dry veggie curry in roti too and add some extra toppings like mayonnaise, cheese, paneer, sliced raw tomatoes, cucumber, lettuce and sometimes even pickles making a fusion veg frankie or wrap.

I have already shared an equally delicious Paneer Roll and a Kathi Roll recipe which you must give a try.

There are a lot of joints that specialize in wraps and Frankies around where we live now and you can also choose from whole wheat wraps with various fillings.

I have tried a few and I enjoyed them as they are a great meal option when you are hungry and do not have time to cook.

Think of your Frankie as an empty canvas and get creative! Add your favorite vegetable fillings and sauces.

The Frankie stuffing can range from mixed vegetables to potatoes to paneer and even beans like rajma (kidney beans) or chana (chickpeas).

How to Make Frankie Recipe

Make Yogurt Raita

1. In a bowl start by whisking 1 cup curd (yogurt) until smooth. Then add the following ingredients:

• ½ teaspoon roasted cumin powder
• ¼ teaspoon red chili powder
• ¼ teaspoon chaat masala
• ¾ to 1 tablespoon sugar or add as required for more sweetness
• 2 teaspoons chopped coriander leaves

2. Mix well then refrigerate.

Chop Veggies

3. In a separate bowl, add salt to ⅓ cup sliced onions. Then mix and cover for 15 to 20 minutes to reduce the pungency of the onions.

4. Prep by grating 1 small to medium-sized peeled carrot and set aside.

Make Potato Tikki

5. Steam 3 medium-sized potatoes in a steamer, electric cooker or pressure cooker until they are fully cooked and fork tender.

6. While the potatoes are cooking, knead 1 cup of whole wheat flour with oil, salt and water until you get a smooth and soft dough. Cover and keep aside for 15 to 20 minutes. Feel free to use leftover dough to make the roti wrap.

7. While the potatoes are still warm peel and grate them in a bowl.

8. Add the following ingredients to the grated potatoes:

• ½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
• ½ teaspoon coriander powder
• ½ teaspoon cumin powder
• ¼ teaspoon dry ginger powder or ¼ teaspoon minced ginger
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch (cornflour)
• ¼ teaspoon chaat masala powder
• salt as required.
  
  Tip 1: You can use bread pulp (soaked in water for a few seconds and squeezed bread slices), rice flour or arrowroot flour instead of cornstarch.
  
  Tip 2: When adding corn starch, the potatoes must be cool otherwise the mixture will become sticky. You can also add steamed green peas or grated paneer or shredded cheese to these tikkis.

9. Mix everything well.

Shape and Pan Fry Tikki

10. Divide the mixture into small or medium-shaped patties. You can apply some oil to your palms when making the patties or tikkis.

11. Heat 2 tablespoons oil to medium-hot in a tava or a shallow frying pan or skillet. Gently place the aloo tikki and pan-fry them.

12. When one side of tikki becomes golden and crisp flip it over and fry the other side of tikki.

13. Gently flip a couple of times till the aloo tikkis are evenly golden and crisp.

14. Once they are ready drain them on paper towels to remove excess oil.

15. Pan fry the rest of the tikkis with oil as needed and keep aside.

Make Roti

15. Take medium-sized balls from the dough and roll them into a thin roti on a lightly dusted rolling board.

16. Place a tawa or griddle upside down on the stovetop. It’s easier to lift thin rotis on an inverted tava.

The rotis which I made were not very thin like roomali roti. You can also cook the rotis the way you cook them regularly on a tava or skillet.

17. Gently place the rolled thin chapati on the hot tava. When you see small blisters and air pockets appearing, flip and cook it on the other side. Flip it a couple of times, till the roti is cooked well.

However, don’t overcook the rotis as they will become flaky and crisp like papad. They can become hard as well. We need soft roti that can be folded easily.

18. Apply some oil if you want and stack them up in a roti basket. Cover and keep aside. Make all roti this way and store them in a roti basket or in an air-tight container until you begin to assemble the wraps.

Making Veg Frankie

19. Place one roti on a plate and add two tikkis to the centre of the roti.

20. Add grated carrots and sliced onions on top of the tikkis. You can choose to add veggies like beets, cucumber, tomato, radish and lettuce. You can also use spring onions or shallots instead of onions.

21. Pour the sweet yogurt raita in the center of the tikkis in a straight line. But don’t add too much otherwise it will make the wraps soggy. For some more flavor you can top the tikki with mint chutney or coriander chutney.

22. Sprinkle some chaat masala on top. At this point you can choose to add some grated paneer, tofu or cheese for some added protein.

23. Pull both sides together and secure with a toothpick. Prepare the rest of the Frankies like this.

24. Serve veg frankie immediately with the remaining yogurt raita as a dipping sauce. These frankie rolls have to be eaten as soon as they are made for the best taste and texture.

Resting them for some minutes will make them soggy. So assemble and make them when you want to eat.

Expert Tips

• Aloo Tikki: This delicious vegetarian wrap recipe is very easy to adapt. If you don’t like aloo tikki then you can fill it with Hara Bhara Kabab, Falafel, Vegetable Cutlet or aloo pakora or Onion Pakora instead. You can also make a stir fried or sautéed mix vegetable filling.
• Toppings: The great thing about this roll is that you can add so many different ingredients to it. There isn’t just one way to make it. Feel free to add your favorite grated veggies such as beetroot, radish, carrots, cucumbers and more. 
• Roti: When you are cooking the roti look for small blisters and bubbles. Once they start to appear flip and cook on the other side. Make sure that you don’t overcook the rotis as they will become hard or crisp like papads. We are looking for soft roti that is easy to roll and fold.
• Chutney and Sauces: The options really are endless with this dish! If you want a sweet twist in this wrap then add sweetened yogurt raita, sweet tamarind chutney or tomato ketchup. However, if you prefer savory food then go for green coriander chutney or mint chutney instead. You can also add a vegan or vegetarian mayonnaise.

FAQs

This Frankie Recipe from the archives was first published on November 2014. It has been updated on December 2024.