Crispy Pakora

Pakora, a crunchy and crispy popular south Indian street food. These are made usually with a batter of chickpea flour mixed with different seasonings, herbs, and vegetables and then deep-fried till crispy. It’s mostly served as an appetiser or a tea-time snack go along with a dipping sauce such as coriander, chutney, or any hot sauce.

Crispy Pakora

These pakoras are vegan and gluten-free and you can add various types of vegetables such as grated carrots, beans, potatoes, onions to the batter to customize it the way you want. I personally prefer to make pakoras with lots of onions and curry leaves as fried onions and curry leaves add so much flavor and aroma to it.

To make these Pakoras I’ve used Chickpea Flour from Finch.lk. Chickpea flour is a must have when dealing with Indian dishes, it’s used to make many recipes such as Bonda, Pakora, Paratha laddu, and many sweet and savory snacks. So far I’ve only scratched the surface with chickpea flour but the possibilities are truly endless. You can find a few recipes on my blog, just a few dishes I managed to make; chickpea flour waffles, chickpea flour pizza, chickpea flour crepes, chickpea flour omelet, and the experiment continues.

Crispy Pakora

Ingredients

• 01 1/4 cup of chickpea flour
• 3/8 cups of water
• 3/4 cup of thinly sliced onions
• 1/4 cup of chopped curry leaves
• 1/4 cup of chopped parsley and coriander leaves
• 01 1/2  tsp of cumin seeds
• 01 tsp of garlic powder
• 01 tsp of onion powder
• 1/2 tsp of garam masala
• 1/2 tsp of chili powder
• 01 tsp of salt – adjust to your preference
• 1/4 tsp of turmeric powder
• 02-03 dried red chilies – sliced.

Prep Time: 10 minutes     Cook time:  20 minutes    Serves: 12-15 pakoras 

Tips

• Make sure the oil is hot enough before frying. This is the secret for crispier/crunchier pakoras.
• Keep them small, after all it’s a snack. This will help reduce time taken to fry and ensure it cooks all the way through.
• Do not overcrowd the pan when frying, add a maximum of 03 or 04 at once.
• When adding vegetables to the batter make sure vegetables are thinly sliced.

Method

• Shift the chickpea flour into a large bowl and add all the dry ingredients and stir well to combine.
• Next add onion, curry leaves, coriander, and parsley leaves and mix well with the dry mix. Mix well using your hands making sure all the excess moisture in the added greens and onions are well absorbed. When you do this you do not need to add more water to the mixture.
• Next, add water gradually and mix well till a thicker batter forms. The batter will have a sticky consistency.
• Heat up a deep frying pan and add oil. When oil is well-heated drop a spoonful of batter (I’ve used a teaspoon) into the hot oil and fry for 2-3 minutes till golden brown, flip it and cook the other side for another 2 minutes.
• Place the fried pakoras on a kitchen towel.
• Plate it, Garnish with some lime wedges, coriander leaves and serve with some hot sauce.
• Enjoy!