Extra crispy pakoras (or bhajiyas) are on deck today! One of my fondest memories as a child returning to my parent’s home country is taking an early evening stroll down to the street vendors to buy pakoras. They wrapped them up in newspaper bags and served them with baggies of chutney to take home. And if it was a rainy day, snacks like pakoras would surely be on the menu for tea time. Ask any South Asian Muslim; you can bet these are on the menu for Ramadan too. All of this to say, I’ve had my fair share of pakoras over the years. We love these Indian vegetable fritters. They’re extra crunchy from the shoestring onions and potatoes dusted with chickpea flour to make a light batter and fried until each part is perfectly crispy. They look like little bird nests; you can see how crunchy and flavorful these are—seasoned with fenugreek, red pepper flakes, other seasonings, and fresh peppers. These pakoras are nothing short of scrumptious. They are perfect for serving warm with a boat of cilantro and mint chutney to dip them in!
Ingredients for Indian Vegetable Fritters:
Chickpea flour: Also known as besan or gram flour. These ingredients are usually available in the international aisle of larger grocery stores, and you’ll find them at your local South Asian grocery store.Ginger and Garlic Paste: You can easily find this ingredient in the refrigerated grocery section of the grocery store or the international aisle in a jar. If you have a South Asian grocery store near you, check there, they definitely carry it!Cilantro: Adds freshness, flavor, and color to the bhajiyas.Onion: Thinly slice the onions. We’ll add them in batches to the Indian vegetable fritter batter. Some of the onions are there to release water into the batter, while the other half is there to add a crunchy texture.Potato: Thinly sliced potatoes add the perfect crisp texture! You don’t want to grate them on a box grater for this – we’re not looking for hashbrowns. I use my mandoline to make thin slices, and then I’ll julienne the potatoes. Think more like matchstick carrots.Baby Spinach: This is optional! Spinach is something my mom always adds to her homemade pakoras, so it’s something I’m used to having. Don’t chop the spinach too finely. I like to give it a rough chop to break up the leaves, but not so tiny that it resembles the chopped cilantro!Serrano pepper: This adds freshness and some heat. Feel free to use less or more according to your spice preference.Spices: Like most Pakistani or Indian recipes, this one has a ton of seasonings. You’ll need carom seeds or celery seeds (also known as ajwain). You’ll also need a generous sprinkle of red pepper flakes, 1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric (or a big pinch), cumin seeds that we’ll toast, and coriander seeds that we’ll toast as well. I don’t use red chili powder in my recipe because the flakes and the fresh green chilli give this enough heat, but feel free to add some if you usually prefer your pakoras extra spicy!
How to make extra crispy vegetable pakoras:
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Toast the spices: I like to toast the coriander and cumin seeds in a dry skillet over medium-low heat for about 4-5 minutes or until fragrant. Transfer to a mortar and pestle and break the seeds down just a bit; you don’t want it to be a powder. This gives homemade pakoras the best flavor!Troubleshooting: If the fritter falls apart in the oil, most likely the batter was too thick. You just need to add a little more water so that it binds the ingredients a little better. Remember, you don’t want the flour mixture to be dry.Green Chutney: add a small bunch of cleaned cilantro, 1-2 jalapenos, 2 cloves of garlic, ¼ teaspoon of cumin seeds, ¼ teaspoon of kosher salt, and ¼ cup of water to a blender and blend until smooth. You may need a little more water depending on the size of the cilantro bunch. You can swap some of the cilantro for mint if you’d like.
3//24 - recipe updated to include cornstarch as this is something I’ve recently started incorporatig for even crispier pakoras!
