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Onion
Fritters a.k.a. Onion Pakora (Piaz Pakode)
From: Chris Bulle
- 150g chickpea flour, substituting up to 50g with plain flour
to taste
- 2Tbs oil or oil/margarine
- 1TS Cumin (Jeera), roasted and ground
- Some lemon juice
- optional spices: roast and ground coriander seeds, garam masala,
mild curry paste
- pinch salt
- 1-2 small green chilies, deseeded and finely chopped - or chili
powder
- pinch baking powder (nobody else uses it, but I reckon it helps)
- 2 medium onions
- Oil for deep frying
Sieve flour, rub in fat, add spices, lemon juice, salt, chilies and
slowly stir in water until the mixture becomes a smooth and thick
batter. Whisk well until it becomes quite light in colour and stand
for 1/2 hour.
Peel onions, slice thinly. Mix well with batter. Heat oil to 190~C
(this is very hot and not always reached with domestic deep fat
fryers). Shape about two tablespoons of the mixture into balls and
deep fry until golden - do try a few to make sure they are't raw
inside. You can also make onion-ring-style fritters.
This is a favourite starter, sometimes called Onion Bhaji (if
there is a difference, please forgive me). You can use any vegetable,
very good are peas or cauliflower (pre-cooked).
Pakora are slightly messy to make but *so* good. They are not
quite as greasy as you might expect. Make just one or two with a
spicy sauce as a starter, or more as a snack or great party food!
You can make small ones and keep them hot in the oven, serve on
toothpicks with dips.
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