Best Pakora Recipes

PAKORA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 120C/100C fan/ gas 1/2. Make a paste by blitzing the chilli, ginger and tomato together, then set aside.
• Mix the gram flour with the spices. Add all the prepared vegetables and toss in the mix. Slowly add 150ml water until the batter coats the vegetables - they should be well coated, but not swimming in it.
• Add the tomato mixture and get your hands in there, mixing well until everything is incorporated. Add a little lemon juice and seasoning.
• Heat the oil to 180C. Take a handful of the mix and squeeze it into a loose little ball, to ensure the vegetables stick to each other when lowered in the oil. Use a spoon to carefully drop the ball into the oil.
• Fry for about 4 mins until golden and crispy, then taste to test for seasoning and consistency. You may also need to add a little water or gram our to the mixture at this point if your tester ball didn't hold together. Repeat, frying the remaining mixture in batches.
• Drain on kitchen paper and keep warm in the oven as you go. Serve immediately with chutney.

VEGETABLE PAKORA

Steps:

• Heat oil in a wide skillet over medium heat.
• Combine gram flour, cumin, cayenne pepper, turmeric, and salt in a bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of the hot oil and mix well. Add water, a little at a time, until a very thick batter forms. Stir in cilantro and spinach.
• Dip potatoes and cauliflower in batter and add to the hot oil in batches without crowding. Turn and fry until golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Add onions to remaining batter all at once; scoop onion-batter into the oil and fry until golden, 3 to 5 minutes.

PAKORA SAUCE

Steps:

• Place in a bowl the salt, chilli powder, mint sauce, tomato sauce and lemon juice.
• Mix well and add red food colouring to give it a vivid bright red colour.
• Dilute mixture with water to suit

ONION AND SPINACH PAKORA WITH CILANTRO CHUTNEY

Steps:

• For the pakora: Pour the oil into a large, deep pot and place over medium heat until it registers 350 degrees F on a deep-fry thermometer.
• Meanwhile, combine the spinach, onion, cilantro, besan, rice flour, ginger garlic paste, fenugreek, turmeric, chaat masala, garam masala, chili powder and salt to taste in a large bowl. Stir the mixture well. Stir in enough water to make a thick batter.
• When the oil is hot, working in batches, drop balls of the batter mixture into the oil. Fry until golden brown, 5 to 6 minutes. Drain on paper towels, sprinkle with chaat masala and serve hot.
• For the cilantro-mint chutney: In a food processor or blender, combine the cilantro, mint, mango, chiles, lime juice and salt to taste and process or blend until smooth. Serve alongside the pakora.

PUNJABI PAKORA CURRY

Steps:

• Make pakoras:.
• Mix pakora ingredients (besan, cumin seeds, onions, green chilli, ginger, turmeric, garam masala, red chilli powder, fennel seed, and salt) in a bowl until smooth. Add enough water to make a very thick batter.
• Fry mixture by tablespoonfuls in hot oil until golden and crispy, then drain on paper toweling. Keep warm in low oven.
• Prepare the kadai sauce:.
• Blend yogurt, 4 cups water, pinch of turmeric powder, salt, pinch of red chilli powder, and besan. It should look like a buttermilk lassi mixture with besan in it.
• Keep it aside for half an hour before starting to make kadi.
• For the Remainder of the Kadai:
• Pour mustard oil in a big pan (or wok) and heat it until it gets hot. Add cumin seeds mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, coriander seeds, cloves and let them pop.
• Add curry leaves and dry red chilli to the frying mixture.
• Add onions and fry until golden brown.
• Add the garlic, and ginger to it and fry for 3 minutes, watching that it should not stick to the bottom of the pan.
• Add chopped tomatoes and fry for 3-4 minutes.
• Add tamarind paste to the pan and let it come to the boil for 4-5 minutes.
• Add turmeric powder , garam masala, red chilli powder, salt and fry until oil starts floating on the top and it gives out dark reddish brownish color.
• Add the kadi sauce mixture.
• Gently stir the curry, as it will start sticking to the bottom. Keep it on medium heat first, and let it come to a boil. Keep watching it and stirring. Simmer for 3-5 minutes, then lower the heat and let it cook on low flame for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Stir for another 5 minutes and check if its thick enough and looks dark yellow. Again stir it for 5 minutes and sprinkle dry fenugreek leaves on it and let it boil for another 2 minutes and than add the pakoras in the kadi.
• Boil more for 3 minutes and don't stir too much as the pakora can break apart.
• For garnishing, sprinkle cilantro and serve hot with rice.

CHICKEN PAKORA

Steps:

• Place the garlic, ginger, green chillies, lemon juice, garam masala, cumin seeds, chilli powder, dried fenugreek leaves into a pestle and mortar and blend to a rough paste.
• Place chicken in a bowl and add the paste, mix to marinade and leave for at least 20 minutes - the longer the better.
• Heat up the oil in a karahi or wok to a medium heat
• Into the marinated chicken sprinkle in the freshly chopped coriander and then sieve in the gram flour. Mix together using your hand.
• Add a small amount of water if required to ensure the chicken is coated in a thick batter.
• Test your oil is hot enough by dropping in a little batter into the oil. If it browns and rises immediately then it is ready. Very carefully place the pieces of chicken into the oil one at a time and fry until crisp and golden brown.
• Using a slotted spoon move the pakora around, be careful not to overcrowd the karahi.
• Once golden brown and crisp remove from the oil and set on some kitchen paper

SPINACH PAKORA (FRITTERS)

Steps:

• Sift the gram flour.
• Mix all the ingredients (except oil), to make a smooth and thick (almost like dough) batter.
• Cover and let it stand for ½ hour.
• Sprinkle little water if needed.
• (If using frozen spinach, thaw before using.) Blend in all the seasonings (except salt) and mix well.
• (You may chill the batter in the refrigerator for about 2 hours or more until it can be handled.) Mix in salt when ready to cook.
• Heat the oil in a deep skillet or wok on medium to high heat.
• For each pakora, scoop a heaped teaspoon of the batter, and with a second spoon, scrape the mixture into the hot oil.
• Put the'pakoras' in a single layer in the skillet.
• Fry, turning them with a slotted flat spatula, until all sides become golden brown.
• (Regulate the heat as needed while the'pakoras' are being fried.) Remove and drain on paper towels or brown paper bag lined with plastic.
• Fry all the'pakoras' this way.
• Serve hot with any chutney.
• Variation: Add 1 cup corn kernels to the mixture for extra crispness.
• May also add ½ teaspoon baking soda to ensure softness.

TANDOORI MURGH PAKORA (BATTER-FRIED CHICKEN)

Steps:

• Mix all the ingredients for the marinade.
• Add the chicken cubes.
• Mix well.
• Set aside for 2 hours.
• Mix all the ingredients for the batter in a bowl.
• Beat well.
• The batter should have a thick, but flowing consistency.
• Add the marinated chicken cubes to the batter.
• Keep aside for 30 minutes.
• Deep-fry the chicken in hot oil till crisp.
• Place the pakoras on a platter.
• Sprinkle with chaat masala and serve.

CREAMY CAULIFLOWER PAKORA SOUP

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, bring first 14 ingredients to a boil. Cook and stir until vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat; cool slightly. Process in batches in a blender or food processor until smooth. Adjust consistency as desired with water or additional stock. Sprinkle with fresh cilantro. Serve hot, with lime wedges if desired., Freeze option: Before adding cilantro, freeze cooled soup in freezer containers. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Heat through in a saucepan, stirring occasionally; add water if necessary. Sprinkle with cilantro. If desired, serve with lime wedges.

MIXED VEGETABLE PAKORA

Steps:

• * Boil the potato until just tender, peel and chop finely.
• * Finely chop peppers and onion. Shred the cabbage.
• * Mix first set of ingredients well. Beat in a blender for 4-5 minutes to incorporate air (this will make the batter fluffier).
• * Let batter rest 1/2 hour in a warm place.
• * Add the vegetables and mix in evenly.
• * Deep fry in oil that is heated.
• * Drain pakoda on paper towels and serve immediately.
• * Serve vegetable pakora with coriander or mint chutney or tomato ketchup.
• Sometimes I use Dehydrated peppers, Cabbage, Onions, and Jalapeno with water until it is reconstituted to the equivalent. It is still pretty good.

VEGETABLE PAKORA

Steps:

• Boil the potato or yam slices until *just* tender, being careful not to overcook.
• Mix batter ingredients well. Beat in a blender for 4-5 minutes to incorporate air (this will make the batter fluffier). Let batter rest 1/2 hour in a warm place.
• Add the vegetables and mix in evenly.
• Deep fry in oil that is heated to 375° until deep brown (somewhere between 4-6 minutes per batch). Drain on paper towels and serve immediately.
• Serve with cilantro or mint chutney or cucumber raita.

FRESH STRING/GREEN BEAN PAKORA FRITTERS WITH GINGER

Steps:

• You will also need 1 Recipe Basic Batter for Pakora Fritters.
• Prepare chat Masala if not store bought.
• Prepare basic batter, mix in the coriander, cumin, ajwain seeds & ginger. Add the beans to the batter.
• Heat the oil & fry the beans in 175-185° C oil. Transfer all the fried pakoras to paper napkins to soak of oil and then to a serving platter. Sprinkle the chaat masala on top, and serve.

PAKORA FOR PUNJABI KADHI

Steps:

• Heat a generous amount of vegetable oil in a heavy saucepan or a deep fryer.
• Combine water, flour, onion, salt, chili powder, and baking soda in a bowl to make a thick batter.
• Place 1 teaspoon batter in the hot oil and deep-fry until browned all around, about 3 minutes. Line a plate with paper towels and drain pakoras there.
• Place the pakoras in the Punjabi Kadi.

ALOO (POTATO) PAKORA

Steps:

• Add water to the Besan.
• Besan has a tendency to be very clumpy, so you should add just a few tablespoons at a time to keep the batter smooth.
• Add the Chilli powder, cumin powder, garlic, ginger, salt and chopped coriander and stir the batter.
• The potatoes should be sliced very thinly.
• No thicker than 1/4 of an inch.
• At this point test one slice of potato in the batter.
• There should just be a thin coat of batter.
• Heat the oil in a pan.
• Use a larger frying pan so that you have more surface area.
• The oil doesn't need to be too deep since the potato slices are very thin.
• Dip the potato slices in the batter and fry them till they are golden brown.
• Remove them from the oil with a slotted spoon and set them on a paper towel for a minute to soak up the excess oil.

PUMPKIN PAKORA FRITTERS WITH BENGALI 5- SPICES

Steps:

• 1. Prepare the chaat masala and the 5-spices. Then prepare the basic batter and mix in the 5-spices and the sugar.2. Add the pumpkin slices to the batter. Heat the oil and fry the pumpkin slices as per directions in INFORMATION AND SPECIAL TECHNIQUES: __Frying Fritters (Pakorae Talna). Transfer all the fried pakoras to a serving platter, sprinkle the chaat masala on top, and serve.From "1,000 Indian Recipes." Copyright 2002 by Neelam Batra. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

SHABZI PAKORA

Steps:

• First prepare all the vegetables: you are aiming for everything to be in long thin strips of roughly equal size (around 1½in). Place all the vegetables, fresh cilantro and chile in a large mixing bowl and sprinkle over the salt, turmeric and chili powder. Mix together until they are well combined; hands are best for this to make sure that all the vegetables are covered. Use disposable gloves if you are worried about turmeric stains.
• Sprinkle over the ground rice and mix together well. Now sprinkle over the gram flour a handful at a time, until it coats all the vegetables.
• Mix the vegetables and flours together, and squidge everything together really well. This will draw the moisture out of the vegetables which will combine with the flours to form a light batter. Sometimes you may also need to add a little splash of water for the batter to come together, but you may not need any, and the less you use the better. The vegetables should give off enough of their own moisture to render the extra water unnecessary. The vegetables should just about hold together when you press them into a ball, but they don't need to be very sticky. This will give a lighter and crispier texture when the pakora are cooked.
• To fry the pakora, pre-heat plain vegetable oil to 180ºC/350°F. A deep-fat fryer is the best option if you have one, if not you can use a saucepan or wok, but never fill the pan more than half full and never leave hot oil unattended. To test the temperature drop a tiny amount (a teaspoon) of the batter into the hot oil; it should float up to the surface and turn golden-brown within a minute.
• With either your hands or two spoons, pick up small amounts of the batter and gently press them together so that each holds a loose nugget-shape of around 2in in diameter. Drop the first batch of pakora batter balls carefully into the hot oil and allow to cook gently for 7-8 minutes. Turn once during cooking.
• When the pakora are a deep bronzed-brown, use a slotted spoon to lift them carefully out of the hot oil and drain on kitchen paper. If the pakora remain doughy in the middle, reduce the heat of the oil and cook them more slowly, or make the pakora slightly smaller in the next batch.
• Serve as soon as possible for the best results. However if you need to fry them in advance, let them cool down in the open air and then reheat them in a hot oven (200°C/400°F/Gas mark 6) for 5 minutes before eating.

BASIC BATTER FOR PAKORA FRITTERS

Steps:

• Sift the chick pea flor in to a medium bowl, add salt & baking soda & mix well.
• Add 1/3 cup water to make a smooth batter of medium consistency. If too thin, add more flour; f too thin, mix in some more water.
• Heat deep frying oil to 175 - 185°C.

TRADITIONAL CHICKEN PAKORA FRITTERS

Steps:

• 1. Prepare the ginger-garlic paste. Then place the chicken, water, ginger-garlic paste, garam masala, and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pan and simmer until the chicken is tender and all the water has been absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes. If the chicken cooks before the water dries up, uncover the pan and cook until the chicken is completely dry. Let cool, remove the bones and cut into smaller pieces, if you wish.2. Meanwhile, prepare the chaat masala and the dry-roasted cumin seeds. Then, prepare the basic batter, and mix in the cilantro, coriander, cumin, red pepper flakes, and ajwain seeds.3. Add the chicken to the batter. Heat the oil and fry the chicken as per directions in INFORMATION AND SPECIAL TECHNIQUES: __Frying Fritters (Pakorae Talna). Transfer to a platter, sprinkle with the roasted cumin and chaat masala.From "1,000 Indian Recipes." Copyright 2002 by Neelam Batra. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

BASIC BATTER FOR PAKORA FRITTERS

Steps:

• 1. Sift the chickpea flour into a medium bowl, add the salt and baking soda and mix well.2. Add 1/3 cup water to make a smooth batter of medium consistency. If the batter is thin, add some more chickpea flour if it seems too thick, mix in some more water. The batter is now ready.From "1,000 Indian Recipes." Copyright 2002 by Neelam Batra. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

FISH PAKORA

Steps:

• Remove moisture from the fish by drying on kitchen paper. Make up a marinade paste with the lime/lemon, salt, ginger, garlic, garam masala and chopped chilli. The marinade should be a dry paste. Rub the marinade all over the fish and leave refrigerated for at least 30 minutes but the longer the better. Sieve the gram flour into a separate bowl and add carom seeds, salt, coriander, chilli powder, baking powder and a little water to make a thick batter. Beat to aerate the mixture. Heat oil in a wok or karahi to a medium heat. (Note: if oil is too hot the batter will cook too quickly and the fish will remain uncooked.) Dip one of the marinated fish pieces into the batter to cover and very gently place in the hot oil. Leave to cook for about three minutes, use a slotted spoon to move the pakora around. Once crisp and golden brown remove and set on some kitchen paper. Taste to check the seasoning, adjust if required. Continue to cook the rest in small batches. Serve with salad and a wedge of lemon.