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View Full Version : Snacks and chats: Pakoda


Bhaskar
11-29-2008, 06:02 AM
A fun little fried snack.

1 cup garbanzo bean flour a.k.a Besan (available at all Indian stores)
2 tsp olive (or vegetable) oil
1 tsp ground Cumin
1 -2 green chillies, chopped (use jalapenos if you cant get the green chillies at the Indian store)
1 potato
1 small cauliflower
2 cabbage
5-10 leaves spinach sliced
You can also use other veggies like carrots, zucchini, radishes, etc)
1 1/2 cup sliced onion
1/2 cup Water
Salt to taste

* Boil the potato until just tender, peel and chop finely.
* Finely chop cauliflower and onion. Shred the cabbage and spinach.
* Mix flour, water, oil, cumin and salt well. Beat in a blender for 4-5 minutes to make it fluffier.
* Let batter rest 1/2 hour in a warm place
* Add the vegetables and mix in evenly.
* Deep fry chunks (about 1 tablespoonful at a time) in oil that is heated to 375°C. Let them get golden brown.
* Drain pakoda on paper towels and serve immediately.
* Serve vegetable pakora with chutney or ketchup.

This is a good recipe to experiment with. Try adding some other spices to the batter to change the flavor a bit. A dash of mint leaves or some black pepper for example.

A great variant of this dish is the south Indian bajji. Make a similar batter, except with a little more water to make it more loose. Instead of chopping vegetables fine, cut them into large, thin slices.Coat them lightly in the batter and deep fry them until golden brown.

SvgGrdnBeauty
12-04-2008, 07:43 AM
...i would try this but i don't trust myself to deep fry anything...it gives me memories of the oil jumping out at my grandma on christmas eve when she fried the calamari...

Bhaskar
12-05-2008, 07:33 PM
lol, maybe the fish was still alive?