Serve pakora as a starter for an Indian meal, a light meal, or pass them around as canapés at your next gathering. They’re gluten free and vegan so everybody can enjoy them!
Pakora: Indian Vegetable Fritters
This is street food, the Indian way! Sold as snacks on the streets of India and as popular appetisers in Indian restaurants elsewhere, pakora are crispy, bite-size vegetable fritters. They’re loaded with gorgeous Indian spices before being fried until crunchy. These little nuggets are dangerously easy to eat, the sort of food you just keep popping into your mouth, one after the other, until you suddenly realise the plate is half empty and you look around to find someone to accuse – Who ate all the pakoras??!!! Ssshhh!!! I will never tell – if you don’t!
What goes in Pakora
Pakoras can be made with almost any vegetable that is suitable for cooking in fritter form. I’ve opted to use onion, potato and cauliflower, but there’s an extensive list below of other vegetables that can be used along with how to chop them.
Chickpea flour – Also known as gram flour and besan, it is made from dried chickpeas and is a staple in Indian and Subcontinental cooking. Nowadays it’s sold at large grocery stores in Australia. The flavour is nutty and it’s denser than normal flour with better nutritional qualities (lower carb and higher in protein);Fenugreek powder – A common Indian / Subcontinental spice, it oddly enough kind of smells like maple syrup. However it tastes nothing like it, and has a pungent and mysterious flavour. It’s available at stores that carry a decent range of spices. I found it at Harris Farms (Australia). Also, of course, at Indian grocery stores!Best sub: Garam masala or a generic curry powder. (These are not the same at all, but the extra flavour will compensate);Chilli powder – This is pure ground chillies, not to be confused with US ‘chili powder’ which is a spice mix. Substitute: cayenne pepper. Feel free to reduce chilli powder if you’re concerned about spiciness. Start conservatively and cook a test pakora. Taste, and if you want more add more chilli into the batter;Turmeric powder – Adds a beautifully warm, golden colour to the pakora;Cumin, coriander and fresh ginger – Staple spices / aromatics in Indian cooking;Fresh chilli – For their fruity flavour and a little warmth. I’m using large cayenne peppers here which are not that spicy, but rather add a warm hum to the pakoras. Generally the rule is the larger the chilli, the less spicy they are. Feel free to omit or reduce to your taste;Potatoes – Any all-rounder or starchy potatoes work. AU: Sebago, US: russet, UK: King Edward or Maris Piper. Waxy potatoes will work ok too for this recipe;Onion – These add great sweet, savoury flavour to the fritters so I really do recommend keeping onions in;Cauliflower – When finely chopped as called for in this recipe, it adds lovely texture to fritters as well as acting like a sponge that absorbs the spices in the pakora batter; andCoriander/cilantro – For a nice hint of freshness and colour in the pakoras. However, in this recipe it is not a key flavour so it can be omitted or substituted with finely chopped green onions, parsley or chives.
Other vegetables to use for Pakoras
A nice thing about Pakoras are their versatility. While I’ve used cauliflower, potato and onion, you can use other vegetables, as long as they’re finely chopped or grated. Use 6 cups in total: Best sub: Garam masala or a generic curry powder. (These are not the same at all, but the extra flavour will compensate); Substitute: cayenne pepper. Feel free to reduce chilli powder if you’re concerned about spiciness. Start conservatively and cook a test pakora. Taste, and if you want more add more chilli into the batter;
Carrots – finely julienned or gratedBroccoli, broccolini – chop finely into rice sizeGreen beans, asparagus – finely spice or julienneZucchini – grate and squeeze out excess liquidSpinach, cabbage and similar – julienne then grab handfuls and squeeze out excess liquidCapsicum / bell peppers – finely slice into 2.5cm (1″) piecesParsnip, celeriac and other root vegetables – grate like potatoPeas and corn kernels – use as-isNot recommended (or requires extra prep steps): eggplant, pumpkin, celery, fennel, cucumber, tomatoes
How to make Pakoras
Part 1: Preparing the vegetables
Part 2: Pakora batter and frying
Pakoras are deep fried so you get the signature scraggly sticking out bits that become extra crunchy. However you can cook them like pan-fried fritters (like Zucchini Fritters, Corn Fritters etc) if you prefer not to deep fry. Of course, they won’t be quite the same but they’re still delicious! Here’s how I prepared the fresh vegetables in these pakoras: Ginger: Finely minced using a microplane (best for maximum flavour extraction!)Cauliflower: Finely chopped into rice size pieces, as though preparing to make Cauliflower Rice (which, actually, is a good tip if you want to just buy ready-made – simply use raw cauliflower rice). You can also grate it using a standard box grater. Use a large bowl so the cauliflower bits don’t go everywhere. Otherwise use a food processor!Potato: Grated using a box grater; andOnion: Grated using a box grater. Yes, the onion juice squirting out will be torture and will make you cry (unless, like me, you’re protected with contact lenses). But it’s worth it, I promise!
Sauces for Pakora
Pakoras are typically served with a sauce which is fresh and cooling for a delicious contrast to the hot, spiced, fried Pakora. Remember, don’t crowd the pot! It will lower the oil temperature too much. I generally cook 4 at a time at the beginning to get into the groove of the timing, then up to 6 at a time; I’ve got 2 to choose from today: You can’t go wrong with either of these, they both work brilliantly with Pakoras! I really just comes down to personal preference.
When and what to serve with Pakoras
Pakoras are a standard starter you’ll find on the menu of every Indian restaurant here in Australia. So make these as the appetiser for a homemade Indian feast. Browse all Indian recipes here! In India, Pakora are a common street snack sold by street vendors. In this vein, Pakoras would make a great option to pass around as a canapé. They are the perfect finger food size, and something a little different! Cook up a big batch then just pop them in the oven to crisp up just before serving. Fabulous! – Nagi x PS. This recipe makes a lot – around 40 pakoras. I figure if we’re going to make them, let’s make it worth our while. Plus, they reheat terrifically in the oven and also freeze well. Once you have made a stash, you’ll be glad you did!
Watch how to make it
Life of Dozer
Ah Dozer. When you eye off cheesy bread like that, there’s just no doubt that you’re my boy. (Especially when “that cheesy bread” is Croque Monsieur!)
