Pakora are best enjoyed on a rainy monsoon day (or a rainy day anywhere). Crispy and savoury, they are also a great way to use up any leftover vegetables. I have so many memories of eating these snacks at home in Agra with my family. It’s something my ma would make often, and we would always be so happy to smell them as they cooked. There’s no better accompaniments than coriander and mint chutney and a steaming glass of chai. Chai keeps me running, it’s my petrol. “No chai, no high!” I used to say when I worked as a chai-walla in Agra.
Ingredients
4 servings
2 medium potatoes, peeled
3 large onions, peeled
50 grams fresh coriander
2 green chillis
1 tsp tumeric powder
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp cumin seeds, crushed between your palms
1 tsp coriander powder
1.5 tsp salt
500 grams flour
4 tbs water
500 grams vegetable oil for frying
METHOD
Step 1
Chop the potatoes into fine finger-length matchsticks. Half the onions from root to tip and slice into thin half moons. Roughly chop the fresh coriander and finely chop the green chillies (deseed for a milder flavour). Thoroughly mix the prepared vegetables and herbs in a large bowl with the spices, salt, gram flour and water. Set to one side for 20 minutes, then stir again.
Step 2
Meanwhile, prepare the chai. Crush the fresh ginger and cardamom in a pestle and mortar and place in a small saucepan with the cold water. Bring to the boil over a high heat, add the tea and bring it back to the boil, then simmer for 5 minutes. Swirl it around, add milk and sugar (to taste) and bring it back to the boil, then simmer for another 5 minutes. Swirl again. Strain into a teapot, cover to keep warm and when ready pour into two glasses.
Step 3
To fry the pakoras, heat the oil in a heavy-based frying pan to 180ºC. Take a handful of the pakora mix and squeeze it into a loose ball about the size of a dessert spoon, to help the vegetables stick to each other when lowered in the oil. Use a spoon to carefully lower the balls into the oil, fry in batches for 2 minutes on each side until crisp and golden. Take care not to overcrowd the pan or they won’t be crispy. Drain well on kitchen paper before serving with coriander and mint chutney and hot chai.
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