Recipe

Vegetable Pakora

Main Course Alternative Grains Vegetables Indian

Ingredients

1 cup chickpea flour
pinch baking soda
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (or 1/4 tsp paprika, 1/4 tsp chipotle pepper)
1 tsp roasted ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup water

Vegetables I used:
1 small potato, peeled and thinly sliced (think mandoline) and set in lightly salted water
4 kale leaves, washed, dried, deveined and cut into large pieces
green beans
onion slices
green pepper or chili pepper slices (pieces cut to be as flat as possible)

You could also try
medium cauliflower or broccoli florets
small white mushrooms
spinach leaves
Japanese eggplant, sliced and set in water
slivers of japanese kabocha pumpkin

Vegetable oil for deep frying (i used canola)

For serving:
Sweet Tomato Chutney
Mint Chutney

Directions

Combine dry ingredients and whisk in water until about as thick as heavy cream. Recipe can be cut in half or doubled.

Fill pan with oil to deep fry, heat on high until hot but before reaching smoking point. If oil is too hot, fritters will burn. If not hot enough, the fritters will absorb too much oil. Oil is ready when a drop of batter rises to the surface immediately and sizzles. Lower heat to medium high to keep at correct temperature.

Dip 5-6 vegetables of one type into batter, coating all sides if possible. Drop them into hot oil, turning piece when half done and fry until golden brown. (It takes around a minute or two, depending on vegetable and heat of oil.)

Remove fritters from oil and set on rack to drain. Then keep warm in oven on low heat for (at most) 15 minutes, or they will get soggy.

Serve with chutney.

Notes

This is a great, easy batter. DH said they tasted just like Indian fritters should, and I agree. Yum yum.