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Snack · Indian

Vegetable Pakoras

Crisp onion and vegetable pakoras in a besan batter, fried until golden. A Diwali favourite with a simple coriander chutney on the side.

Prep
20 min
Cook
20 min
Total
40 min
Serves
4

Updated

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Ready in 40 min, serves 4.

Total time
40 min
Serves
4
Course
Snack
Cuisine
Indian
Ingredients
23
Steps
7

Make ahead / storage: Best eaten hot, straight from the oil.

Golden vegetable pakoras on a white plate with a small bowl of green coriander chutney

Pakoras are vegetables dipped in a spiced chickpea flour batter and deep-fried until the outside turns properly crisp, and the batter is really the only part that takes any care. Besan, also called chickpea flour or gram flour, is what gives pakoras their flavour and colour, it's worth seeking out at an Indian grocer or the international aisle rather than substituting plain flour, which fries up pale and doesn't taste the same.

Salting the onion separately and letting it sit for ten minutes before it goes into the batter draws out some of its moisture, which keeps the batter from turning watery once everything's combined. Skip this step and the batter can end up too thin to coat the vegetables properly.

The batter should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon rather than drip straight off it, closer to a pancake batter than a crepe batter. A pinch of rice flour or cornflour mixed in gives an extra bit of crunch to the crust, though besan alone still makes a perfectly good pakora.

Fry in small batches and don't crowd the oil, too many pakoras in the pan at once drops the oil temperature and you end up with pale, oily pakoras instead of crisp ones. These are good with a quick coriander chutney for Diwali, or really any gathering where something hot and crisp off the stove is welcome.

Recipe

Vegetable Pakoras

Prep
20 min
Cook
20 min
Total
40 min
Serves
4

Ingredients

4 Servings

Pakoras

Coriander chutney

Method

  1. Step 1: Toss the sliced onion with 1/2 teaspoon of salt in a colander and leave to sit for 10 minutes, this draws out some moisture so the batter doesn't thin out once combined.

    Tip: Squeeze the onion gently with your hands after salting if a lot of liquid has pooled, a watery batter won't coat the vegetables properly.

  2. Step 2: Whisk the besan, rice flour, cumin, ground coriander, turmeric, chilli powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt together in a large bowl. Gradually whisk in the water until you have a thick batter that coats the back of a spoon.

  3. Step 3: Stir the salted onion, grated potato, cabbage, spinach, coriander leaves and green chilli into the batter until everything is evenly coated.

  4. Step 4: Heat about 2 inch of oil in a deep saucepan or wok to 180C (a cube of bread should turn golden in about 20 seconds).

  5. Step 5: Carefully drop tablespoons of the mixture into the oil, a few at a time, and fry for 3-4 minutes, turning occasionally, until deep golden and crisp all over.

    Tip: Don't crowd the pan, too many pakoras at once drops the oil temperature and they turn out pale and greasy instead of crisp.

  6. Step 6: Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel. Keep warm in a low oven while you fry the remaining batches.

  7. Step 7: For the chutney, blend the coriander, mint, chilli, lemon juice, sugar, water and a pinch of salt together until smooth. Serve alongside the hot pakoras.

Tips

  • Test the oil temperature with a small spoonful of batter before frying the first full batch, if it sinks and sits on the bottom, the oil isn't hot enough yet.
  • Grate the potato rather than dicing it, a grated potato cooks through in the same time it takes the batter to crisp, a diced one won't.
  • Fry pakoras in two batches and keep the first batch on a wire rack rather than paper towel while the second cooks, a wire rack stops the underside going soft from trapped steam.

Variations

  • Vegan: this recipe is naturally vegan as written, no changes needed.
  • Gluten-free: besan and rice flour are both naturally gluten-free, just double check your chilli powder and any pre-mixed spice blends for additives.
  • Paneer pakoras: swap the vegetables for 300g paneer cut into cubes, dipped individually in the batter, for a different texture alongside the vegetable version.

Storage and make-ahead

Best eaten hot, straight from the oil. Leftovers keep in the fridge for up to 2 days and crisp back up well in an air fryer or hot oven for a few minutes, microwaving makes them soggy. The batter itself doesn't keep well once mixed, make it fresh each time.

Nutrition per serving, estimated

Calories
180
Protein
5g
Carbs
20g
Fat
9g

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