Onion pakora! Monsoon is the best time to enjoy these crispy, crunchy onion fritters, simply spiced with turmeric and carom seeds. They are the quintessential Indian street food along with a cuppa of chai.
Summer in the Northern hemisphere officially lasts until September 21st. July and August are the dream like summer months widely awaited in northern latitudes. But in India, July brings the monsoon season, rains which are welcome after the 100 degree plus temperature that parch the earth. Although tropical rain is warm, the air definitely becomes slightly chilly in places like Pune, my current home. And when the rains pour down, it is time to bring out the wok and start frying onion pakoras or kanda bhaji.Most of the working population in India can’t get by without street food. It is cheap and easily accessible, something you just grab while you are on the go. We may not have vending machines, but we have our roadside Chai stalls, and snack carts. Most of these have a huge iron wok that is frying up batches of different types of pakoras or vadas, fritters of different kinds.
The onion pakora is my hands down favorite among different type of pakoras. My days of standing huddled under the shade of a tree, dripping with water, enjoying piping hot kanda bhaji and sipping sweet masala chai are long gone. But I still enjoy making these onion pakoras at home for friends and family.
These onion pakora are also called Khekda Bhaji, Khekda meaning crab, because they look like crab legs I guess. There is a certain method of making them which is not too hard. If you are new to Indian cooking, this is one of the recipes you can try your hand at. There is very little that can go wrong here, assuming you are familiar with the art of deep frying something.
As versatile as Indian food is, most fritters, although they use similar ingredients, are made with a slightly different method or technique. The method for making these onion pakoras is just one such way.
Love Indian Street Food goodies like these Pakoras? Check out my latest book Chai Street – Indian Street Food Recipes for Vegans and Vegetarians.
Onion Pakora Recipe – Khekda Bhaji or Kanda Bhaji Recipe
Onion Pakora Recipe – Khekda Bhaji [Vegan]
![Onion Pakora Recipe – Khekda Bhaji [Vegan]](http://kamalkitchen.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Onion-Pakora-4.jpg "Onion Pakora Recipe – Khekda Bhaji [Vegan]")
Ingredients
- 4 cups onions, sliced
- 1 -2 cups gram flour or besan
- 1 tsp turmeric, ground
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- ½ tsp carom seeds or ajwain
- Salt to taste
- Oil for deep frying
Method
- Slice the onions in long slivers lengthwise, keeping them about 2 mm thick.
- Place onions in a bowl and add salt.
- Set aside for 15-20 minutes. The salt will draw water from the onions in this time. Crush the onions with your hands so that most of the moisture is extracted.
- Add seasonings and the gram flour, half a cup at a time and continue mixing with one hand. The flour should coat the onion and bind with the moisture that the onion let out.
- Add flour until it coats the onions well. Add a few spoons of water if needed to bring it all together.
- Heat oil in a wok.
- Drop small pieces or chunks of the coated onions in the oil and fry on medium heat until golden.
- Serve hot with ketchup or fried green chilies, along with a cup of masala chai.
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The sky has been overcast here for the last 5-6 weeks, and it drizzles almost every day. Unfortunately, I cannot make Onion Pakoras every day. So I’m doing the next best thing – putting them out there for everyone to enjoy :).
Try these simple Indian Pakoras and let me know how you liked them.
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