Onion pakoda

Onion pakoda is a snack item from Gujarat. It is made of onions and gram flour. The gram flour is fried in oil and then chopped into small pieces. Then the rest of the ingredients are added, namely, onions, gram flour, and cumin seeds. This is then stuffed into a gram flour dough and fried.

Onion pakoda is a snack that has been popular in India for centuries. It is made of flattened and fried onions, which is then stuffed with tangy shredded potatoes or gram flour. The pakodas are deep fried over moderate heat in oil. This process gives the pakodas a crispy and crunchy texture. The pakodas are an excellent snack choice for a teatime.

This post’s title is a bit of an oxymoron, as most people are still unaware of the new product called onion pakoda. That is because it is a novel snack item that is not available in bricks and mortar stores.

In Tamil Nadu, onion pokada is a popular street food that may be eaten with family and tea in the evening. When the weather is nice or during wet chilly winters, I frequently desire or recall onion pakodas. Onion pokada is a besan (gram flour) and spice-filled deep-fried fritter. This onion pokada dish is in the South Indian form called as vengaya pokada (onion pakoda) in Tamil, which is crispy and distinct from the North Indian variant of pokadas (kanda bhaji).

These onion pokadas are flavored with South Indian spices, giving them a distinct flavor and flavor. Unlike other pokadas or pokaras, this onion pokada is not soft. Only a little amount of water is needed for these onion pokadas. The dough is crumbly and loose, which distinguishes them from other onion pokaras produced in North India and other parts of the world. In the evenings, you may buy this onion pokada wrapped in newspaper outside tea shops or tea booths – it’s a fast and simple way to pack! This type of pakodas may be found at both savory and sweet stores or bakeries. These onion pokadas are delicious on their own or with ketchup. These onion pakodas are often served with tea.

Time to prepare: 10 minutes

Time to cook: 30 minutes

Tamil Nadu cuisine

Medium spiciness

Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 1 cup gram flour
• 1/3 to 1/4 cup rice flour
• 1 (large) onion (145 gms)
• 1 tsp or 1 tsp green chilli
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger (optional)
• 2 garlic cloves (optional) (crushed with skin on)
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 15 to 20 curry leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 20 to 25 mL water (optional)
• Hing (optional asafoetida)– a pinch
• 2 tsp hot oil/ghee
• 12 to 15 leaves of mint
• 1/3 cup coriander leaves
• if necessary, salt

Method

• Cut the onions into thin slices. Green chilies, mint, coriander leaves, and curry leaves should all be roughly chopped. Keep it on hand.
• In a mixing bowl, combine all of the onions, chopped chilies, curry leaves, mint, coriander leaves, and all of the spices, except flour, oil, and water. Mix thoroughly.
• Allow for a 5- to 10-minute rest period. The moisture produced by the onions is sufficient to glue the mixture together. If necessary, a little amount of water may be added. In the meanwhile, heat the oil in a kadai (medium to high flame).
• Add the gram flour, rice flour, and heated oil or ghee at this point. Combine all of them. Squeeze the onion lightly while mixing it with the flour.
• Gently knead the ingredients. The mixture should be wet and crumbly, with the onions visible as seen in the photo below.
• When it’s ready, start cooking right away. Do not leave the mixture unattended for an extended period of time. The mixture’s consistency may shift.
• First, try a sample in heated oil. If it floats right away, the oil is ready to cook.
• Reduce the heat to medium. Take a handful of the onion mixture in your palm and distribute it with your fingers, little by little. There are no shapes needed. Shapeless pokadas may be made in any size. For each batch, I produced 4 to 5 medium-sized pokadas.
• Continue flipping until it is golden on both sides. Depending on the recipe, cook over a medium heat.
• Drain the onion pokadas on kitchen paper using a perforated ladle, then repeat the process with the remaining batch.
• With a cup of hot tea, you may enjoy homemade onion pokadas.
• Enjoy right now while it’s still hot!

Notes

• I usually cook one or two pokadas as samples when deep frying pokadas or any other food to ensure the oil temperature is correct. If it’s extremely hot outside, I’ll lower the temperature, and vice versa.
• Make sure the kadai has enough oil and room for the pokadas to puff up while they’re cooking.
• When cool, keep these pokadas in sealed containers at room temperature. It will last for at least two days.
• You may use ghee or dalda instead of heated oil to give the combination a distinct flavor.
• If the mixture gets too soft, add additional besan and rice flour as needed, along with salt to taste.
• The oil must not be at either a low or a high temperature. The pokadas should be cooked over a medium heat. When the oil temperature is low, the pokadas absorb a lot of oil and become extremely greasy. If the heat is too high, the pokadas will rapidly cook and darken in color, but the interior will stay raw and the pokadas will become extremely hard.

 

Onion pakoda is a well known snack in most households of North India. It is traditionally made of onions, gram flour (chickpeas), chilli powder, green chilies, coriander, and a little salt. While these ingredients are common among many Indian snacks, pakodas made of these are quite different from their counterparts in other parts of the country.. Read more about onion pakoda without besan and let us know what you think.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is onion Pakoda healthy?

Onion Pakoda is not healthy.

How do you keep pakoras crispy?

Pakoras are deep-fried, so they can be kept crispy by storing them in an airtight container.

Can we eat onion Pakoda?

Yes, you can eat onion Pakoda.