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crispy veggie pakora
Sconce&Scone

Crispy Veggie Pakora

These Veggie Pakoras are light and crispy even after deep frying them. No air fryer in sight! These are also deliciously gluten free and vegan, if you needed another reason to make these right away!
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Resting Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings: 4
Course: Appetizer, Snack
Cuisine: Pakistani
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 medium onion thinly sliced
  • 3 red potatoes peeled and cut into matchsticks
  • 4 green chili peppers thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup cilantro chopped
  • 1 tsp cumin coarsley ground
  • 1 tsp coriander seeds coarsely ground
  • 1 tsp crushed anar dana dried pomegranate seeds
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp kashmiri laal mirch or chili powder
  • 1 1/4 cup besan chickpea flour
  • 1 lemon juiced
  • oil for deep frying

Method
 

  1. Add all the chopped vegetables into a large bowl. Add in the spices and besan and mix well. the besan will just lightly coat the vegetables.
  2. Add the lemon juice (approximately 4 tbsp) and mix well. Let the mixture sit at room temperature for one hour, or refridgerated for up to 5-6 hours. The vegetables will release their water to help form a paste.
  3. Heat 2 inches of oil in a frying pan. Once the oil is hot lower the flame to medium. Give the pakora mixture a good mix and drop tablespoons full of batter into the hot oil. Make sure th eoil is nt too hot, or the crust will burn and the veggies will remain raw. Flip after 3 minutes and deep fry till both sides are golden brown. Drain onto some kitchen towel and serve immedietaly.

Notes

If you're out of time. I understand that nt everyone has 1-2 hours to wait for the vegetables to release their water. In this case, add water to mix one tablespoon at a time, mixing between each addition, until the besan (chickpea flour) forms a thick paste and coats the vegetables. Then deep fry as instructed above. 
The veggies have too much water content. There are times in the year when the produce is extra plump, and the vegetables can release too much, creating a liquid besan mixture. If this happens just add a tablespoon of chickpea flour to the mix before frying.
I want the ultimate crunch. You can add 2-3 tabslpoons of corn starch to the pakora mix before deep frying. This adds an extra tempura like crunch to the pakoras.
Make it less spicy. The fresh green chillies and the chilli powder make a spicy combination. If you want to cut the spice you can either deseed the green chillies or add half the amount. 
I want variety. There are so many different veggie variations you can add. My favorite additions are spinach and egg plant. You an even make these with just one vegetable if that's all you have. 
You need to fry in advance. Sometimes you don't want to smell like a crispy pakora while serving them, so you can fry these an hour or two in advance. Keep them in a baking sheet lined with a baking rack, and reheat them in the oven at 350 F for 5-7 minutes. They will stay as crispy as possible.