Zucchini Pakoras (Fritters)

Another great way to use up extra zucchini!

These look entirely too much like batter-fried sea creatures, but I SWEAR they're entirely vegetable and very, very yummy!!! (Yes, they're FRIED, no wonder they're yummy, right?)

Adjust the spices if your family prefers things more mild or more spicy. These are a huge hit with my kids.

Zucchini Pakoras or Fritters

1 cup chickpea/garbanzo/besan flour (it's all the same thing)

1/8 tsp. (pinch) baking soda

pinch ground cumin

pinch ground coriander

pinch cardamom

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 tsp. ground turmeric

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon garam masala OR "Old Bay seasoning"(optional but so yummy!)

2 cloves garlic, crushed/pressed

3/4 cup water

3 cups oil for deep frying

1 1/2 cups shredded zucchini (or some carrot or cabbage is nice here too!)

1/4 cup grated onion

Sift the chickpea flour into a medium bowl. Mix in the baking soda, salt and spices.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Gradually pour the water into the well and mix to form a thick, smooth batter; it should be thicker than pancake batter.

In a medium-sized heavy saucepan, heat the oil to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

Squeeze extra moisture out of shredded zucchini by wrapping it in a paper towel and wringing. Add shredded vegetables and garlic to batter and stir to coat. Spoon into hot oil by the scant Tablespoonful and fry in small batches until golden brown, about 2 - 4 minutes, turning to brown both sides.

Drain on paper towels before serving.

Corn and Green Chile Pakoras with Tamarind Chutney

Pakoras are basically spiced Indian batter-fried vegetables. My kids will eat ANY vegetable dipped in Pakora batter!

Pakora batter is so-o-o simple, just besan, or chickpea (gabanzo) flour and spices.

But because I can't leave well-enough alone, to that basic recipe I added a Southwest sort of twist; a little cornmeal for added crunch, and then used the batter to coat corn kernels and smoky-hot fire-roasted green chiles.

I kept the Indian spices though, I think they go pretty well with the chiles and corn... Yum!

Since you can't exactly dip individual pieces of corn into the batter like you would larger vegetables for traditional pakoras, these end up rather like spicy, crunchy corn fritters.... only better.

I included traditional Tamarind Chutney for dipping because I already knew how to make that, but salsa or green chile sauce would work well here too.

Sweet Corn and Fire-Roasted Green Chile Pakoras

1 cup chickpea/garbanzo flour (besan)
2 Tbsp. fine ground cornmeal
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cumin powder
½ teaspoon ground fenugreek
½ teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1¼ cup water
2 tablespoon lemon juice
½ cup chopped, well-drained, fire-roasted green chiles
1 ¼ cup drained, canned corn

oil for frying

Heat 1 inch oil in small frypan.
Mix all other ingredients. Add more chickpea flour as needed to make a stiff pancake-like batter.
Drop by spoonfulls into hot oil. Fry until brown, turn with tongs. Fry other side. Drain on paper towels.

Serve with Tamarind Chutney or whatever you like for dipping.

Tamarind Chutney

4 oz piece tamarind (use the softer Thai kind with no seeds)
3/4 cup hot water
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground fenugreek
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon Indian Black Salt
2 Tbsp. finely grated fresh ginger

Gently mash tamarind with water in a small bowl until pulp is soft and squishy.
Push pulp through a sieve into a medium pan. Press on it with the back of a spoon and tossing out the thick fibers.

Add sugar and cook over low heat, stirring, just until sugar is dissolved.
Toast spices (except ginger) in a small skillet over moderate heat, stirring, until fragrant and a shade darker, about 1 - 2 minutes. Cool completely. Stir spices into tamarind mixture along with chile powder, ginger and salt.

Blend with food processor or immersion blender until smooth, serve with Indian pakoras.

Bindi Masala, Pakoras and an Indian Restaurant too!

Froggy and I went to an Indian Restaurant a couple weeks ago, and it was SOO good.
Pabla Indian Cuisine is an all-vegetarian Indian restaurant, (it's certified kosher, even!) not far from here, in Renton, WA. Possibly one of my favorite places ever! Everything we've ever had there has been just wonderful! There are a few non-vegan dishes on the menu, but if you tell them "No dairy" they know EXACTLY how to do your dinner.

As you can see from the table-full, we couldn't decide, and ended up with PUH-LENTY to take home as delicious leftovers!!

At any rate, this delicious dinner inspired our Indian food tonight. (And more importantly, creative ways to use up some veggies.) My oldest isn't a huge okra fan, though she will eat it this way.


Both of the following recipes are originally from... somewhere... but over the past few years, I've added, tweaked, adjusted, strayed far from the original - to make them exactly the way our family likes them. They're super easy too, which is always a 'plus' in this house! I do tend to keep quite a few Indian spices around though, which makes these easy to throw together...

Bindi (Okra) Masala

2 tablespoons peanut or light olive oil
1 large white onion, finely chopped
2 inches fresh ginger root, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons crushed garlic
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
salt
1 can chopped, stewed tomatos (*gasp!* or about 2 large fresh ones)
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
2 lbs. fresh, small okra, rinsed well, patted dry and tops trimmed flat
1 teaspoon Garam Masala (I admit I buy this blend already-mixed, from an Indian Spice Market in Seattle- however, making your own is WONDERFUL and recipes abound on the Internet)

Grind ginger and garlic into a paste using a small food processor.
Heat oil in large skillet, over medium heat, add onions, and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes.
Add ginger-garlic paste, turmeric, coriander, cumin, and salt; cook, stirring 1 to 2 minutes.
Add tomatoes, okra, and green peppers.
If the veggies and seasonings appear dry, add 1/4 cup water. (I like mine a bit on the 'soupy' side) Add garam masala, and cooked covered, 15 to 20 minutes.
Serve with rice. Yum.

Bengali Cauliflower Pakoras

1 head of Cauliflower, cut into small florets
Make the batter:
¾ cup chickpea (besan) flour
¼ cup rice flour (or half cornstarch and half wheat flour)
1 teaspoon Garam Masala (again, I buy mine already mixed, but making your own is easy too!)
½ teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground coriander
¼ teaspoon Asafoetida powder (also known as "hing") this is optional - it's very authenitc and tasty but I can't STAND the smell of the stuff!
¼ teaspoon cayenne
1 cup water, approximately

Sift the besan flour, rice flour and spices into a bowl. The rice flour gives an extra crispy result but you can use just besan flour or substitute part cornstarch and part wheat flour for the rice flour

Mix dry ingredients well. Stir in the water - you want the batter to look like thick cream. I estimate 1½ cups, but it will vary as all flours react differently.
Place a few florets into the batter and as you remove them, shake any excess batter from them - you just want a light covering.

The oil should be around 300°F but if you don't have a thermometer, that's OK, it'll be fine too.
Gently place the pakora into the hot oil, they should start to sizzle right away, then turn the temperature down a little to allow the cauliflower to cook without the batter burning.
When golden (about 1 - 2 minutes), remove onto paper towels to drain.Repeat the process until all the pakora are cooked. Serve while still hot - mint chutney (see below) is awesome with this!

Fresh Mint Chutney

2 ½ cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves, coarsely chopped
1 cup fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
1 slice (1-1/2-inch) fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
½ Jalapeno chili, minced
5 teaspoon tamarind paste (or lime juice)
½ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoon lemon juice (omit is using lime juice above)

Blend everything in food processor until thick and well blended. Serve chilled, with Indian foods, especially the hot stuf!

ENJOY!