Description
This classic Indian appetizer can be made as balls or onion rings.
Scale
Ingredients
- 1 cup chickpea flour (also called besan or garbanzo bean flour)
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon carom seeds (also called ajwain)
- 1 tablespoon fenugreek seeds
- 2 cups canola oil, divided
- 1 cup club soda
- chaat masala, for sprinkling
- 1 large Spanish onion, cut in 1/4-inch pieces
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with a double layer of paper towels. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, chili powder, carom seeds, fenugreek, and 1 teaspoon of the oil. Add the club soda a little at a time, and mix well to ensure there are no lumps. The batter should be thicker than pancake batter. If the batter becomes too thin, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time.
- Add the onions to the batter and mix with a large spoon to ensure each piece of onion is coated well.
- Heat the remaining oil in a deep saucepan to 350°F or until a tiny drop of batter bubbles and rises to the top immediately.
- Using a 1-tablespoon cookie scoop or a spoon, scoop about 1 tablespoon of batter. Gently add it to the hot oil and fry, turning occasionally for 4 to 6 minutes. The bhaji should be golden and cooked all the way through. If it doesn’t cook all the way through during this time, make the balls smaller or flatten them before adding them to the oil.
- Remove the bhaji using a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel to drain. Dust with chaat masala while still warm.
- Continue until all the bhaji are cooked. Note that the temperature of the oil might fall when you add the bhaji so allow time for the oil to reheat if necessary. (This is where a candy thermometer comes in very handy. It’s worth the $3 and drawer space.)
- Serve immediately. These don’t store well, so eat up.
Notes
Onion Ring Variation: Monica Bhide’s original recipe is for onion rings. To make them, cut 2 medium red onions into 1/4-inch thick rounds. Separate the onion into rings. Set aside the very small rings and hard centre for another purpose. (You can freeze them and use them for soup stock if you don’t have an immediate use.)
For onion rings, you can also substitute all-purpose flour for the besan. Regardless of which flour you use, follow the recipe as above to make the batter and coat the rings. Fry a few onion rings at a time, turning them in the oil until they are golden brown on all sides, about 2 to 3 minutes.