Indian paneer Pakoras – Pakodas – Bajjia – Fritters
Paneer pakoras or pakodas or Indian cottage cheese fritters is a quick snack item. Serve it as a starter/finger food/ appetizer. If you like paneer, you are going to love this.
Equipment
- 1 Mixing Bowl
- 1 ladle
- 1 fryer or kadai
Ingredients
- paneer cut into thick triangles squares or fingers – 15 – 20 pieces
- Oil for deep frying.
Ingredients for making batter
- Besan – Chana dal/ chickpea flour- 1 cup
- Rice flour – 1 tbsp
- Salt – 1 tsp or according to taste
- Red chili powder – 1/2 tsp
Optional ingredients for batter
- Ginger garlic paste – 1/2 tsp
- Green chilies chopped fine – 4-5
Instructions
Preparation for pakoda:
Making pakora batter
- Add besan / gram flour to a bowl.
- Add rice flour, salt, chili power, chopped chili pieces, ginger garlic paste, if adding to besan and mix well.
- Heat 1 tbsp oil and add the hot oil to the dry mixed flour. Mix well.
Frying paneer pakoda – paneer fritters
- Heat oil in a kadai/wok for deep frying. Keep the flame medium.
- When oil is hot, dip each paneer in the prepared batter and drop carefully in the hot oil. You can add 4-5 or more pakoda at a time depending on the size of your kadhai (fryer) and the amount of oil you are using.
- Fry till the pakodas are golden brown all over. Turn the pakoras once in a while so that they will be fried evenly.
- Remove from oil after draining well. Fry all the pakoda in the same way.
- Serve hot by itself or with your favorite chutney or chili sauce or tomato ketchup.
Tips and variations for making paneer pakora
- The cut paneer slices should not be very thin.
- You may sprinkle some chaat masala on pakodas before serving if you wish.
- Add 1/4 tsp garam masala to batter for variation.
- Adding just salt and red chili powder makes the basic pakoda batter tasty too. Other spices are optional.
- Instead of hot oil, you may add a pinch of soda bicarb to the batter just before frying pakodas.