Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

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MINESAPINT
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Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 290787Post MINESAPINT »

I am a gardener not a chef but if like me you still have plenty of onions left and you like onion bhaji I would strongly urge you to try this recipe. Makes 12 to 16 bhajis which freeze perfectly. Ref chillies?. Obviously depends what type of chilli you use who is going to be eating the bhajis etc, add more if you wish, HT = heaped teaspoon. It is important not to fry too hot, certainly not at the temperature you would fry chips. Just let the bhajis fry gently for longer, this ensures they cook through. If the oil is too hot the bhajis brown on the outside but are not cooked in the centre. I use rapeseed oil then strain through kitchen paper and use to cook other Indian dishes - or more bhajis. To make this recipe you will need a basic level of competence and understanding of introducing wet items into hot oil, do not overfill your pan. Please be careful, also when cutting onions with sharp OR blunt knives. Here goes............

500ml of Gram flour
2 HT baking powder
1 HT curry leaves
1 HT methi
8 fresh chillies finely chopped
8 HT kalongi
1 HT chilli powder
1 HT paprika
2 HT turmeric
1 HT ground black pepper
4 HT ground coriander

Just mix all ingredients in a large mixing bowl then add sufficient cold water to make a thick batter. This is the bit you must get right, if the batter is too thin the bhajis will not hold together long enough to spoon them into the oil. If too thick it is difficult to stir the chopped onion in. Trial & error! Better to make too thick then if you are struggling to stir the mixture you can slacken it with a touch more water.

So now just finely slice one onion at a time and mix into the batter. Depending on the size of your onions you will use between 2 and 6. Again you need to use your own judgement.

Heat your pan of oil to the medium heat previously discussed (sorry cannot give you an actual temperature) and spoon heaped tablespoons of mixture into the oil. In the size of pan I use I fry in batches of 3 at a time. Once again you need to use your own judgement as to when they are cooked, I have never actually timed them but do keep my eye on them. They should be golden brown and will be delicious.

Let me know how you get on.

Minesapint
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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 290788Post Green Aura »

That sounds very tasty! I have one question, though - what's an HT? Half something - teaspoon/tablespoon?

One other suggestion - if you put some oil in the batter you could bake them - not authentic, I know, but I don't do deep fat frying.
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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 290790Post MKG »

Om nom. Om nom nom nom.
It's enough to make me get some chillis from the freezer right now. Thanks muchly.
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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 290791Post Green Aura »

That'll teach me to read more thoroughly - just spotted it - Heaped Teaspoon!
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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 290792Post MKG »

Oh - not a half ton, then?
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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 290793Post MINESAPINT »

Hi Maggie,

I have cooked them in the oven and they are OK. It is just a matter of finding a way to make them that suits you. The main improvement for me over my previous attempts at making Bhaji is the addition of baking powder although I do also feel the combination of spices is spot on. As the title of the thread implies "perfect".

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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 290794Post Green Aura »

:thumbright:
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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 290795Post Green Aura »

Just made these - had to substitute coconut flour for the gram flour (diet!) and baked them. Bloomin' lovely.
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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 291384Post happyhippy »

These sound good but where do you buy Methi and Kalongi?

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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 291390Post Green Aura »

Methi are fenugreek leaves, I've seen fresh leaves in Morrison's in Inverness! You can get them dried from any Asian grocery or online.
Kalonji seeds - you'll find those lots of places - maybe labelled as are nigella seeds. Otherwise as above.
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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 291392Post MKG »

I've just been looking that up, as it's far from clear. Methi is actually ANY part of the fenugreek plant. MaP's recipe states curry leaves, but just methi for the fenugreek, so I suspect he means fenugreek powder or seeds. Then again, all forms of fenugreek taste the same to me, so maybe it doesn't matter.

How's that for a completely circular post? :lol:
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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 291393Post happyhippy »

Ok thanks will look out for them.

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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 292326Post KoyDeli »

For me the perfect ratio of onion to dough is achieved by not adding any water at all. Toss the thinly sliced onions in herb/spice mix (I also add a handful of soaked and well-drained lentils), then add the flour (I use a mix of Gram flour with a little rice flour) a chef spoon at a time, tossing the flour with the onions between each spoonful, adding just enough flour so all the onion slices are coated. It will look too dry but there is enough moisture in the onions to bind with the flour for you to take a palm full of the mix and gently squeeze into shape. If you add salt to the mix add it after the flouring - if you put it in with the herbs/spices it draws too much moisture from the onions and the mix becomes too wet - for the same reason do not add any salt to the mix until you are ready to shape and fry them.

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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 292334Post Green Aura »

Sounds good, I'll give that a try. I've never been a huge fan of onion bhajis mainly because I don't like batter very much, no matter what it's made from or what it's coating. It sounds like I could keep it very light by that method, thank you.

Welcome to Ish by the way. :wave:
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Re: Perfect deep fried onion bhaji recipe

Post: # 292351Post houndcoconut »

Ah nice, I really need to cook more Indian food at home, as I buy it from restaurants way too often. Always yummy, but can be pricey :/

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