Punjabi Kadhi Pakora

December 20, 2018 2 By Iqbal Kaur
Punjabi Kadhi Pakora
Punjabi Kadhi Pakora

Kadhi Pakora (dumplings) is a very popular dish in India. It is a Punjabi delicacy which is made very frequently in northern region.  It is basically a spicy sour yogurt (curd) and gram flour (besan) based thick curry/gravy with crispy fried vegetable (spinach/potato/onion) pakoras simmered in the curry. It is commonly served with boiled rice or roti.

Please follow the below recipe step by step to make delicious north Indian dish – Kadhi Pakora.


Preparation time: 20 minutes            Cook Time: 30 minutes
Serve: 4                                                     Cuisine: Indian-North Indian-Punjabi
Category: Main Course


Ingredients

For Onion Pakora (dumplings)

  • ½ cup besan / gram flour / chickpea flour
  • 1 medium sized onion – chopped
  • 2 green chilies – chopped
  • 1 clove of garlic – finely chopped
  • Small piece of ginger – finely chopped
  • Pinch of Asafoetida (Hing Powder)
  • ¾ tsp of turmeric powder
  • ½ tsp of red chili powder
  • Salt to taste
  • 2 tbsp water
  • Vegetable Oil for frying

For Kadhi / Besan – yogurt mixture

  • 1 cup thick sour yogurt (curd)
  • ¼ cup of besan / gram flour / chickpea flour
  • ¼ tsp turmeric powder
  • ¾ tsp of red chili powder
  • ½ tsp ginger-garlic paste
  • Salt to taste
  • 1 ½ cup water

For Tadka/Tempering

  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 8-10 Fenugreek Seeds (Methi seeds)
  • ¾  tsp of mustard seeds
  • ¼ tsp of Jeera (cumin seeds)
  • Few curry leaves
  • Small piece of Ginger – grated
  • 2-3 dry red chilies
  • ½ tsp of ginger-garlic paste
  • Few coriander leaves (cilantro) – chopped

Instructions


Onion Pakora (dumblings) recipe: –

1.       Mix onion, green chilies, garlic, ginger, besan (gram flour/chickpea flour) and dry spices together to make a thick paste

2.       Heat oil in a small pan on medium flame and take spoonful of batter or make small balls with your fingers.

3.       Carefully drop the pakoras batter in oil and deep fry them until medium brown.

4.       Take out the pakoras and transfer them on kitchen paper towel and follow the same process with left over batter.


Kadhi / curd and besan mixture:-

1.       With the help of a blender or mixer, mix thick sour yogurt, besan (gram flour/chickpea flour),turmeric, red chili powder, ginger-garlic paste and salt together

2.       Now add 1 cup of water and blend again and keep it aside.


Kadhi Pakora (Tadka/Tempering) recipe:-

1.       Heat oil in a medium sized pan/kadhai and add asafoetida (hing powder).

2.       Now add mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds and once they start crackling add cumin seeds (jeera)

3.       After 15 seconds add ginger-garlic paste and sauté for 30-45 minutes, now add curry leaves and dry red chilies.

4.       Sauté them for 15-20 minutes and add the prepared yogurt-flour batter and mix well till it starts boiling or the raw flavor of gram flour goes away.

5.       Add ½ cup of remaining water after the boil. Put the flame to low and let it cook for 15-20 min. stir in frequently in between.

6.       Now add deep fried pakoras (dumplings) to the kadhi, mix well and cook it for another 3-5 minutes. Turn off the flame and garnish with fresh chopped cilantro (coriander leaves)

Enjoy the delicious Kadhi Pakora with plain boiled white rice (chawal).


Tips

1.       Pakora (dumpling) batter should be in dripping consistency.

2.       Pakoras should be deep fried on a medium flame otherwise they will not cook correctly from inside.

3.       If you notice that kadhi has become very thick after first boil then always add more water.

4.       Use sour curd only for authentic kadhi. You can leave curd out from the fridge overnight to let it become sour.

5.       You can also add tamarind pulp in the end to add sourness in kadhi if curd is not sour.