Onion Bhajis With Minted Raita (Recipe)

Bring a little bit of Bollywood into your kitchen with these exotic vegetarian morsels. Bhajis are the Indian version of vegetable fritters, and are perfect as a colorful entrée or canapé at your next backyard soiree.

To veganise: Replace the yoghurt with a cashew 'yogurt'.

WF  GF  SF  VEG
Makes 10—12

Ingredients

• 120 g (41/4 oz/1 cup) superfine besan (chickpea flour)
• 1/2 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder
• 1 teaspoon chilli flakes
• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 cm (3/4 inch) piece of ginger, finely chopped
• Celtic sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 red onion, finely chopped
• 4 tablespoons extra virgin coconut oil or ghee, for frying

MINTED RAITA

• 130 g (41/2 oz/1/2 cup) full-fat Greek yoghurt
• 2 tablespoons chopped mint
• 1 small garlic clove, crushed

Method

1. To make the raita, mix all the ingredients together and place in a serving bowl.
2. To make the bhajis, sift the besan and baking powder into a large bowl. Add the spices, garlic and ginger and season with salt and pepper. Add 150 ml (5 fl oz) of cold water to make a thick batter, then add the onion and stir until it is well coated.
3. Heat the coconut oil in a heavy-based frying pan over medium heat. Add a tiny bit of mixture to test the oil temperature – if it bubbles, the oil is hot enough. Cooking several bhajis at a time, add a heaped tablespoon of mixture and shallow-fry until golden brown on each side; I like to form a tablespoon of the mixture into a patty before frying to help keep the shape.
4. Transfer to a paper towel to soak up the excess oil and cook the remaining batter.
5. Serve with the minted raita.

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