Kaddu Phool Ke Pakoday is zucchini blossom fritters in Hindi. Think of it as an Indian version of the Italian preparation Fiori di Zucca Ripieni. Only the Indian version is spiced as expected. Pakoras aka fritters in this case fried vegetable fritters made with a batter of besan, chickpea flour and a few spices. I skipped the chickpea flour and used the Japanese tempura batter for its lightness yet very crunchy texture. In my opinion nothing beats the texture of tempura, its light and yet crispy and that is the best form of fried food. The best part is I didn’t deep fry these blossoms, simply pan fried in 2 tablespoons of oil on medium-high heat does the trick.
The only problem is zucchini blossoms have a short season and a very short life even refrigerated. So if you find them fresh in your farmers market or grocery store grab them and make these delicious snacks.
Ingredients
- 8-12 fresh Squash blossoms
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½-1 teaspoon nigella seeds
- ½-1 teaspoon red chili, ground, use less for milder flavor or omit
- ¼ teaspoon ground tumeric
- ½ rice flour
- 1/4 cup sifted cake flour or regular all purpose
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- pinch of baking powder
- salt as black pepper as needed
- 1/2 cup iced water
- 2-3 tablespoons avocado or any neutral oil you normally use
Instructions
- Wipe the blooms with a damp paper towel and leave it to dry while you prepare the batter.
- Mix all the ingredients in large bowl except the oil and water. Gradually add the cold water to form a thin batter of pouring consistency something like a French crepe.
- Heat half the oil in a frying pan to medium high heat. Dip the flower one at a time in the batter to coat the flower well. Allow to drip over the batter naturally. Place the blossom in the oil and fry on each side for 1-3 minutes till light golden.
- Continue dipping-dripping and frying till you use up all the flowers. You may need to add more oil as needed.
- Transfer them on a clean paper towel to absorb excess oil.
- Eat right away.
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