Pakora is one of the absolute must-haves on a rain pouring day if you are in India. If you are at a restaurant I am sure this is a universal item on the Indian menu even in restaurants. We have all grown up with this gluten-free, deep-fried deliciousness served at tea. Hot warm pakoras are often made with pretty much any veggies that you have at home.
Pakora and me
Pakodas to me mean my mom was home. It is one of the telltale signs that my mom had a day off from work. I could smell the fried goodies down at the street While I was Walking back after school and couldn’t wait to blow and have a few as mum made them. I guess this trait passed on real well with me too. The kids know I was home early from work if it is pakoras and if there are pakoras and chutney they know mom is been home long enough for her cup of tea.
The winter months in Sydney really make me crave these warm pakoras, so make them with the veggies I have around in the kitchen. Most of the time it is Onions, spinach or even leftover rice. This time, I had a lot of leeks and thought being the onion family they surely will taste delicious. So here we are.
Here are a couple of must-haves with this leek leaves pakora
Don’t discard the Leek leaves.
The green leek tops are very often discarded. The outer leaves do tend to be a bit fibrous, whereas the inner leaves are perfectly tender and full of sweet flavour. The outer roots are fantastic in stocks and soups as you can strain them out and still get a perfect flavour balance. I love the inner leaves in baked pasta, leek and coconut chutney or as this pakora. Try them in your recipes and if you have some good ones with leek leaves to share leave the ideas in the comments, I will love to try it too.
Instant Pakora batter mix
Once you begin to try them with the leaves of the leek, you will love to have them often. This instant mix for the batter is a perfect keeper in your pantry for all your pakora, bajji, bonda needs. Keep in an airtight jar, so you can quickly share a happy platter of pakoras with your children or guests even on a very busy day. Check out the recipe details below for how to use this mix to make these pakoras.
Crispy Leeks Pakora
Gluten free, vegan, nut free appetizer to start off a great conversation.
Equipment
- frying pans.
- baking trays
Ingredients
For the batter
- 1 cup instant bajji mix ( pakora mix)
- 3/4 cup water ( use as required)
for the leeks
- 1 cup leeks thinly sliced with the tender leaves
to fry
- 2 cups cooking oil for deep frying
to serve
- 1/2 cup green chutney
Instructions
- Wash clean and thinly slice the green and the white portions of the leeks to obtain a cup of leeks. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl add the instant bajji / pakora mix and mix well. Add a little water at a time and mix together to create a lump less batter.
- Add the sliced leeks into the batter and mix well. The batter is now in a honey consistency, not pouring.
- Heat oil to moderately high in a wok ( try and use less oil at a time so you dont recycle the oil).
- Drop spoon fulls of the batter into the hot oil.
- Deep fry on one side, flip over and fry the other side.
- When golden brown and the bubbles around each spoonful of batter have reduced considerably, the pakoras are ready.
- Remove and place to drain on adsorbent paper.
- Serve warm with green chutney and chai.
Notes
Baked leeks pakora Preheat the oven to 180 (not fan-forced). The baked pakoras need a bit less runny batter, so reduce the water to form a thick batter (about half cup water) based on the ingredients given above. Add a tbsp of oil to this batter and then add the leeks. This gives a crispy pakora. Spray a sheet pan with oil, drop spoonful batter on the sheet pan with enough spreading space between. Bake for about 10 minutes and brush them with a bit of oil. Bake them again for about 10 more minutes and they are ready to serve.
Nutrition
Sodium: 216mgSugar: 4gFiber: 4gPotassium: 305mgCalories: 180kcalMonounsaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 1gFat: 8gProtein: 6gCarbohydrates: 21g
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
The known benefits of leeks.
- Know to the as a producer of a great singing voice, leeks are basically a member of the onion family by the Greeks and Egyptian civilizations.
- More subtle than the flavour of onions, these are very helpful in the reduction of liver Fatty acid.
- Though the kaempferol content is lesser than onions the white portion of the leeks has a good concentration of this flavinoid.
- Leeks do have a good content of Folate in them.
- The antioxidant polyphenols found in leeks are protective to the blood vascular system
With the best efforts towards your health from the leeks, I hope you will save some leek leaves hereafter. For this recipe, I don’t mind deep frying, but then, I love the sweetness of the leeks in the baked ones better. Don’t miss tagging us (#mildlyindian) as you make This absolute monsoon must-have. Hold up that cup of chai and let the kids keep up the school stories around you. Now that’s the best a mum can do.
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Pakoda looks super crispy and yummy.. never heard or tried Leeks Pakoda but definitely I will try very soon. What a lovely share. Beautifully written post…
Never thought of Leeks pakoda. These pakodas look so crispy and d delicious.
Pakoda with leek sounds appetising and delish. I always wanted to try baked version but never dared to try somehow. I will try baked version of this lovely pakoda.
Wow!! Great idea to use up those extra leeks; I am sure gives an amazing flavor too! Fab share <3
Using leeks in fritters is an amazing idea ! Would love trying your baked version soon.
Never tried leeks pakoda. But these look perfectly crispy and tasty. This is such a new dish for me… A perfect dish to surprise your guests with your culinary skills.
Pakoda using leeks is a great idea !! Looks really so crispy and yumm, love to have with some ketchup 🙂
Pakoda with leeks sounds so interesting and they look really crispy and delicious. Thanks for sharing a new recipe with leeks.