Onion Pakoda Recipe (Indian Onion Fritters)

Onion Pakoda is a deep fried Indian snack of crispy and tasty fritters made with gram flour (besan), spices, herbs and plenty of onions. Also called Onion Pakora and Pyaj ke Pakode in Hindi, these are a popular Indian street food as well. Like many Indian recipes, Onion Pakoda is made differently in various regions of India. It is one snack that is easy to prepare and tastes good too.

About Onion Pakoda Recipe

A basic Onion Pakoda recipe is made by mixing gram flour with sliced onions, choice of spices and herbs to make a medium-thick to medium consistency batter. Small portions of the batter are later deep fried to perfection.

Adding leavening ingredients to the batter, like baking soda gives a light and soft texture. While I do not add baking soda to the batter, feel free to add it if you prefer.

In the vast Indian Cuisine there are many ways this fried snack is made. Thus the taste, texture and flavor differs with the kind of spices and herbs used to make the batter.

This Onion Pakoda recipe is a North Indian Punjabi style version. It is made with fewer spices and is not overly spicy which brings out the sweetness and the flavors of the onions to the maximum.

Generally in many pakoda recipes, the spices, seasonings and herbs that are added to the gram flour batter help in digestion.

In this Punjabi style version, the spice that aids in digestion is carom seeds (ajwain). They also lend some bold fragrant notes to the Pyaz ke Pakode which tastes so good.

I also add some asafoetida (hing) but it can be skipped. The recipe makes for crispy pakora having the texture of some onions caramelized from the outside.

While the texture inside the pakoda is in contrast with the outside crispy texture. The inside portion has softened onions in a well cooked light and soft batter.

In my home, crispy and crunchy onion pakoda are very much in demand during the rainy season or during winters.

You can serve these tasty onion fritters with some fried salted green chillies and pair with dipping sauces like a Green Chutney or a sweet tangy tasting Tamarind Chutney or both.

This entire combination of the pakoras with the chutneys can also be served with the Indian Masala Chai as an evening snack.

Type Of Onions To Include

You can use any variety of onions to make this snack – be it red onions, yellow onions or white onions.

Just make sure to slice the onions thinly to get a crisp texture. I always use a chef’s knife to slice the onions thinly. You can also use a food processor.

How to make Onion Pakoda

Slice & Marinate Onions

1. Slice 2 medium to large onions evenly and thinly and put in mixing bowl. Add 1 to 2 teaspoons chopped green chilies.

If you do not have green chilies, then add ½ teaspoon red chili powder. You can also add chopped coriander leaves or mint leaves, if you like.

2. Add the spices – 1 teaspoon carom seeds (ajwain), ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 generous pinch asafoetida (hing) and salt as required.

Asafoetida is optional and can be skipped for a gluten-free pakoda. You can even use gluten-free asafoetida.

3. Mix everything well. Cover and keep the mixture aside to marinate for 15 to 20 minutes.

4. The onions will release its juices when mixed with salt.

After resting the mixture for 15 to 20 minutes, when the onions release its juices, then you can add the gram flour (besan) as shown in the following step.

Make Gram Flour Batter

5. Add 1 cup gram flour or besan.

For a soft and light texture in the pakoda, you can add 1 pinch baking soda. Adding baking soda is optional. 

6. Add the required quantity of water to make a medium-thick batter without any lumps.

7. Stir the mixture very well with a spoon or with your hands. The batter is ready to be fried. You can either shallow fry or deep fry.

Ensure that the batter is with a medium-thick consistency. The batter must not be very thick; this will make the pakora doughy and dense.

If the batter is thin and runny, the pakora will splutter and burst while frying and absorb a lot of oil.

Make Onion Pakora

8. Heat oil as required for deep frying in a kadai (wok). Let the oil become medium-hot. In hot oil, gently and carefully, add spoonfuls of the batter.

Fry the pakoda on medium heat to medium-high heat. You can adjust the heat as needed while frying.

9. Depending on the size of the kadai or pan, you can add less or more. Just make sure you don’t overcrowd the pan while frying.

10. When the pakoda is a bit cooked with the batter firmed up and lightly crispy, turn over with a slotted spoon and continue to fry.

11. You will have to turn the pakoda a few times for even frying.

12. Fry the pakoda till crisp and golden.

13. Remove fried Onion Pakoda with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper towels for excess oil to be absorbed.

Fry Green Chilies

14. In the same oil, fry some slit green chilies. Make sure to slit the chilies before frying or else they burst in oil.

15. Keep the fried green chilies aside. Once the chilies cool or become warm, sprinkle some salt on them and mix well.

16. Serve Onion Pakoda with the fried salted green chilies, coriander chutney, mint chutney or tomato ketchup.

Serving Suggestions

Onion Pakoda is a tea time snack and can be served with some green chutney or a dipping sauce and a few fried and salted green chillies. You can pair this snack with your Chai or Coffee.

At my mom’s place they are served with bread or pav (bread rolls). So I am so used to eating these crispy and crunchy onion fritters with soft bread slices or bread rolls.

We sandwich the pakoda between the bread and have them dipping in some spicy Coriander Chutney or any spicy sauce. It also pairs well with tomato ketchup.

At my in-law’s place, it is served with Roti or Chapati. So they make pakoda for lunch or dinner and not as a snack.

Onion pakora, chapati and some coriander chutney is their favorite combination. In my home, I just serve these plain as an evening snack with some chutney or dipping sauce.

Expert Tips

1. Choice of Spices and Herbs: You can add a variety of herbs and spices in the gram flour batter – like crushed coriander seeds, red chilli powder, red chilli flakes, ginger-garlic paste, mint leaves, ground cumin powder, curry leaves, coriander leaves (cilantro). You can add more red chilly powder to get a spicy pakoda. Basically, you can add your choice of ground spice powders in the batter.
2. Incorporating Greens: Sneak in some healthy greens like spinach, amaranth or fenugreek (methi) in the pakoda.
3. Adding Rice Flour: You can add some rice flour in the batter too. This will make the pakoda very crunchy.
4. For a gluten-free pakoda: Store brought asafoetida (hing) has some amounts of wheat in it. To make a gluten-free pakoda, skip the asafoetida or use wheat-free asafoetida.
5. Crisp vs softer pakoda: To get crisp onion pakora, slice onions thinly and add less water in the batter. To make soft pakoda, add some more water in the batter. Addition of baking soda or baking powder also helps in making pakoda soft and light.
6. Adding hot oil in the batter: in the gram flour batter, you can also add 1 or 2 teaspoons of oil. This makes these onion fritters crispy and it absorbs less oil while frying.

Bake or Air Fry

You can also bake or air fry these pakoda. Keep in mind that baked pakoda will taste differently than fried ones. Baked or air fried onion pakoda won’t be as crispy as the fried ones.

I have made these fritters both in the oven and in an air fryer. In terms of crisp texture, the pakoda fried in oil were better.

If you want to have a fried version, then just best to make that and enjoy the hot onion pakora with a steaming cup of Indian chai.

If baking, then bake at 180 degrees C/356 degrees F in a preheated oven till the pakora looks crisp and golden. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons oil in the batter. Add less water just enough to coat the onion slices.

If air-frying, then air-fry at 180 degrees C/356 degrees F. Preheat air fryer for 10 minutes and then air fry till crisp and golden. In between remove the air-fryer pan and shake or turn over each pakoda a few times.

More Tips

1. Slicing onions: The onions have to be sliced thinly and not thickly as thin slices will get cooked faster than thick slices. If the slices are thick, then while frying the gram flour batter gets cooked but the onion slices remain half cooked. Thinly slices also give a crispy texture in the pakoda.
2. To add or not to add baking soda: Some cooks use a pinch of baking soda in the batter to add that extra fluffiness to the onion pakora. We don’t like the taste and flavor of baking soda, so I have not used it. Adding baking soda helps the pakoda to have a soft texture.
3. Frying temperature: The temperature of the oil has to be correct while frying. The oil should not be too hot or cold. If it is hot, then the outside of the pakoda will get fried but the inside will be undercooked. If it is not hot, then the pakora will absorb oil while frying and will be too oil-laden once fried.

Variations

There are many onion pakora variants that are made in regional Indian cuisine. I have shared some of them on the blog.

• Ulli Vada – Kerala style recipe to make crunchy and flavorful fried snack.
• Kanda Bhaji – Mumbai style Maharashtrian Recipe to make crispy onion pakora. This one is a popular street food as well in Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra.
• Vengaya Bajji – South Indian style batter coated and deep fried onion rings.
• Onion Fritters – These are spiced and savory pakora made in South Indian Tamil Nadu style and are crispy and very crunchy.

FAQs

Onion Pakoda recipe from the archives was first published on Aug 2009.