Hyderabadi Kaju Pakora Recipe is a true monsoon favourite. Whole cashews are dipped into the spiced besan and rice flour batter. They get golden, crisp, and delicious when fried. Mint and fennel add a fresh kick, cutting through the richness of the cashews. These taste best straight from the kadai, next to a hot cup of chai, while it pours outside.
The key is to make sure the batter doesn't get so wet because the batter will slip off the cashews during the frying process. Mix the flours with the spices, fold in the mint, then toss in the cashews and add water a spoon at a time until it clumps together. The batter for this cashew nut fritters recipe should feel chunky and slightly dry, not like the batter you would use for onion pakora. It is recommended to fry in small batches to maintain the oil temperature so you get a crisp, golden shell.
The kaju pakora recipe can be prepared for a festive feast or for a weekend tea table. Prep the dry mix and chop the mint ahead of time; assemble everything together with the cashews just before frying. Leftovers can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container, after being fried. Since cold air causes the coating to become soft within hours so it’s not ideal to be stored in the fridge.
Add sufficient amount of oil to a deep heavy bottomed pan and heat on medium heat, allowing the oil to come up to temperature slowly while the batter is being prepared.
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Step 2: Mix the dry ingredients
In a large mixing bowl, combine the gram flour, rice flour and red chilli powder. Mix thoroughly so it is well combined. There should be no visible streaks of flour or chilli powder.
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Step 3: Add the spices and aromatics
Add the ginger garlic paste, salt and crushed fennel seeds to the flour mixture. Thoroughly mix until flavours are well distributed in the dry mix.
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Step 4: Fold in the mint leaves
Stir in finely chopped mint leaves and gently mix them into the mixture. This adds a fresh and herby zing to the fried cashews.
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Step 5: Coat the cashew nuts
Add all of the cashew nuts to the bowl and toss well to coat each nut with the seasoned flour mix.
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Step 6: Bind the batter
Add about 1 tablespoon of the hot oil from the frying pan and stir through. Add water in small amounts very slowly, little by little, until the mixture just begins to form into a lump-free dough.
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Step 7: Shape and deep fry the pakora
Take small bits of dough with a few cashews in it and drop them in the hot oil. Fry in small batches over medium heat. Turn occasionally and fry until golden brown and crisp all over.
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Step 8: Drain the excess oil
Lift the fried pakora out with a slotted spoon and place them on a plate lined with paper towels to soak up the extra oil.
Kaju pakora, also known as cashew pakora, is a widely enjoyed Indian snack that is prepared by deep-frying whole cashew nuts in a spiced gram flour and rice flour batter.
A little cornflour can be replaced by rice flour as it helps to give a crisp, light texture when fried.
Kaju pakora has a lovely contrast of textures and flavours. The outer crust is crisp, spicy and savoury, and when bitten through the cashew is soft and buttery with a slight sweetness.
Ginger garlic paste, fennel seeds and mint are the flavours that make this Hyderabadi kaju pakora recipe so aromatic, and are characteristic of Hyderabadi cuisine.