Fish pakora. Crispy, authentic and delicious, these pakoras are perfect for a quick appetizer or snack. Jazz up the flavors with a side of your favorite chutneys. Feel free to serve this with a refreshing salad for a light lunch or dinner. Deliciously easy to make!
As you know pakoras, also called pakodas, are traditional Indian deep fried goodies usually made with a batter with gram flour as the main ingredient. The traditional pakoras are made with vegetables but when you want to make them more flavorful, fish is the way to go. It’s very similar to your favorite classic fish and chips, just load them with spices for extra flavor. Fish and chips is obviously one of the most popular ways to prepare fish but have you ever thought about adding aromatic spices to the batter? The key is the right amount of spices. Made with gram flour, these pakoras are also gluten-free making it the perfect appetizer for all your guests.
How To Make Fish Pakora
Start with fish. You can choose any white firm fish like flathead or salmon to make these pakoras. Make sure you slice them thin so they will cook quickly and easily. I also like to marinate the fish in the batter for about 10- 15 minutes so they will absorb all the beautiful flavors from the spices.
To make this pakora, you don’t need to make the batter separately. Adding all the ingredients straight to fish and coating them well in the batter will suffice. Again, you will also need to marinate them in two steps – first with lemon and then with the spices.
Coat the fish pieces in lemon juice, garlic, ginger and a touch of salt. Refrigerate this for about 10 minutes. Next up, add the remaining ingredients – red chili powder, ground carom seeds, garam masala, gram flour, corn flour, and egg.
If you are after the gluten free version of fish pakora, make sure you buy gluten free corn flour. Substituting corn flour with rice flour is also a great option.
The spice level of these pakoras depends on the amount of red chili powder you use in this recipe. Feel free to add more or less depending on your taste.
Gram flour is basically flour made from dried chickpeas and it’s 100% gluten free. The secret to making super crispy fish pakora is getting the perfect light coating of batter on the fish. Just shake off the excess batter for the perfect coating.
In my opinion, the best way to cook fish pakora is deep frying. I just can't wait to make these delectable fish bites again.
More Fish Recipes:
Fish Pakora | Fish Pakoda | Video
Ingredients
- 500 g fish fillets cut into small pieces (I used salmon)
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic garlic paste
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger ginger paste
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ¼ cup gram flour garbanzo flour or besan
- 3 tablespoons corn flour
- 2 teaspoons red chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- ½ teaspoon carom seeds ground to a fine powder
- 1 egg lightly whisked
- Salt to taste
- Oil to deep fry
- Your favorite chutney green, date or ketchup (tomato sauce), to serve
- Lemon wedges to serve
- Chat masala optional
Instructions
- Place fish in a large bowl. Add garlic, ginger and lemon juice. Season with salt. Cover and refrigerate for 10 minutes.
- Add gram flour, corn flour, red chili powder, garam masala, ground carom seeds and egg.
- Toss fish gently in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for another 15 minutes.
- If the marinade is too dry, sprinkle a little water to wet the mixture. Ideally, the fish pieces need to be “lightly” coated with the batter.
- Meanwhile, half-fill a deep fryer or large heavy based saucepan with oil and heat to 190 C.
- Remove fish pieces from the batter, one at a time, allowing excess to drain off. Carefully place into hot oil. Cook fish, in batches if necessary, for 3-4 minutes until gold and crisp. Drain on paper towel.
- Sprinkle with chat masala if you like. Serve with your favorite chutney ( sweet tamarind chutney, green chutney) and lemon wedges.
Make this in Air Fryer:
- Preheat air fryer to 190 C. Place the battered fish pieces in a single layer in the air fryer basket. Spray with a little cooking oil. Cook for about 6-7 minutes.
Video
Notes
- If you don’t have a kitchen thermometer, make sure you fry fish over medium heat to ensure the fish pieces are cooked through.
- Never fry over low heat as it will create soggy pakoras
- Carom seeds look very similar to cumin seeds and add a distinct flavor to the pakoras. It's available from your local Indian grocery store. However, it can be substituted with cumin seeds if you like.
- Gram flour is also called garbanzo flour or besan and is easily available from your local grocery store
- This recipe is gluten free
- Corn flour can be substituted with rice flour if you like
Nutrition
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