Air fryer onion pakora | Crispy Onion bhajiya recipe - SecondRecipe (2024)

Dec 21, 2023 · 2 Comments

Pakoras or chickpea flour fritters are a thing of joy. They are synonymous with monsoon season. Be it bread pakoras, mirchi bajji, moong dal bhajiye ,onion bhaji pakora or sindhi onion pakodas. There are other variations like palak pakora, gobi pakora, aloo pakora and even cabbage pakoras. Vegan gluten free snack, deep-fried pakoras are a crowd favorite. However, the only vice of this street food is the high oil content in it. It is deep fried which is hardly healthy in any way. There is no issue in eating it once a while, but the thing with onion pakora is, ye dil maange more!

You want to eat pakode in every season. Whether its raining or cold, hot pakoras and tea is welcome even on a sunny afternoon. Here is a way to enjoy this healthy onion bhaji without worrying about these extra calories! As they are air fried, these are are slimming onion bhajis (when compared with deep fried ones) . Yes they are as crispy as the fried ones if you were wondering. Morever these are plant based , hence this is a vegan onion bhajis recipe

Can you air fry pakora?

Everyone loves pakoras which are more than a popular Indian street foodnow. You will find fans of onion fritterseverywhere. However, these crunchy pakoras can be made with lots of veg, spices and chickpea flour. If you’re looking for the perfect pakora ’re in luck. There's lots of different pakora recipes you could try. Here are some tips on how to make the best pakoras.

To get that perfect crispy pakora in the air fryer, you gotta get the batter right. The batter should be thick, not watery. In a bowl, combine chickpea or red lentil flour, onion, spices, and a pinch of baking soda to make the batter.

We tried to make pakode in air-fryer many times until we cracked this perfect recipe. Earlier the batter would stick to the grill. Sometimes it felt a bit raw. At times it was a little soft. What is a pakora without the crunch, right? We finally had an idea, to use muffin liners instead of putting the batter on the basket grill on parchment paper. Scroll over the instructions below to make the perfect crispy onion pakoda and you will never be disappointed.

Equipment

• Air fryer
• oil spray
• perforated paper liners / muffin liners. You can cut a parchment paper as per your air fryer basket and make holes in that to allow the air to pass through or use the liners used for bamboo steamers.
• large bowl

Key Ingredients

• Onions - Use red or white onions, chop them as you like.
• Red lentil flour or chickpea flour (Besan flour) - I prefer red lentil flour for air fryer recipes
• Green chilli - Optional , only if you like it hot
• Spices ( Turmeric powder ,Red chili powder) -
• Mint/coriander leaves
• Baking soda - a pinch of baking soda mixed with water . This helps to make the pakora soft
• Salt as per taste
• Water to make thick batter
• Oil for air frying . Choose your oil wisely, refer to our detailed post on best oil for indian cooking
• few drops of lemon juice (optional) - This helps to make the pakora soft as it reacts with baking soda

Refer to recipe cardfor details.

How to make onion pakora in air fryer ?

It is possible to make onion pakoda in air fryer.Follow the below steps for the same. These are red onion bhaji as I have used red onion, you may use white onions as well

1. Slice the onion and add salt to it. Leave it aside for 5 minutes in a large mixing bowl .

2. Add the lentil flour to the mix. I have used red lentil flour here, you may use chickpea flour / besan.

3. Add remaining ingredients (except baking soda) with 2 tbsp. water, start mixing the ingredients

4. Add the chopped coriander/mint to the batter

5. Mix baking soda with water and add to the mix at the last. Add few drops of lemon juice now.

6. Line the air fryer basket with a baking sheet with holes/steamer sheet.

Scoop spoonfulls of mixture to fill the basket.Spray oil,brush oil before they start to cook.

7. In a preheated air fryer(5 minutes at 170 C | 340 F ) ,air fry the pakoras on 170 C | 340 F for 8-10 mins

8. Place them in the air fryer basket without the baking sheet,spray oil and cook further at 170 C | 340 F for 5 mins ,then turn over and cook again for 3-4 minutes or until cooked from all sides.Total cook of 18-19 minutes.

9. Serve air fryer onion pakodas hot with tamarind chutney & green chutney.

What Indian dishes we can prepare in air fryer?

Air frying the traditional Indian recipes has opened up a new world of cooking for us altogether. air fryer recipes are not just healthier they cook faster too. Deep frying ones can be eaten once a while.

• Air fryer mini samosas
• Vegetable manchurian
• Lauki ke kofte
• Air fryer chickpeas
• Sindhi chauthe
• Keto paneer tikka
• 10 ultimate air fryer potato recipes

Variations for air fryer pakora

You can always make the traditional deep fried pakora , refer to the recipe of onion bhaji. However I prefer to make this air fried healthy version of the pakoras more as this uses very less oil. I can then eat them multiple times too with my cup of masala chai 🙂

Storage suggestions

Air fried onion pakoda stays crisp until next day when stored in an air tight container.

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