Cabbage Pakora Pancakes

This isn’t like your typical pakora, it comes with a bit of a twist like my family makes it, with lots of cabbage and onions. When the Pakoras are crispy, the edges with bits of caramelized cabbage and onions… just absolutely delicious. I can not wait for you to try this one.

Pakoda or Pakora is a quintessential Indian snack that you’ll happen upon in people’s homes, at every street food cart, and restaurant menus. They are typically deep fried little fritters which I adapted to pan-fried pancake for a. ease of recipe and b. amount of oil used. This recipe is captures all the goodness of a pakora into a more every day approachable savory pancake.

Cabbage Pakoras: What you’ll need

medium head cabbage: shred them thinly. You’ll need about 4 cups.
red onion + serranos, for flavor and heat
gram flour aka. besan: this is the main ingredient in a pakora. If you have trouble finding besan from an Indian store, you can substitute chickpea flour
rice flour:& baking powder: this is for adding crispy texture and creating a fluffy pakora
Spices:
cumin seeds, cumin powder, turmeric powder, chilli powder (sub: paprika), coriander powder and garam masala

Cabbage Pakoras: How to make

Prepare your cabbage into thin shreds.

Add them to a large mixing bowl. And along with it add chillies and onions.

Toss in all the measured spices, along with salt, rice flour and besan. Mix this all  together.

Do not add any water. The trick to perfectly crispy, airy pakoras is to not add any additional water, which will “wet” the batter and create dense pakoras.

Using your hands, massage and mix the mixture thoroughly. As you massage and mix the moisture from the vegetables will be plenty enough to bind the flour and create a cohesive batter.

Mix in baking soda just before you’re going to make them.

Grease your hands, take a golf ball sized dough, flatten between your palms and transfer to a greased board. Make them all and set aside.

Pan-fried Cabbage pakoras:
Heat a cast iron pan over medium-high heat. Brush generously with oil. Preheat 2 minutes. Place the pakora patties on the pan spaced apart. Crisp for 6 to 8 minutes on one side until golden brown. Move them around in between and check for browning. Reduce heat, flip and cook another 5 minutes until done. Make as many as you like.

Air-fried:
Spray the air fryer basket with oil spray. Place pakoras in basket. Set temp to 350 F and cook for 10 minutes.
Remove, flip them. Increase the temp to 400F and cook for 5 to 6 minutes to finish crisping and enjoy!

Tips & Tricks:

1. The trick to perfectly crispy, airy pakoras is to not add any additional water, which will “wet” the batter and create dense pakoras. Just follow the steps I’ve written out and you should be good to go!
2. You could swap out or add to the cabbage in this recipe. Feel free to use any vegetable you have, this is a very versatile recipe to bookmark.
3. When pan frying, make sure you’re cooking on medium heat first so the pakoras not only crisp but cook through. If the heat is too high, they’ll brown way too fast on the outside and remain undercooked inside.

They’re perfect to eat as is, but I recommend trying them with ketchup and or mint or cilantro chutney.  On days I want to make a whole meal out of it,  I serve them with Indian-style creamy mashed potatoes, which I’ll share the recipe for soon!

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You can also find me on Instagram and Pinterest @supriyaramankitchen