Simple, practical, and full of everyday flavour, Kanda Bhaji | Onion Bhaji is a gluten-free, vegan Maharashtrian side dish made with simple everyday ingredients in about 30 minutes. The recipe lays out the ingredients and each cooking step clearly, so you can adjust seasoning, texture, and serving size for your own kitchen.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 10 minutes
  • Cook time: 20 minutes
  • Total time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 2 · 2 to 3
  • Category: Side Dish
  • Cuisine: Maharashtrian

Ingredients

  • 1 cup thinly sliced onions (or 1 large onion, sliced thinly (kanda))
  • ½ cup besan ((gram flour or chickpea flour))
  • 1 teaspoon oil (to mix in the bhaji batter)
  • 1 teaspoon salt (or add as per taste)
  • oil for deep frying

Method

making kanda bhaji batter

  1. Slice the onions thinly and place in a mixing bowl or vessel.
  2. Add 1/2 cup of besan (gram flour) to the sliced onions.
  3. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of salt or as required.
  4. Add 1 teaspoon of oil to this mixture. You can even add less salt, but these pakoras taste better when they are a bit salty.
  5. With your finger tips mix the besan, salt and oil very well with the onions well. Allow the mixture to rest for 5 to 6 mins, as the onions would leave moisture. If the mixture looks too moist then add 1 to 2 teaspoons more of the gram flour.

frying kanda bhaji

  1. Heat oil for deep frying in a deep pan/vessel or kadai.
  2. For crispy bhajis ensure the oil is hot. You could do a small test by adding a pinch of batter to the oil if it rises smoothly and gradually, then add spoonfuls of the batter to the hot oil. Fry the kanda bhajis on a medium flame, else they won't fry evenly.
  3. While frying, flip the bhajis with a slotted spoon. Fry few bhajis at a time.
  4. Fry them till they turn crisp and golden brown.
  5. Remove the onion bhaji with a slotted spoon and place on absorbent kitchen napkins or kitchen paper towels.
  6. In the same way fry the rest of onion bhaji.
  7. Serve hot with fried green chilies, spicy green chutney or tomato ketchup.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.