Palak Pakoda (also called Palak Pakora) is a quick savory Indian snack of deep-fried spinach fritters made with fresh spinach leaves (palak), gram flour (besan), onion, herbs and spices. This Palak Pakoda recipe is one of our favorite pakoda variants from the North Indian cuisine. Serve these scrumptious fritters with your preferred chutney or ketchup.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 10 minutes
  • Cook time: 20 minutes
  • Total time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 4
  • Category: Snacks
  • Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (100 grams) gram flour ((besan))
  • 2 cups spinach (- finely chopped)
  • ⅓ cup onion (- chopped)
  • 1 teaspoon ginger (- chopped)
  • ½ teaspoon green chili (- chopped)
  • 1 teaspoon fennel seed powder (or lightly crushed fennel seeds (saunf powder))
  • ¼ to ½ teaspoon red chili powder (or cayenne pepper)
  • 1 teaspoon coriander powder ((ground coriander))
  • 1 teaspoon cumin powder ((ground cumin))
  • ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder (- optional)
  • 1 pinch asafoetida ((hing))
  • 1 tablespoon white sesame seeds (- optional)
  • 1 generous pinch baking soda
  • salt (as required)
  • ½ cup water (or add as required - * read points 2 & 3 in notes below)
  • oil (- for deep frying, add as required)

Method

Making batter

  1. Rinse the palak or spinach leaves very well. Drain the excess water in a colander or strainer. Finely chop the spinach leaves.
  2. Chop the onions, ginger and green chillies.
  3. In a bowl add the finely chopped spinach, chopped onions, ginger and green chili.
  4. Add the ground spice powders - fennel seeds powder, red chili powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, asafoetida (hing). Add the sesame seeds as well.
  5. Next add gram flour and salt according to taste. Add a generous pinch of baking soda at this step.
  6. Mix all the ingredients very well and set aside to rest for 5 minutes.
  7. First add ½ cup of water little by little. Remember the spinach and onions will leave water once they are mixed with salt and the spice powders. So be careful while adding water.
  8. If the batter is still thick, then add some more water.
  9. Mix very well. Add water as required to make a medium-thick to medium consistency batter. Make sure that the batter does not flow or drip from the spoon.

Frying

  1. Heat oil in a kadai (wok) or frying pan. When the oil is medium hot, drop spoonfuls of the pakora batter in the oil.
  2. Fry the pakora until they become pale golden. Then turn over and fry the other side.
  3. Turn over a couple of times and fry all the fritters until they are crispy and golden.
  4. Remove them with a slotted spoon. Drain them on kitchen paper towels to remove extra oil.
  5. Fry the spinach pakora in batches this way and use up the entire batter.

Serving suggestions

  1. Chutney: A coriander chutney or mint chutney or tamarind chutney and even coconut chutney pairs well with palak pakoda.
  2. Dipping sauces: Tasty dipping sauces like schezwan sauce, red chilli sauce and tomato ketchup also taste equally good.
  3. Raita: A simple plain raita made with minimal seasonings – roasted cumin powder, red chilli powder, salt and cilantro or mint will also pair nicely.
  4. Bread: Indian breads like roti or leavened whole grain loaf or dinner rolls taste good. Serve with masala or ginger chai.

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.