Crispy Egg Pakora

Egg pakora, also known as egg bhajji or egg bonda are a delightful crispy & spicy indian snack or appetizer. Pair it with green chutney for a perfect flavor combination.

These deep-fried egg fritters are made with thick hard boiled egg slices coated in an indian spiced gram flour (besan) batter. A popular indian street food & highly addictive! Gluten free recipe!

Pakora (quite simply, fritters) are super popular snack in India. You really dont need an occasion for samosas and pakoras and the latter are a rainy day must have with hot chai!

Growing up, mom would make a variety of them. At home, she made paneer pakoras, baingan pakora or fish pakoras . But few kinds, like chicken pakora and egg pakora we enjoyed mostly from the streets stalls. They were irrestible with all the seasonings!

Egg Pakora

Creamy yolk on the inside and a crispy spice laden besan batter makes the egg pakoras absolutely tempting. They are also call egg bhajji, egg bonda in different parts of india and the spices in the batter may differ depending on the regions of india as well as personal preferences.

If you are like me, and on most days you have boiled eggs in the fridge, this recipe is a lifesaver for impromptu appetizers when guests unexpectedly drop by!

At home, I make mine north indian style with a besan (gram flour) batter spiced with cumin, green chillies, garam masala and scented with touch of kasuri methi(dry fenugreek leaves). Once the pakoras have deep fried, I immediately dust them with chaat masala for a spicy tangy finish.

Egg bonda are often linked with street food vendors who deep fry them to order and serve immediately. Some people half the eggs, few use whole eggs, however I like to slice the eggs to make a bite sized snack. Feel free to cut the egg whichever way you prefer.

This is pretty easy and straightforward recipe- boil your eggs, dunk in pakora batter and deep fry! The only thing to be careful about is the consistency of batter. The batter should be smooth & thick enough to coat the egg without getting clumpy. If your batter will be thin, it won't cover the egg properly and sizzle & spread in hot oil.

Ingredients

• Eggs - Hard boiled (about 10 minutes). Don't over boil else the yolks turn grey or greenish. I shared my method and lot of tips about harb boiling eggs in this tawa egg fry post.
• Besan (Gram Flour)- Usually north-indian style pakoras are just made with besan or gram flour. Use fine chickpea flour if you cannot find gram flour. If you want, you could add some rice flour or fine semolina for crispy texture. If the frying is done at the right temperature and the consistency is proper, just besan works fine!
• Green Chillies - Bring on the heat! I add minced indian green chilies (super hot) to the batter. They add sharp fresh heat to the batter that I love.
• Spices - I add turmeric powder (to push the yellow color), cumin and garam masala. You could vary spices as per your liking. If you enjoy red chilli powder or red chilli flakes in your pakora, you could add.

How to Make Egg Bonda

1. Peel the hardboiled eggs. Slice into into small rounds - about 3-4 slices per egg. Don't slice too thin else the yolk starts popping out while you are coating them with batter. Place on a plate, season with a bit of salt.Let stand.

2. In a shallow wide bowl , make the pakora batter by mixing together gram flour, spices, salt, chopped cilantro, kasuri methi and green chillies. Add water slowly and whisk (best tool!) to make a thick flowing batter. I added water in 2-3 batches and used about 7 tablespoons water for ½ cup besan. Water quantity will vary depending on gram flour quality. Please see images to get an idea of the consistency. If you have time at hand, let the batter stand for 10 minutes for flavors to mingle.

3. Place oil to heat up (I use my 8 inch cast iron skillet). We need about 2 inches of high smoking point oil. You wont be able to re-use this oil since it gets an eggy smell after cooling down. The oil should not be sizzling hot, neither it should be warm- we want the oil to be medium hot so that the pakoras cook in optimum temperature & time.
4. Place 1 egg slice in the pakora batter and use a spoon to coat it in the batter on all sides. Pick the egg slice, let excess batter drip down.

5. Carefully, slide into the hot oil. If needed, you could use another spoon to slide the egg into the hot oil. Repeat for other egg slices. Fry in batches without overcrowding else pakoras will get soggy or may start bursting if temperature drops.
6. Let the coated eggs deep-fry until they achieve a golden-brown color on both sides and a crispy texture. It is important to fry them at the right temperature so that they cook evenly and attain a delicious crunch.

7. Using a slotted spoon, transfer egg pakoras on paper towels to drain any excess oil.
8. Serve hot sprinkled with chaat masala to add an additional layer of flavor. Sliced onions and green chutney are really delicious as sides.

Recipe Tips

• Make a flavorful pakora batter thats spicy, tangy and herbaceous for the best taste. Since eggs are pretty bland on their own, they need robust flavors in the batter for a great taste.
• During recipe testing, I figured that if eggs are not coated veru well in batter, they burst in oil. Make sure that the entire egg slice is coated in batter on sides.
• Double the recipe if you wish.