Ingredients:
Ketchup Chutney:
½ cup ketchup
1 tablespoon water
½ tablespoon chaat masala
½ teaspoon sugar
½ teaspoon salt
Pakoras:
2 cups (250g / 8.8 oz) Besan (also known as: Chickpea Flour or Gram Flour)
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 green chili pepper, sliced
½ cup Cilantro leaves, chopped
1 yellow onion, sliced into 1/8-inch half moons
1 cup luke-warm water
Sunflower oil (or any neutral oil like vegetable, safflower, canola, etc.), for deep frying
Preparation:
Make the Chutney: Mix all of the chutney ingredients together in a bowl.
Make the Pakoras:
Fill an 8-inch cast-iron skillet half-way up with oil. Heat the oil to 360-375ºF.
In a large bowl, mix together the besan, red chili flakes, salt, baking powder, sliced chilli pepper, cilantro, and sliced onion.
Slowly add in the water, while mixing with a wooden spoon or your hands. Vigorously mix for a couple of seconds. The batter should be thick, almost like heavy (double) cream and there should be air bubbles throughout.
Once the oil is heated, carefully place in heaping tablespoonfuls of batter into the hot oil. Try not to overcrowd the oil because it will result in greasy pakoras. Fry until the pakoras are a pecan-brown. Drain on a cooling rack placed over a cookie sheet.
