Name: Party pakoras
Total time: 45 min
Yield: Makes 10-12
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 1 lime zested and juiced (you’ll need 1 tsp of zest and 3 tbsp of juice); 10g mint leaves chopped; 2 tbsp soft dark brown sugar; ½ tsp fine sea salt; 4 tbsp tamarind pulp or paste; 4 tbsp tomato ketchup; 2 x 198g tins sweetcorn drained; 50g jalapeños in brine chopped; 125g paneer cut into 1cm cubes; 30g coriander chopped; 1 large red onion sliced into thin rings; a pinch chilli powder or chaat masala plus extra for seasoning; 160g gram flour; 1 tsp amchoor (dried mango powder); 2 tsp garam masala; ½ tsp ground turmeric; ½ tsp cumin seeds crushed; 1 tsp fine sea salt; ¾ tsp bicarbonate of soda; finely grated to make 1 tsp ginger; sunflower oil for deep-frying

TAMARIND DIPPING SAUCE

1 lime
zested and juiced (you’ll need 1 tsp of zest and 3 tbsp of juice)
10g mint leaves
chopped
2 tbsp soft dark brown sugar
½ tsp fine sea salt
4 tbsp tamarind pulp or paste
4 tbsp tomato ketchup

PAKORAS

2 x 198g tins sweetcorn
drained
50g jalapeños in brine
chopped
125g paneer
cut into 1cm cubes
30g coriander
chopped
1 large red onion
sliced into thin rings
a pinch chilli powder or chaat masala
plus extra for seasoning

BATTER

160g gram flour
1 tsp amchoor (dried mango powder)
2 tsp garam masala
½ tsp ground turmeric
½ tsp cumin seeds
crushed
1 tsp fine sea salt
¾ tsp bicarbonate of soda
finely grated to make 1 tsp ginger
sunflower oil
for deep-frying

Method

step 1
For the dipping sauce, blitz the lime zest and juice, mint, sugar and salt with 75ml of water in a small food processor or blender until you have a paste. Tip into a jug, then whisk in the tamarind pulp and ketchup, and chill for 30 minutes. Mix together the sweetcorn, jalapeños, paneer, coriander and red onion until evenly combined, then set aside.
step 2
For the batter, tip the gram flour, amchoor, garam masala, turmeric, cumin seeds, salt and bicarb into a large bowl, then whisk together to combine. Add 140-160ml of water, whisking until you have a thick batter. Whisk in the ginger, then rest for 5 minutes. Tip the pakora mixture into the batter and mix to coat.
step 3
Fill a deep pan no more than a third full of sunflower oil and heat to 165C or until a cube of bread browns in 45 seconds. Use your hands to squeeze together a golf-ball-sized piece of
the battered pakora mixture, then repeat with the rest of the mixture. Carefully drop the pakoras, in batches, into the hot oil and fry for 4-5 minutes or until golden and cooked through. If they start to fall apart in the oil, add a little extra flour to the mixture.
step 4
Drain on kitchen paper, then sprinkle with a pinch of chilli powder. Serve hot with the dipping sauce on the side.