RAG Demo

Tag: Jodhpur

  • Mirchi Vada

    Mirchi vada is Jodhpur's other famous fried snack, sold alongside pyaaz kachori at stalls across the old city. Large, thick-walled green chillies, locally called bhavnagri or simply vada mirchi, are slit, stuffed with spiced potato, coated in gram flour batter and fried. The chillies are fleshy and fairly mild, so the heat is a warm background rather than a punch.

    Vendors fry them twice: once to cook the chilli and set the batter, and again just before serving so the crust is shatteringly crisp. The potato filling is sharp with amchur and fennel, which balances the green, slightly bitter flavour of the pepper. Each bite gives crunch, then soft chilli, then the tangy mash.

    They are best eaten hot, during the monsoon, with a cup of strong chai. In Jodhpur the vada is often sliced and stuffed into a pav or served with a sweet tamarind chutney and a sprinkle of chaat masala. Two make a filling snack. Leftovers can be revived in a hot oven for five minutes, though nothing beats one straight from the kadhai.

    At a glance

    RegionRajasthan
    CuisineRajasthani
    DietVegan
    CourseStreet food
    Prep time25 minutes
    Cook time30 minutes
    Total time55 minutes
    Serves4
    Spice levelMedium
    DifficultyMedium
    Gluten-freeYes
    Key ingredientslarge green chillies / potato / besan / amchur

    Ingredients

    For the chillies and filling

    • 8 large, thick bhavnagri chillies
    • 3 medium potatoes (about 350 g), boiled and mashed
    • 1 tsp fennel seeds, crushed
    • 1 tsp coriander seeds, crushed
    • 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
    • 1 tsp amchur
    • 1/2 tsp garam masala
    • 1 tsp salt
    • 2 tbsp chopped coriander
    • 1 tbsp oil

    For the batter

    • 1 cup (100 g) besan
    • 1 tbsp rice flour
    • 1/4 tsp turmeric
    • 1/2 tsp ajwain
    • A pinch of baking soda
    • 1/2 tsp salt
    • About 1/2 cup water

    To fry and finish

    • Oil for deep frying
    • Chaat masala to sprinkle

    Method

    1. Wash and dry the chillies. Make a lengthwise slit in each, leaving the stem and tip intact, and scrape out the seeds with a small spoon.
    2. Heat 1 tbsp oil on medium, add the crushed fennel and coriander for 20 seconds, then add the mashed potato, powdered spices and salt. Mix for 2 minutes and stir in coriander. Cool.
    3. Pack each chilli firmly with filling so it bulges slightly and the slit closes over it.
    4. Whisk besan, rice flour, turmeric, ajwain, soda and salt with water into a thick batter that coats the back of a spoon heavily. Beat for 2 minutes to aerate.
    5. Heat oil to medium-hot, around 170 C. Hold a chilli by the stem, dip it in the batter to coat fully, and lower it into the oil.
    6. Fry 3-4 at a time for 4-5 minutes, turning, until the batter is set and pale gold. Drain and rest for at least 10 minutes.
    7. To serve, heat the oil to hot, about 185 C, and fry the vadas again for 1-2 minutes until deep golden and crisp. Drain and sprinkle chaat masala.

    Tips

    • Choose straight, fat chillies with thick walls; thin chillies blister and split in the oil.
    • The double fry is what keeps the crust crisp for longer. The first fry can be done an hour ahead.
    • If your chillies are hot, soak them in salted water for 15 minutes after deseeding to tame them.

    Serve with

    Sweet tamarind chutney, green chutney and hot masala chai.

  • Pyaaz Kachori

    Pyaaz kachori belongs to Jodhpur, where sweet shops near the clock tower fry them from early morning and sell out before lunch. Unlike the dal kachori of Kota or the hing kachori of Delhi, the filling here is onion cooked down with besan, fennel and crushed coriander until it turns jammy. It is a snack built for travel and for heat, keeping well for a day because the fat in the dough and the dry filling resist going soggy.

    A good one is round, puffed and blistered, with a shell that shatters in thin layers rather than chewing like a puri. Inside, the onions are soft, sweet and sharp with green chilli and dried mango powder. The secret is patience at the stove: the kachoris go into barely warm oil and cook for twenty minutes or more, which is what builds that crackling, layered crust.

    In Rajasthan they are eaten as breakfast or tea-time food, slit open and spooned with saunth (sweet tamarind chutney) and a thin green chutney. At weddings they appear on the snack counter, and many families fry a batch for train journeys. They reheat well in an oven, which makes them practical for guests.

    At a glance

    RegionRajasthan
    CuisineRajasthani
    DietVegan
    CourseSnack
    Prep time40 minutes
    Cook time50 minutes
    Total time90 minutes
    Serves6
    Spice levelMedium
    DifficultyHard
    Gluten-freeNo
    Key ingredientsmaida / onion / besan / fennel seeds

    Ingredients

    For the dough

    • 2 cups (250 g) maida
    • 1/2 tsp salt
    • 1/3 cup (70 ml) oil or melted ghee, for moyan
    • About 1/2 cup cold water

    For the filling

    • 3 tbsp oil
    • 1 tsp cumin seeds
    • 1 tbsp fennel seeds, coarsely crushed
    • 1 tbsp coriander seeds, coarsely crushed
    • 1/4 tsp asafoetida
    • 3 large onions (about 400 g), finely chopped
    • 2 green chillies and 1 inch ginger, finely chopped
    • 1 boiled potato, mashed
    • 4 tbsp besan
    • 1 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder
    • 1/2 tsp turmeric
    • 1 tsp amchur
    • 1/2 tsp garam masala
    • 1 tsp salt
    • 2 tbsp chopped coriander

    To fry

    • Oil for deep frying

    Method

    1. Rub the oil into the maida and salt with your fingertips for 3-4 minutes, until a fistful pressed together holds its shape like wet sand. This moyan is what makes the shell flaky.
    2. Add cold water a little at a time and bring together into a soft but not sticky dough without kneading hard. Cover with a damp cloth and rest for 30 minutes.
    3. For the filling, heat oil on medium, add cumin, fennel and coriander and let them sizzle for 20 seconds. Add asafoetida, then the onions, ginger and chillies.
    4. Cook the onions on medium for 6-8 minutes until translucent and just turning light gold at the edges, not brown. Lower the heat and add the besan; roast, stirring, for 3-4 minutes until it smells nutty.
    5. Add the powdered spices, salt and mashed potato and mix until the filling holds together in a dry lump. Stir in coriander and cool completely before using.
    6. Divide the dough into 12 balls and the filling into 12 portions. Flatten a ball into a 3-inch disc with thinner edges, place filling in the centre, pleat the edges up and pinch closed. Press gently into a 3-inch round, seam side down.
    7. Heat oil until just warm: a pinch of dough should rise slowly after 3-4 seconds. Slide in 4-5 kachoris and keep the flame at its lowest.
    8. After 8-10 minutes they will float and puff. Flip and keep frying on low, turning occasionally, for another 12-15 minutes until deep golden and crisp all over. Raise the heat for the last minute, then drain on a rack.

    Tips

    • If the oil is too hot, the shell browns fast and stays raw and chewy inside. Low heat for the full time is non-negotiable.
    • The filling must be dry and cold; wet filling steams the dough from inside and causes the kachori to burst in oil.
    • Leave one side slightly thicker when sealing and keep the sealed side down while flattening so it does not open.

    Serve with

    Sweet saunth chutney and green coriander-mint chutney, with masala chai.