Vazhakai Bhajji (Plantain Fritters)

It was raining pretty hard today. In fact the whole week has pretty much been a washout. But today, it kind of caught us by surprise, because the forecast was for very slight chance of rain, so most of us left home without umbrellas. Then out of no where, the skies opened up suddenly! It rained steadily throughout the day, but off and one there was a deluge of water! Hubby dearest came home all drenched and declared it perfect weather for bhajias!

Well, I had just finished making dinner and was in no mood to slice up different veggies and make bhajias. But I realized that I had 3 small plantains lying in the refrigerator, so just decided to make plantain fritters - they could be served as the appetizer. Plain potato fritters or capsicum ones or any other vegetable for that matter would feel a little incomplete without the other veggies. But plantain fritters can be served as a stand alone dish, so just made them. Served them with tomato ketchup as I was too lazy to make coconut chutney, which would have been the perfect accompaniment.

Preparation & Cooking: 15 minutes  approximately             Serves: 3-4

Ingredients:
Plantains - 3
Chickpea Flour/Besan - 4 tablespoons
Rice Flour - 2 tablespoons
Red Chilli Powder - 1 teaspoon
Asafoetida/Hing - a pinch
Salt - to taste
Water - to make a thick batter
Oil - for deep frying the fritters

Method:

• Peel and slice the plantains.

• In a bowl, take the chickpea flour, rice flour, red chilli powder, asafoetida and salt.

• Add water gradually to make a thick smooth batter. Make sure there are no lumps.

• Dip the plantain slices in the batter and coat them thoroughly in a thick layer, leaving no gaps.

• Deep fry these in hot oil till they turn a golden brown in color.

• Drain them out on absorbent paper or kitchen towels.

Serve hot with coconut chutney or tomato ketchup!