Chilli Fritters/ Rajasthani Mirchi Vada

Last Sunday when I went for my weekly grocery shopping I stumbled upon a basket full of Peppers. These were the big chillies which are usually used to make chilli pickles here in India. I couldn't resist myself buying those beauties.

When I bought those I made up my mind that I'll make chilli pickle out of those peppers, as a result I bought all the ingredients required to make the pickle but all of a sudden my husband requested me to make Fritters with them. So, with all the confusion and my mind dwelling between Fritters and Pickle those peppers were lying in my vegetable basket for a week.

Finally the confusion ended and the battle has been won by Fritters. Finally yesterday I decided to make these fritters in our Tea Time Snacks with a tangy tomato and cilantro chutney.

These fritters are very common in Jodhpur, Rajasthan. The chillies are stuffed with spicy potato filling which is seasoned with few spices. Usually these chillies are less hotter than the usual ones which are used for cooking but if you want then you can remove the seeds from them and then fill the stuffing inside.

So, without wasting any time let's check out the recipe and serve it to your family at the tea table. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

1. Large Peppers: 8-10

2. Oil for frying

For Stuffing:

1. Potatoes (medium sized): 4-5

2. Fennel Seeds: 1 tbsp

3. Coriander Seeds: 1 tbsp

4. Cumin Seeds: 1 tbsp

5. Dry Mango Powder: 1 tbsp

6. Red chilli Powder: 1 tsp

7. Dry Fenugreek leaves: a pinch (optional)

8. Asafoetida: a pinch

9. Salt to taste

10. Cilantro (chopped)

For Batter:

1. Gram Flour (Besan): 2 cups

2. Asafoetida: a pinch

3. Turmeric Powder: 1/4 tsp

4. Salt to taste

5. Baking Soda: a pinch

6. Water as required

Method:

1. Wash the peppers thoroughly and pat them dry with a kitchen towel.

2. Make a slit in the peppers with a knife leaving 1 cm of space from the bottom. Remove the seeds if you want to reduce the hotness of the fritters. Keep them aside.

3. Take a pan and heat it on a medium heat. Dry roast the fennel seeds, coriander seeds and cumin seeds for few minutes. Turn off the heat and let it cool down.

4. Grind the dry roasted seeds to a fine powder in a grinder.

5. Boil and mash the potatoes. Add the prepared powder along with dry mango powder, red chilli powder, asafoetida, dry fenugreek leaves, salt and chopped cilantro. Mix well until everything is well combined.

6. Take a pepper and stuff it with the prepared stuffing. Do it with the rest of the peppers.

7. Take a bowl and prepare a batter with the ingredients mentioned under "For Batter". Do not add too much of water at a time. The batter should be slightly thick so that it coats the peppers well.

8. Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan on medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot enough reduce the flame to medium. Dip the peppers in the batter so that it gets coated from all the sides and gently slide it in the hot oil.

9. Fry them until they become crisp and golden brown from all the sides. Take them out on an absorbent paper.

10. Serve them with the sauce or chutney of your choice. We prefer them with tomato and cilantro  chutney. Enjoy!!

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