Adrak wali Chai aur aloo k pakode(Ginger tea with potato fritters)

Am not a chai(Tea) addict but at times i love having them. Unlike me my mom and mom in law are chaicoholic "Chai addicts". This is the story of most of the Indians who love having their tea twice or thrice a day. Most of the evenings in India is spent with chai accompanied by one or the other kind of fritters, the popular among all is the aloo pakoda.

When once i brought these aloo pakoda to my German neighborhood at some BBQ party, to my surprise people loved it. They were not bothered about the fact that it was deep fried as they were over carried with its crispiness, texture and taste. I was happy for the fact that my dish was appreciated by so many people here at Karlsruhe, Germany.
My second surprise was the popularity of masala chai and the simple chai here at Germany. One of my German friend who owns a restaurant once asked me for the masala chai recipe. I guess the Masala chai  was a hit at her restaurant cum Bar.
Trust me try out this chai and pakoda one evening and i bet you will crave for it most of the evening of yours.

This Recipe
Serves - 4 plates of pakora and 4 cups of chai
Preparation time- 10 minutes for pakora
Cooking time- 20 minutes for all pakora and 5 minutes for chai.
Level of difficulty - easy

Ingredients:
For Pakora's(Fritters)

• Potato - 2 large size, grated or chopped finely
• Onion- 1 large, finely chopped
• Chick pea flour(Besan - 100 to 200 g)
• Green chilies- 1 , chopped
• Salt as per taste
• Carom seed- 1 Tsp
• Ginger minced
• Turmeric- 1 Tsp
• Oil for frying
• Water
• Coriander leaves- Chopped

For Ginger Chai(Tea)

• Milk - 1.5 cup
• Water- 1/2 cup
• Sugar - 2 Tbsp
• Tea leaves/ Chai patti - 1 Tbsp or more depending upon how much colour you want in your tea.
• Ginger- 1 Tbsp ,minced 

Preparation

Pakora preparation

• Bring together all the ingredients in a bowl add water and prepare a thick paste like consistency. The paste must neither be too tight nor too thin. If you find that the paste has become thin add the chick pea flour to make it tight and add water if the paste is too tight . 
• Heat oil in a frying pan at medium to high. 
• When oil becomes hot, add each tsp of pakora paste in the oil. Keep adding as many as can be accommodated in  the frying pan. Fry until all the sides turn golden brown in colour. Once done take out in a kitchen towel so that the excessive oil is absorbed by the kitchen towel.
• Repeat the frying process until all the pakora paste is over.

Enjoy hot pakoras with any hot sauce or chutney accompanied by the Chai.

Ginger tea preparation/ adrak wali Chai preparation

• Add all the ingredients in a boiling pan except milk at medium to high heat.
• Bring it to boil.
• Once it comes to boil add the milk .Wait until this comes to boil again. Lower the flame and wait until you get desired colour in your tea. Turn off the heat and let this rest for 20 seconds.
• Sieve out the tea in tea cups and serve it hot with Pakoras.

Enjoy chai with pakoras.....

Happy cooking

By - sushmita pandit