Cheese Bread Pakora Recipe
Cheese Bread Pakora is a crispy, cheesy twist on the classic Indian bread pakora. Slices of bread are stuffed with a spicy cheese filling, dipped in a seasoned gram flour (besan) batter, and deep-fried until golden brown. The result is a crunchy outside with a gooey, melty cheese center perfect as a monsoon snack or party appetizer, best enjoyed with chutney or ketchup.
Ingredients
For Batter
- Besan (बेसन) – 1 cup
- Red Chilli Powder (लाल मिर्च पाउडर) – 1 tbsp
- Salt (नमक) – To Taste
- Turmeric Powder (हल्दी)- 1 tsp
- Kasoori Methi (कसूरी मेथी) – 1 big pinch
- Jeera Powder (जीरा पाउडर) – 1 tbsp
- Water (पानी) – 2 cup or as required
For Stuffing
- Oil (तेल) – 2 tbsp
- Mustard Seeds (सरसों के बीज) – 1 tsp
- Green Chilli, Chopped (हरी मिर्च) – 1 no
- Ginger, Chopped (अदरक) – 1 tsp
- Garlic, chopped (लहसुन) – ½ tsp
- Curry Leaf (करी पत्ता) – Handful
- Onion, Chopped (प्याज़) – ½ cup
- Carrots, Chopped (गाजर) – ¼ cup
- Capsicum, Chopped (शिमला मिर्च) – ¼ cup
- Salt (नमक) – To Taste
- Coriander, Chopped (धनिया) – Handful
- Potato, Boiled & Mashed (आलू) – 2 cups
- Cheese, Sticks (चीज़) – 100gm
- Oil (तेल) – a dash
To Assemble
- Bread, Fresh (ब्रेड) – 8 slices
- Water (पानी) – To Seal
- Oil (तेल) – To Deep Fry
- Chaat Masala (चाट मसाला) – A Big Pinch
Instructions
- We will begin by preparing a batter. To make the batter, sieve the besan into a bowl or parat. Next add in the dry ingredients like the masalas, salt and kasoori Methi.Next, whisk the dry ingredients to make the dry mix homogenous. Add water in 2-3 batches adding a little at a time and mixing the water completely before adding any more. The batter should be slow pouring consistency.Remember that as the besan hydrates, the batter will thicken so do check the consistency and adjust before using the batter.To make the stuffing, heat oil in a pan. Once the oil is hot adding the mustard seeds and allow them to splutter. Quickly follow by adding in the green chillies, ginger, garlic, curry leaves and onions.
- Next, we add in the vegetables like carrots and capsicum. Now mix it all together and cook till the ingredients soften. Finish with some seasoning and chopped coriander.Add this tadka into the mashed potatoes. You may also use paneer or a day’s old sabzi instead of mashed potatoes.Adjust the size of the cheese sticks according to the bread slice. On an oiled or nonstick surface, spread stuffing mixture flat, make sure the spread is not bigger than the bread slice in width. Put the slice of cheese in the centre and fold the spread mixture from all sides to make a cylinder. Roll the cylinder to make it smooth and manageable.
- Cut the edges off the bread slices and place the stuffing cylinder in the centre.Use water to seal the bread as you roll the bread slice all around it. A fresh bread is moist and thins out easily. Fresh bread will not break while rolling it around the stuffing as well.Once all the bread is stuffed, begin heating oil in a kadhai to deep fry. Also, adjust the consistency of the batter.Coat the stuffed breads in batter with soft hands. Make sure the batter is coating all sides. Do not leave the stuffed bread in the batter for too long as it will soak up too much water and become too delicate to handle .
- Once the oil is hot over a medium flame, pick up the bread pakora and place it in the centre of the kadhai. Release the pakora in the oil in a movement away from you.This means that any oil will splash away from you.Once fried, hold for a few minutes to remove excess oil and serve sprinkled with chaat masala.
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