Recipe: Vik’s Pakoras With Green Chutney

This recipe is from Vik’s in West Berkeley. You can find dried fenugreek leaves and chickpea flour at Indian markets, such as the one attached to the Berkeley restaurant.

Serves 4 to 6 (makes 20 pakoras)

Chutney

1½ cups (packed) fresh cilantro, leaves and thin stems only ½ cup (packed) fresh mint leaves

2 green onions, trimmed and roughly chopped

2 serrano chiles, stemmed and seeded

½ teaspoon sugar

½ teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

Pakoras

Vegetable oil for deep-frying

½ small russet potato, peeled and cut into ¼-inch pieces ½ onion, peeled and cut into ¼-inch pieces

¼ small cabbage, finely chopped

½ small cauliflower, finely chopped

1 tablespoon crushed coriander seeds

1½ teaspoons dried crumbled fenugreek leaves 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

¾ teaspoon celery seeds

¾ teaspoon pure red chile powder

1¾ cups chickpea flour, sifted, plus more as needed 2½ teaspoons kosher salt, or to taste

For the chutney: Combine all the ingredients in a blender or food processor. Process until mixture turns into a fine paste. While the motor is running, add ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons water and process to blend. (Makes 1 cup.)

For the pakoras: Pour about 3 inches of vegetable oil into a heavy-bottomed pot or wok, and start heating to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with a double layer of paper towels.

Combine the russet potato, onion, cabbage and cauliflower in a large bowl. Add the coriander seeds, fenugreek leaves, cilantro, celery seeds, chile powder and chickpea flour. Toss to combine. Stir in ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon water. The consistency should be similar to potato salad: moist but still able to hold its shape in a loose ball. If it’s too dry, add more water, a tablespoon at a time; if it’s too wet, add more flour, ¼ cup at a time. Let the mixture rest for 5 minutes.

Stir the salt into the mixture. With your hands, form the batter into a 1½-inch ball and immediately (and carefully) drop it into the oil. Repeat until you have 3 or 4 pakoras in the oil — be careful not to crowd them or the oil will cool and the pakoras won’t be as crispy as they should be. Using metal tongs, turn the pakoras so they brown on all sides.

When the pakoras are golden brown, transfer them to the baking sheet lined with paper towels to drain. Continue until all the batter has been fried.

Serve hot with the chutney.