Dear reader, I am so excited to be able to finally share today's recipe! My dear sister is a fine cook on her own merits and she makes amazing Bhajiyas or Spinach and Potato Fritters! I had been asking her for a while to share her recipe and her busy schedule finally allowed it recently! Lucky us! So bhajiyas as we know them are basically savory fritters made with leafy greens in a batter made with chickpea or pea flour. We call leafy greens bhaji hence the name bhajiyas. That is the most basic version that we grew up with in Fiji and it is a very common and beloved snack to have with tea. These spinach and potato fritters are crispy on the outside and full of delicious potatoes and vegetables on the inside! Even street food vendors in Fiji sell these and you usually get them fresh in a brown paper bag with spots of oil from the frying. Good times.
So onto the recipe! Unfortunately, some weird thing happened to the photos and videos that I took for this recipe and they disappeared into the internet void. I am in the process of tracking them down. I will update this post with those pictures soon. So for today, there won't be step-by-step pictures. However, I did manage to make a You Tube video tutorial (see above or scroll down) so please have a look at that to see Jiji's Spinach & Potato Bhajiya recipe. I forgot to add that my sister loves bhajiyas so it is only fitting that she is now an expert in making them. Lol. The recipe is quite simple but is more upgraded then the basic recipe that we grew up with. You need spinach, potatoes, bell peppers, cilantro, ginger, garlic, cumin and carom seeds. These get mixed with pea flour, rice flour and some salt and made into a batter. Then just fry up scoops of this batter until golden brown and fluffy! Bhajiyas can be served right away as is or with chutneys and dipping sauces.
Serve these at tea time and it will be a hit! Hmmm. If you have been following my blog, you maybe realizing that we love to have fried snacks and tea. Think that if you are from Fiji, you love afternoon tea and snack time. Yummy in my tummy!
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Recipe
Time 1 hour
Serves a crowd
Ingredients
6 oz bag of spinach
1 1/2 cup chickpea/pea flour
1/4 cup rice flour
1 cup water plus extra
Salt to taste
2 tsp crushed garlic
1 tsp crushed ginger
1/4 cup diced onion
1 diced red bell pepper
1 medium diced potato
1/2 cup chopped cilantro (optional)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp cumin seeds
1 tsp carom seeds
Vegetable oil for frying
Method
Rough chop spinach.
Add pea flour, rice flour, salt to taste and mix well.
Add water in 1/2 cup batches until desired consistency is achieved. The flour mix should coat the spinach well and not be too watery.
Mix well.
And then add the rest of the ingredients and mix well again until all ingredients are well mixed together. At this point, you can taste the batter and adjust the salt content again.
Heat up oil on medium heat.
Add 1 tbsp scoops of bhajiya mix into the heated oil.
Fry until golden brown and crispy.
Remove from oil and drain on paper towels or a wire rack.
Can be served immediately with chutneys or as is. Any leftovers can be stored in the fridge and reheated in the microwave.
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