Khasta kachori

The name of this Indian recipe says it all, khasta means flaky or broken and kachori is a stuffed and fried pie. It can be made with a variety of fillings. The kachori be stored in an airtight container for a few weeks, ready as a snack whenever needed.

• makes

  4

• prep

  15 minutes

• cook

  30 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

Filling

• 1-2 tbsp oil
• 2 tbsp course chickpea flour (besan)
• 3 cinnamon sticks
• 3 cloves
• 2 tbsp fennel seeds
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• 2 tsp red chilli powder
• 2 tsp dry mango powder
• salt, to taste
• oil for deep frying

Pastry

• 250 g plain flour 
• ⅔ cup oil 
• 1 tbsp salt

To serve

• yoghurt, sweet tamarind chutney, coriander chutney, boiled potatoes, green gram sprouts, pomegranate seeds, thin vermicelli, chat masala, and coriander leaves

Instructions

To prepare the filling, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a frying pan over low heat. Cook the chickpea flour, stirring costantly until the colour changes to a light pink. Remove and set aside to cool.

Mix together the remainder of the dry ingredients, add a little oil in a small pan over low heat, add the ingredients and roast. Once cool, grind the ingredients in a mortar and pestle or spice grinder and then mix in with the chickpea flour.

To make the pastry, mix the flour, oil, salt and enough water to make a firm dough. Divide the dough into 4. Roll put one at a time to a medium size. Place 1 tablespoon of the dry filling onto the dough and fold the edges to the centre. Roll it once more on top.

Heat some oil in a pot (no more than ⅓ full) over low heat. Deep-fry the khasta kachori in batches keeping the heat low, turning once, until it turns pink in colour. Allow to cool. 

To serve khasta kachori, place in a wide bowl, make a hole on top and add yoghurt, sweet tamarind chutney, coriander chutney, boiled potatoes, green gram sprouts, pomegranate seeds, thin vermicelli, chat masala, and coriander leaves.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.