If you love crispy, deep-fried spicy snacks, then aloo bonda, the Indian potato balls are a must-try! These are made with spiced potato filling, coated in a chickpea flour batter, and deep-fried to golden. This is best enjoyed with a cup of chai and a side of coconut chutney.
This recipe is simple, quick, and perfect for satisfying your snack cravings. Read on to find out how to make perfect ball-shaped bondas with my recipe tips.
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During Ramadan, we lean towards fried snacks for iftar even though it is not healthy. Aloo Bonda is F's favourite, but I tend not to make them too often because, I prefer making aloo paratha, saving myself from another what's for dinner dilemma. 😜
Why You'll Love This Recipe?
Aloo bonda is the ultimate comfort snack—crispy outside and soft inside with a burst of Indian spiced flavours in every bite. It’s an easy, beginner-friendly recipe that requires simple pantry staples. You can customize the spice levels to your taste, and it’s naturally gluten-free. Plus, it pairs beautifully with chutneys and dips, making it a versatile appetizer or tea-time snack.
Ingredients List
Each state of India might have its twist but major ingredients remain the same. This Aloo Bonda recipe is very similar to Maharashtrian Batata Vada except here we use rice flour along with besan for the batter.
- Produce: You will need some potatoes, curry leaves, green chillies, red onion, ginger and coriander leaves.
- Whole spices: You will need mustard seeds, cumin seeds and split urad dal.
- Ground spices: A little turmeric, red chilli and hing. You may add Chaat masala too.
- Flour: You will need both chickpea flour – Also known as gram flour and rice flour.
- Baking soda– Makes the coating light and crispy.
- Oil – Use any neutral frying oil like vegetable or sunflower oil.
Refer to the Recipe Card at the bottom of this page for a complete list of ingredients and quantities.
Steps to Make Aloo Bonda
Potato Mix
Peel and roughly mash the boiled potatoes and keep aside. Heat oil in a kadai and add the tadka items followed by chopped green chillies, onion, and salt. Sauté until the onions turn translucent. Mix in turmeric powder and cook for a minute. Switch off and add to the mashed potatoes. Stir in lemon juice, the remaining onions, and coriander leaves. Mix everything well, then shape the mixture into equal-sized potato balls, ready for coating and frying.
Chickpea flour batter
In a bowl, mix chickpea flour, rice flour, asafoetida, turmeric, red chilli powder, baking soda, salt, and ghee.
Whisk in water gradually to form a thick, smooth flour batter that coats the potato balls well.
Deep Fry
Heat oil in a deep pan over medium heat. Drop a potato ball into the batter. Use a spoon to carefully scoop and slide into the hot oil. Repeat without overcrowding. Deep fry until they turn golden brown and crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on a kitchen towel. Serve hot with chutney or ketchup for a delicious snack!
💡Recipe Tips
Potatoes: To ensure your aloo bonda doesn’t absorb excess oil while frying, boil the potatoes with the skin on, then peel and mash them coarsely. The mash doesn’t need to be completely smooth—some chunks are fine as long as they’re fully cooked.
Batter: The batter consistency is key—it should be pourable but not too runny or too thick. It needs to coat the potato balls well without dripping excessively or being too dense. This batter is a mix of chickpea flour (besan) and rice flour for the perfect crispy coating.
Shape: For perfectly round bonda, use a spoon to scoop up the batter-coated potato balls and gently drop them into the hot oil.
Deep Frying: The size of the pot matters! Using a deep pan with enough oil ensures the bonda fry evenly without developing flat sides. Since everything except the batter is pre-cooked, frying is just to achieve that crispy, golden exterior.
Serving Ideas
Enjoy aloo bonda with:
- Green chutney or tamarind chutney.
- A side of chai for a classic Indian experience.
- Stuffed inside pav (Indian bread) to make a Mumbai-style vada pav.
Variations
- Cheese Aloo Bonda – Stuff cheese inside for a gooey surprise.
- Paneer Aloo Bonda – Add crumbled paneer to the potato mixture.
- Methi Aloo Bonda – Mix fresh fenugreek leaves into the filling for added flavour.
More Related Recipes
Looking for more Indian savoury snack recipes? Try these:
- If looking for ways to use up your besan flour, try making butter murukku.
- For recipes using rice flour, you will find some amazing dishes in my favourite Malabar recipe collection.
- Sweet-toothed, you can try the Iraqi rice flour sweet dish!
- For a breakfast option, try my potato masala.
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📖 Recipe Card
Aloo Bonda - Indian Potato Balls
Ingredients
For the Aloo Bonda Balls
- 3 medium-sized potatoes
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon split urad dal, optional
- 1 to 2 sprig curry leaves, chopped
- 2 to 3 green chillies, chopped finely
- 1 large onion, chopped finely (divided)
- ½ inch ginger, chopped very finely
- 2 pinches turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon chaat masala
- Fresh coriander leaves, chopped finely
- salt to taste
For the batter
- ¾ cup besan gram flour
- 2 tablespoons rice flour
- 1 pinch asafoetida, hing
- 1 pinch turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon red chilli powder
- 1 pinch baking soda
- salt to taste
- 1 teaspoon ghee
- water as required
- Oil to deep fry
Instructions
Prepare the Potato Balls
- Boil 3 to 4 potatoes in a pressure cooker for 3 to 4 whistles. Discard the water, peel and mash the potatoes roughly. Avoid making it too smooth.3 medium-sized potatoes
- Heat oil in a kadai or deep pan and add mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves. Let them splutter until urad dal turns golden.2 tablespoons cooking oil1 teaspoon mustard seeds1 teaspoon split urad dal1 to 2 sprig curry leaves
- Add ginger, green chillis, and half of the chopped onion with a dash of salt. Saute until onions turn translucent and then add the turmeric powder to the mix and stir for a minute.2 to 3 green chillies1 large onion½ inch ginger2 pinches turmeric powder¼ teaspoon chaat masalasalt to taste
- Transfer the content to the bowl of mashed potato, add the lemon juice, remaining chopped onions, coriander leaves and more salt if required.1 teaspoon lemon juiceFresh coriander leaves
- Mix everything thoroughly with your hand or fork. Make equal-sized balls using a tablespoon or two and keep them on a plate.
Prepare the batter
- Mix all the batter ingredients in a bowl and add enough water to make a semi-thick consistency. Add water little by little so we can adjust the consistency. If you add a lot of water initially, you may have to add more flour and adjust the spices. We need a consistency where the batter leaves a thick coating on the potato mixture when dipped.¾ cup besan gram flour2 tablespoons rice flour1 pinch asafoetida1 pinch turmeric powder½ teaspoon red chilli powder1 pinch baking sodasalt to taste1 teaspoon gheewater as required
Fry
- Heat oil in a kadai on a medium flame.Oil to deep fry
- Dip an aloo ball into the batter bowl using a spoon and ensure to coat it well.
- Sccop the ball with the spoon and drop it carefully into the hot oil. Repeat as needed but don't crowd the kadai.
- Deep fry the balls on medium flame by turning them often so it is cooked evenly and gets crispy outside.
- Remove using a slotted spoon once all the bondas turn a deep golden shade. Place on a kitchen tissue and serve hot with ketchup or any chutney of choice!
Famidha Ashraf says
An all-time favourite iftar snack that is addictive with some ketchup of chutney. Make smaller balls to get more quantity! lesson learnt! 😛