Arugula pakora - fresh leaves dipped in a spiced besan batter and deep-fried to crispy fritters that are best served with a hot cup of chai. A sip of the sweet milk chai and a bite of green chilli-spiced pakoras is heaven.

Pakoras are a popular snack in India, especially during the rainy monsoon season. There are Pakoras made with almost everything you can think of. The most common are Onion Pakoras, Aloo Bonda, banana fritters and many more.

If you cannot find arugula leaves that is also called garden rocket leaves, you can easily replace them with some fresh spinach (Palak).

This time I tried to find what it is called in my regional languages so that my folks can source these delicious leaves and add them to their diet. Unfortunately, I could only trace the fact that this leaf is called Tara Mira or taramira in Hindi. If you know what Garden Rocket is in your language, please leave a comment below.

📖 Recipe

Print Recipe

Arugula Pakora | Garden Rocket Fritters

Prep Time10

Cook Time15

Total Time25

Course: Snack

Cuisine: Indian, South Indian

Keyword: arugula fritters, arugula pakora, garden rocket fritters

Author: Famidha Ashraf

Ingredients

1 bunch arugula leaves washed, drained, pat dried and finely chopped
1 medium onion finely sliced
2 to 3 green chillies finely chopped
2 garlic cloves crushed and chopped finely
Fresh coriander leaves chopped
1 sprig curry leaves chopped
¼ cup besan gram flour besan
¼ cup rice flour
½ teaspoon red chilli powder
1 pinch turmeric powder
salt to taste
1 pinch baking soda optional
1 tablespoon hot oil
water as required
Oil to deep fry

Instructions

Prepare the batter

Add all the ingredients except hot oil and water, mix well, and keep aside for about 10 minutes. The salt will help the onion and leaves release moisture.
1 bunch arugula leaves, 1 medium onion, 2 to 3 green chillies, 2 garlic cloves, Fresh coriander leaves, 1 sprig curry leaves, ¼ cup besan gram flour, ¼ cup rice flour, ½ teaspoon red chilli powder, 1 pinch turmeric powder, salt to taste, 1 tablespoon hot oil
Start adding water a little at a time until you get the dough together. Less water will make crispier pakora. More water that makes a thick batter will lend soft inside and crispy outside pakoras. A pinch of baking soda 10 minutes before frying will lend a light pakoras. So adjust as per your preference.
water as required, 1 pinch baking soda

Fry

Heat a deep frying pan with enough oil to deep fry on a medium flame. Add about a tablespoon of hot oil to the pakora batter. Pinch small pieces of pakora dough and drop them into the hot oil. Fry the fritters on medium flame while turning the sides using a slotted spoon. Drain and remove the fritters that have fried evenly. Place them on a kitchen tissue to get rid of any excess oil.
Oil