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Chicken pakora recipe (Chicken pakoda)

By swasthi , on October 13, 2019, 88 Comments

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Chicken pakora – Delicious, flavorful & crunchy chicken appetizer that just takes 25 minutes.  Chicken pakora is a crisp fried appetizer made with chicken, gram flour, ginger garlic, spice powders & herbs. These addictively delicious & crunchy chicken bites are not only flavor packed but are also tender & juicy.

chicken pakora

Pakora are a classic, all time favorite & much loved snack across India. There are different varieties made like bread pakora, onion pakoda , paneer pakora & chicken pakoda.

Most of these are often found on the Indian restaurant menus & are also a street food.

These chicken pakora make an amazing snack for your weekend evenings, parties or even when you have friends home. Chicken pakora can also be served as an appetizer with your weekend meal.

There are different ways of making these spicy fried chicken bites. The recipe shared here is the way my mom used to make for us. So it is a typical Andhra style spicy chicken pakora.

My mom never added egg to make these but the street stalls do add it to the marinade.

Serving suggestions

These chicken pakora are so good on their own and don’t need any accompaniment. A cup of hot masala tea is what we all love with these. My kids go with a generous sprinkle of chaat masala.

In restaurants you can find a variety of condiments served with these like green chutney, ketchup or even kabab mint chutney.

You can just go ahead and serve these plain just like the way we do. I am sure you will enjoy every bit of them.

Tips to make chicken pakora

Chicken: Chop the chicken to bite sized pieces – one by ¾ inch size. Keep them as uniform as possible. This helps to fry the chicken evenly.

Flour: Rice flour or corn flour is the key to make these chicken pakora crisp. Do not skip it. If you do not use both then just go ahead using millet flour.

This recipe will give you crisp pakora, altering the ratio of besan to rice flour or corn flour may not give the same texture.

Herbs: We love these chicken pakora with lots of curry leaves & pudina. Both these flavor up the chicken pakora a lot. If you do not have both then use coriander leaves.

Ginger garlic onion: We usually crush ginger, garlic, onions and green chilies coarsely and use. I usually have the ginger garlic paste so I used it. You can also just grate or crush them and use.

More tips

Egg white: I have used an egg white which helps to lock the chicken juices. It prevents the chicken from turning dry, hard & chewy. However you can skip the egg if using brined chicken or young chicken.

Egg substitute: Just add 3 tablespoons of yogurt to ¾ cup of water and whisk it. Add the chicken bites to it and allow to rest for 2 hours in the fridge. Drain the chicken completely and use in the recipe.

Other substitute to egg is to just add 3 tablespoons of yogurt to the pakora mixture.

Moisture: Egg white and water are used to bind the dry ingredients with chicken. Please note that too much of moisture can make your chicken pakora soft and not crunchy.

By any chance if the mixture turns soggy then add little flour and fix it. Do not fry the soggy mixture as the pakora may turn too soft.

Frying: Always fry chicken pakora in moderately hot oil on a medium flame.

Frying them in extremely hot or smoking oil will brown them too quickly from outside without cooking inside. Next frying them on a low flame will make the chicken pakora hard, chewy and rubbery.

If you follow all these tips, I am sure you will make the best chicken pakora.

More Chicken recipes,
Chilli chicken
Chicken 65
Crispy chicken Nuggets
Chicken burger
Popcorn chicken

Chicken pakora recipe

chicken pakora recipe

Chicken pakora

Chicken pakora is a quick Indian appetizer made with gram flour, chicken, spices & herbs. These are amazing to serve for parties with some green chutney or masala tea.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time25 minutes
Servings3
AuthorSwasthi

Ingredients (1 cup = 240ml )

Ingredients for chicken pakora

  • 250 grams chicken (½ lb) strips or cubes
  • 1 medium onion (optional) crushed or sliced
  • 1 to 2 green chilies chopped (optional)
  • ¾ tablespoon ginger garlic paste or crushed
  • ¾ to 1 teaspoon red chili powder (reduce for kids)
  • ¾ to 1 teaspoon garam masala
  • ¼ teaspoon turmeric or haldi
  • 1/3 teaspoon Salt (adjust to taste)
  • 2 sprigs curry leaves or 2 tbsps mint leaves or coriander leaves chopped
  • 6 tablespoon besan or gram flour (¼ cup + 2 tbsps)
  • 3 tablespoon rice flour or corn flour
  • 1 egg white
  • 2 tablespoon water (you may need more)
  • Oil to deep fry

How to make the recipe

Preparation for chicken pakoda

  • Add besan, rice flour, salt, turmeric, chilli powder & garam masala to a bowl. 
  • Mix well and taste it. Add more salt if needed.
  • Next add ginger garlic, onions, curry leaves & green chilies.
  • Cut chicken to thin strips or cubes of 1 by ¾ inch. 
  • Add them to the bowl along with egg white. 
  • Mix everything well adding water only as needed to make a thick stiff mixture.
  • The mixture must be thick and not loose like batter.

Making chicken pakora

  • Heat oil in a kadai for deep frying.
  • Check if the oil is hot enough by dropping a small portion of dough. 
  • It has to rise slowly without browning. Regulate the flame to medium.
  • Slide the chicken pieces to the hot oil one after the other. 
  • Do not crowd the pan as the chicken needs enough space to swim and get cooked.
  • After 1 to 2 mins begin to stir and fry the chicken pakora until golden and crisp.
  • Remove to a colander. Fry the rest of the chicken in batches.
  • Serve crispy chicken pakora as a appetizer with green chutney or masala tea.

NUTRITION

Calories: 422kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 62mg | Sodium: 407mg | Potassium: 367mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 365IU | Vitamin C: 34.5mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 1.7mg

Notes

Do not fry these in very hot oil, as they will turn brown without cooking inside.
Egg helps the chicken to retain the juices & keep it succulent without drying up.
If making for parties: Once all the chicken pakoras are done frying, refry all the pakoras in batches for 1 to 2 mins to keep them extra crisp. 
You can also crisp these in a preheated oven by placing them on a wired rack.
I used only 3 tbsps water for the dough. This may vary depending on the size of the egg & chicken. 
Adding too much water to your dough can make the chicken pakora soft and not crispy.

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Preparation

1.Add besan, rice flour, salt, turmeric, chilli powder & garam masala to a mixing bowl. Mix everything well and then taste it. Add more salt as needed. The mixture has to be slightly salty. I used about 1/3 tsp of pink salt.

adding pakora ingredients

2. Then add ginger garlic paste, curry leaves, onions and green chilies.

herbs and onions to make chicken pakora

3. Chop the chicken to uniform bite sized pieces. Add it here. After a good rinse I drained the water completely and added it.

adding chicken

4. Pour egg white.

pouring egg white to make chicken pakora

5. Begin to mix adding water only as needed. I added about 3 tbsps water. This may vary depending on the chicken and the size of egg.

adding water to make dough

6. Towards the end of this step, chicken should be well coated with the pakora mixture. The mixture has to be stiff – dough like and not like batter.

Too mush moisture in the pakora mixture can make your chicken pakora soft and not crunchy.

Fix : You can add few tablespoons of flour to fix the excess moisture.

chicken pakora dough

How to make chicken pakora

7. Heat oil in a kadai. Check if the temperature is right by sliding in little dough. It has to rise without browning quickly. This is the right temperature.

Slide the chicken bites gently to the hot oil one after the other. Regulate the flame to medium to medium high.

It is very normal for the chicken pieces to stick up to each other in the mixing bowl. Just remove each piece of chicken and coat it well with the pakora mixture and slide them to the oil.

frying chicken pakora

8. After a minute or 2, stir and fry them until golden and crisp.

9. Once done remove the chicken pakora to a colander. Fry the entire chicken in batches following the same method. Ensure the oil is hot enough before adding a new batch of chicken

Each piece of chicken takes a different time to fry. So it is best to monitor each one of them and remove when they are done.

Serve chicken pakora hot with a cup of masala chai. Sprinkle some chaat masala if you like.

Chicken pakora are Indian style spicy fried chicken bites made with chicken, gram flour, spices & herbs. These are a popular appetizer and makes for an amazing party snack. #chickenpakora #pakora #appetizer

Filed Under: Chicken Recipes, Hyderabadi recipes, Latest Recipes, Non-Veg Recipes, Snacks Recipes, South Indian Recipes

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About swasthi

I’m Swasthi shreekanth, the recipe developer, food photographer & food writer behind Swasthis recipes. My aim is to help you cook great Indian food with my time-tested recipes. After 2 decades of experience in practical Indian cooking I started this blog to help people cook better & more often at home. Whether you are a novice or an experienced cook I am sure Swasthi’s Recipes will assist you to enhance your cooking skills.
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Comments

  1. Sheila says

    October 13, 2019

    Hi, can I prepare the mixture a day before and just fry on the day it’s needed?

    Will making the marinade and mixing it all up still be fine stored in the fridge?

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      October 13, 2019

      Hi Sheila,
      Not sure if they will still turn crisp

      Reply
      • Sheila says

        October 13, 2019

        Aww okay. Thank you for replying x

        Reply
  2. Rifa says

    September 6, 2019

    Hi can i add maida instead of rice/corn flour?

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      September 6, 2019

      Hi Rifa,
      For best crunch corn starch or rice flour is recommended. I haven’t tried with maida any time. But it should work.

      Reply
  3. Amit sethi says

    May 7, 2019

    5 stars
    I appreciate your work and your doing

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      May 7, 2019

      Thank you!

      Reply
  4. Neha says

    October 18, 2018

    hello,

    can you tell me what is your one serving size for recipes.
    i.e. it is 200 gm or 250 gm or something else?

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      October 18, 2018

      Hi Neha
      It depends on the recipe. Whether deep fried, curried or baked

      Reply
  5. Chhanda mahata says

    April 20, 2018

    Nice

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      April 20, 2018

      Thank you

      Reply
  6. savithri says

    February 23, 2018

    my chicken pakoda turning very hard why. do i need to cook the chicken before making pakoda?

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      February 24, 2018

      Hi Savithri
      If the chicken is not tender/ young then it turns very hard. If you fry on a low flame for long time then also chicken may turn hard.
      If you want to get the chicken pakoda soft, then add egg white as i mentioned in the recipe. OR Brine the chicken in buttermilk and keep it in fridge for 2 to 3 hours. Remove the chicken from buttermilk and use in the recipe. They will come soft

      Reply
  7. Shila Mondal says

    January 19, 2018

    Iess time taking and Tammy recipe

    Reply
  8. ghazala says

    July 18, 2017

    Tried ur chicken butter masala recipe last week nd it turned out very well . Thanks a lot

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      July 20, 2017

      Welcome Ghazala
      Thanks for trying and sharing the outcome
      🙂

      Reply
  9. ghazala says

    July 18, 2017

    Very well explained .Would try this recipe today

    Reply
  10. pkmb tinsukia says

    July 8, 2017

    woow thats wonderfull.
    realy nice.
    i like this chicken pakora
    owssssss.

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      July 11, 2017

      Thank you

      Reply
  11. suhail says

    February 4, 2017

    5 stars
    Its very helpfu for me and beginner. Very easy and simplest way to make the chicken pakora tnkz Alot 4 sharing this amazing recipe.

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      February 7, 2017

      Welcome Suhail
      Happy to know you liked the chicken pakora.
      Thanks for the comment

      Reply
  12. Rajesh says

    August 6, 2016

    Very nice receipt for thanks

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      August 8, 2016

      welcome

      Reply
  13. gulabi says

    July 12, 2016

    Its very helpfu. for beginner.Very easy and simplest way to make the chicken pakora.

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      July 12, 2016

      Thanks Gulabi

      Reply
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