Topic: Bhaji Flavour

[emin-j]

Hi All ,

Despite being very happy with my Madras progress the flavour of my Onion Bhaji's are always disappointing.
So , I bought a T/A last night with Bhaji's from my local Indian T/A purely  ;D as a taste testing exercise , their Bhaji's are delicious , round in shape , sweet and crisp on the outside with that certain BIR flavour which either me or the Missus just cant put our finger on  the inside of the Bhaji is just Yellow Onion with little flavour ' the taste ' is in the Batter , is it just Sugar that gives it it's sweetness ? The Batter has a sort of Honey like ' sheen ' to it but this could be the oil I suppose 

[Mikka1]

I'm really glad I don't have this problem Ermin. In fact mine smell and taste very good, I'm sure others who make it are just as good.

I've found that Sugar/Salt/Garam Masala, Whole seeds Cumin and Coriander work well but its the Garam that hits the spot. Onions love it.

Have you tried CA's? The don't have to be round in any case to be be delicious. I'm making some mashed potato balls which are battered with spices this coming week from a recipe I found.  Will post on that but give CA's recipe a try I don't really measure these things at all anymore.

[emin-j]

Hi Mikka ,

I did try CA's some time ago and from memory for the amount of ingredients I wasn't over impressed  perhaps I'll give it another go tho 

[chriswg]

Hi emin

I can never resist an onion bhaji question!

The sweetness comes from the onions as does most of the taste. I think you could make some okay bhajis just using onions gram flour and a bit of ground coriander.

The only way to get the sweet taste out of the onions is to deep fry them up to about 60% cooked and leave them at room temperature for 5 or 6 hours (like every BIR in the country does). They will taste much more authentic after the second fry, plus they will be soft and well cooked all the way through.

If the ones from the t/a tasted good then ask what they put in them, most will be happy to tell you. If not, try balancing the spices yourself but less is usually more. The only essentials for me are ground coriander, turmeric, cumin seeds, fresh coriander and a hint of chilli powder. Once you have the method right, you can start looking into which spices work best for you.

[emin-j]

Hi chriswg , I have tried the double fry method but found the Bhaji's to be very Oily , our T/A Bhaji's are ' Crisp & Dry '  on the outside with all the flavour in the batter and little flavour on the inside.

[Mikka1]

I'll post my method this week but I think you'll find its not that much different really?

[Unclefrank]

Hi chriswg , I have tried the double fry method but found the Bhaji's to be very Oily , our T/A Bhaji's are ' Crisp & Dry '  on the outside with all the flavour in the batter and little flavour on the inside.

Hi emin-j. Try putting them in the oven for about 10-15mins, thats how i do mine, once first frying them about 60% let cool fully, maybe the next day, then place in top of oven.Also dont forget that once they are cooled you can mold them into the "ball shape" that everybody is familiar with.

[jimmy2x]

emin-j im the same as you, infact worse, i cannot get shape nor flavour thats satisfactory. im getting a deep fat fryer just so i can work getting them right the correct way, tools for the job and all that. will also be handy for samosas and pakora ect to when i get around to giving them a go.

bhaji's are lovley when right.

[emin-j]

Hi jimmy2x ,

I'm still trying but not getting much luck , I can get the nice round shape and they look great but despite trying all the ideas they are still crap 
I have tried mixing a small amount of Rice flour with the Gram Flour as this is supposed to crisp them up but the Bhajis were heavy  I have also tried mixing some plain flour with Gram Flour but that wasn't much different .
The best results Ive had was by pouring the Flour mix dry over the chopped Onions mix it all together then add just enough water to be able to make the shape you want , these were quite good . It seems to me the less Flour you use the better 

[Unclefrank]

Try putting everything in a bowl but dont add the water  then leave the bhaji mix in the  fridge overnight, then add water and get that batter just right when ready to cook. Mine is very hard to stir its very "gloopy",then i just use a desert spoon to spoon into hot oil in my wok which i have used for about 4 weeks now( the same oil that is)part cook then leave to go cold then place in oven .