Banana Fritters (Pazham Pori) Thattukada style – Nadan Ethakka Appam Recipe
Pazham Pori is a traditional snack in south India. You can make this in many different ways and we will be using the fermented dosa batter. Plantain slices are dipped in sweetened batter before being deep fried in oil.
It is an easy-to-prepare snack that does not require much time. Plantains are of the banana family which is starchier, bigger, and less in sugar content. Pazham Pori is an all-time favorite snack of Kerala and is available in tea shops and hotels.
Choosing the Right Banana for Pazham Pori
Plantain is widely available in many grocery stores. Make sure to choose the one that is ripe but not overripe too much. Overripe bananas will become soggy when deep-fried.
Banana Fritters/Pazham pori/ethakka Appam with Dosa Batter
Ingredients
- 3 Ripe Plantain
Prepare the batter
- 1 cup All-purpose flour
- 2 Tablespoon Rice flour
- 1 pinch turmeric (optional)
- 3 Tablespoon sugar, Adjust to your preference.
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/3 cup dosa batter
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom (optional)
- 1 cup water Add more as needed to make thick batter
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- oil for deep frying
Instructions
- Peel the plantain and then slit lengthwise into 3-4 thin pieces or Cut the banana in half then slice. It is a personal preference.
- In a bowl, add all-purpose flour, rice flour, turmeric (optional), sugar, salt, cardamom, dosa batter, and baking soda. Now slowly add water to make a thick smooth batter.
- Let the batter rest for 15 minutes or longer. If you don't like to add baking soda you can ferment the batter longer (1-2 hours).
- Mix the batter and check the consistency. The batter should coat plantains nicely without being too thick. It usually has the consistency of Pancake batter or idli batter.
- Heat oil in a deep bottom pan.
- When the oil is hot, dip the plantain pieces thoroughly in the batter and slowly arrange them in the frying pan without overcrowding the pan.
- Fry till light golden brown on both sides
- Remove from the frying pan and strain it on a paper towel, to remove the excess oil.
- Enjoy and serve with hot tea or coffee!
Notes
- You can use whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour
- Instead of rice flour, you can use Rava (Semolina), this is to make the pazham pori crispier.
- The batter shouldn’t be runny because then the banana slices won’t hold the batter while you dip them and the batter will fall off while you fry.
- If the plantains you buy are green plantains you need to wait until they are ripe and have yellow skin.
- Optional – 1 tsp black sesame seeds, 1/4 tsp turmeric powder for color, ground cardamom for flavor
Nadan Pazham Pori without baking soda – Variations
In restaurants, the batter is kept for 4-5 hours for fermentation before frying. When you add the idli batter the fermentation will be faster. As you change the ratio of ingredients the texture of the crust and crispiness also slightly change even though the ingredients are mostly the same. In this recipe, we only add a little idli batter and keep it longer for fermentation.
Ingredients
- 1 + 1/2 cup all-purpose flour (മൈദ)
- 3 Tablespoon sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 + 1/2 Tablespoon Idli batter
- 1 + 1/2 Tablespoon rice flour
- 1 + 1/4 cup of water
- 1/4 tsp cardamom
- 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
- 4 Ripe plantain (ഏത്തപ്പഴം/Nendrapazham)
Direction
- Remove the banana skin and cut it into thin slices lengthwise. (3 to 4 pieces)
- Whisk together all-purpose flour, sugar, salt, turmeric powder, cardamom, and rice flour. Add little water at a time and make a smooth batter. Add idli batter and whisk all together to mix well and remove any clumps. (Note: The batter should have a medium thick consistency and should not form clumps.)
- Let the batter rest for 4-5 hours, covered. If you keep it too long then it will ferment too much and then when you fry it will absorb too much oil.
- Mix the batter again and check the consistency of the batter.
- Heat the oil in a shallow frying pan.
- Thoroughly coat the banana slices in the batter before placing them in the frying pan.
- Fry the banana until crisp and golden brown on both sides, then drain on paper towels.
Thattukda Style Pazham Pori with Idli/dosa batter
In this recipe, the ratio of idli batter is more and fermentation time is less. But if you like to make it right away you can add 1/4 tsp baking soda.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour (മൈദ)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup Idli batter
- 1/4 cup rice flour
- 1 1/4 cup of water
- 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 Kg Ripe plantain (ഏത്തപ്പഴം/Nendrapazham)
Direction
- Remove the banana skin and cut it into thin slices lengthwise. (3 to 4 pieces)
- Combine all ingredients (1-7) for the batter and enough water to make a smooth batter. (Note: The batter should have a medium thick consistency and should not form lumps.)
- Let the batter rest for 2-3 hours, covered. If you keep it too long then it will ferment too much and then when you fry it will absorb too much oil.
- Mix it again and check the consistency of the batter.
- Heat the oil in a shallow frying pan.
- Thoroughly coat the banana slices in the batter before placing them in the frying pan.
- Fry the banana until crisp and golden brown on both sides, then drain on paper towels.
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