I remember the first time I tried an onion bhaji. I was like 14, used to eating a lot of meat, tried it as a left over from my sister’s takeaway, cold. Tasted terrible tbh.
It’s one of those situations where I learned that onion bhajis are in fact an accidentally vegan side, I found out when ordering a takeaway, tried it again, then realised I’ve been missing out!
I then looked up what’s in onion bhajis, and noticed, it’s made up of just a few simple ingredients:
Gram (chickpea) flour
Onion
Spices
I was playing with a few combinations when I found the perfect balance, of cumin, that curry-like taste and crispiness.
Are onion bhajis gluten free?
Considering that traditional onion bhaji recipes call for gram flour, which is merely ground up chickpeas, onion bhajis are suitable for those who suffer from gluten intolerance/allergies.
It is advised to double check depending on who you order from, again depending on each individual’s needs.
What do onion bhajis pair well with?
Over the years of starting to get more into curries (previously I used to mainly eat steak and other savoury meat like chicken with rice, etc), as well as vegan food in general, I’ve started to mix up how I eat overall.
Initially I may have once ordered a curry with rice and naan, poppadoms, but only recently started eating onion bhajis with my curries instead.
Some of my favourite curries include:
- Butternut squash kale curry
- Chickpea curry
- Red lentil curry
- Sweet potato red lentil curry
- Black eyed pea curry
I like to keep my options open so rotate between different curry recipes and dip these bhajis in all of em, photographed is a mint yoghurt I experimented with, recipe to be perfected.
Easy vegan onion bhajis
These naturally vegan onion bhajis are easy to make, requiring only 15 minutes of your time. Perhaps 5 minutes of chopping, 5 minutes of mixing and 5-10 mins of frying.
These can also be oven baked, although I haven’t yet tried them like that. If you like this recipe feel free to share, bookmark, and tell your friends.
| Prep Time | 10 Minutes |
| Cook Time | 5 Minutes |
| Passive Time | 15 Minutes |
| Servings |
Onion Bhajis
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- Oil For deep frying
- 1 Large Onion Thinly Sliced
- 50 Grams Gram flour
- 50 ml Water
- 1 Tsp Caribbean Curry Powder
- 1 Tsp Cumin
- 1 Tsp Black Salt
- 1 Tsp Garlic Powder
- Pinch Baking Powder
Ingredients
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|
- Peel and thinly slice the onions into long, thin pieces. Transfer to mixing bowl and add in gram flour, spices and water.
- Stir in together until batter is thick and consistently coloured, onions are to be completely covered, adjust flour and water quantities accordingly to taste and needs.
- Once batter is thick, heat oil in a skillet or deep fryer on a medium heat, spoon mixture into hot oil.
- Keep an eye on the bhajis and flip once the bottom is golden brown, about 2-3 minutes, flip again to cook through, once both sides and edges are golden crisp, transfer to a bowl layered with paper towels.
- Once onion bhajis are cooked and oil drained on bowl, enjoy with your favourite curry.
