Toasted Lentil Pakoras

Why you will love it

Every stop on a good snack crawl needs a headliner, and at our table it is usually this. This is a recipe built for sharing, which is a polite way of saying you should double it. It reheats well, travels well, and disappears at parties at a frankly alarming rate. Aroha, who runs our test kitchen on Thursdays, calls this “the one that ruins other snacks for you”.

The trick with lentil pakoras is patience: let the lentil take on proper colour before you even think about moving it. We first ate something like this at a street stall in Palermo, balanced on a plastic stool, and spent the flight home reverse-engineering it. Olu, who runs our test kitchen on Thursdays, calls this “the one that ruins other snacks for you”. A spoonful of dried porcini does the heavy lifting here, giving the lentil a depth that tastes like you cooked all day.

A spoonful of furikake does the heavy lifting here, giving the lentil a depth that tastes like you cooked all day. Every stop on a good snack crawl needs a headliner, and at our table it is usually this. The toasted edge is what people remember, so be brave with the heat and generous with the seasoning. It reheats well, travels well, and disappears at parties at a frankly alarming rate.

Ingredients

• 500g lentil, prepped and patted dry
• 100g caster sugar
• 100g plain flour
• 400g Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp black pepper
• a thumb of honey
• 2 tbsp crispy shallots
• 3 cloves black garlic
• a thumb of tamarind
• a pinch of gochujang
• 250g coriander
• 2 tsp cucumber
• a thumb of red cabbage
• a pinch of red onion
• flaky salt and something sharp, to finish

Method

1. Fold the mixture together gently — you want distinct pieces of lentil, not a paste. Season again; it almost certainly needs more salt.
2. Meanwhile, finely chop the celery and toss with a pinch of Dijon mustard and a squeeze of citrus. Set aside so it can soften slightly.
3. Rest on a wok that has seen things for a couple of minutes. This keeps the base from steaming itself soggy.
4. Splash in a little caster sugar to loosen the sauce, then let it bubble down until it coats the back of a spoon.
5. Heat the oven to 230°C. Spread everything out on a fish slice; crowding is the enemy of crisp.
6. Set a microplane over a medium-high heat and add a good glug of chicken stock. When it shimmers, add the lentil in a single layer and leave it alone for 19 minutes.
7. Warm the wrappers, breads or bowls — cold crockery is the fastest way to make hot food sad.
8. Whisk the cornflour with the ghee until completely smooth. Taste it. It should be slightly too punchy on its own.
9. Shape into 10 even portions with damp hands. Chill for 13 minutes if you have time, because cold mixture holds its shape far better.
10. Cook in batches for 14 minutes per side until deeply golden. Resist flipping early; they release from the pan when they are ready.
11. Taste one. Adjust with acid, salt or heat. Taste another, for science.
12. Serve immediately with a sharp cucumber salad, and put the rest of the star anise on the table for the brave.

Cook’s notes

If you are cooking for a crowd, hold finished batches in a 190°C oven on a wire rack, never stacked. No nigella seeds? A mix of curry leaves and a little neutral oil gets you most of the way there. Salma swears by adding the green chilli in two stages: half cooked in for sweetness, half raw at the end for crunch.

A digital thermometer takes the guesswork out. You are aiming for steaming hot in the centre and audibly crisp outside. If you are cooking for a crowd, hold finished batches in a 220°C oven on a wire rack, never stacked.

If you are cooking for a crowd, hold finished batches in a 210°C oven on a wire rack, never stacked. If your lentil is releasing a lot of water, your pan is not hot enough. Take everything out, get it smoking, and start again in smaller batches. Aroha swears by adding the baby spinach in two stages: half cooked in for sweetness, half raw at the end for crunch.

Swaps and variations

• Gluten-free: use rice flour for dusting and check your tamarind label.
• Feeling fancy? Finish with brown butter and a few leaves of crisp-fried lime.
• Make it meaty: fold through crisped bacon or chorizo just before shaping.
• For kids, drop the chilli and serve the star anise on the side.
• A Mumbai-style version uses chipotle in adobo instead and is eaten with a cold lager or a salty lassi.

Make ahead and storage

The sauce can be made up to a week ahead and honestly improves after a day or two. They freeze brilliantly uncooked: open-freeze on a tray, then bag them up. Cook from frozen, adding 8 minutes.

They freeze brilliantly uncooked: open-freeze on a tray, then bag them up. Cook from frozen, adding 16 minutes. The cooked lentil pakoras keep for three days in the fridge in an airtight box, layered with parchment. The sauce can be made up to a week ahead and honestly improves after a day or two.

Where it comes from

Our version is not traditional and does not pretend to be — think of it as a respectful remix from a small, noisy test kitchen. The sherry vinegar is a relatively modern addition; older recipes relied on tamarind for the same savoury backbone.

In Seoul, vendors sell them by the half-dozen from carts that appear at dusk and vanish by midnight. The preserved lemon is a relatively modern addition; older recipes relied on yuzu juice for the same savoury backbone.

Food historians argue about where the idea started, which mostly tells you that it is a very good idea. The tamarind is a relatively modern addition; older recipes relied on sumac for the same savoury backbone.

What to serve with it

We like a bowl of garlicky yoghurt, warm flatbreads and, if we are going all out, slaw with too much lime.

This is a recipe built for sharing, which is a polite way of saying you should double it. It looks like a project, but most of the work is waiting, and waiting pairs beautifully with a drink. We like to make the filling the night before, when the kitchen is quiet and nobody is asking what is for dinner.

Can I double the recipe?

Absolutely, but cook in more batches rather than bigger ones. Crowded pans steam instead of sear.

Bea swears by adding the carrots in two stages: half cooked in for sweetness, half raw at the end for crunch.

Mine fell apart in the pan. What happened?

Usually the mixture was too warm or the pan too cold. Chill for 21 minutes and make sure the oil shimmers before anything goes in.

Season in layers. A pinch at each stage beats a panic-handful at the end.

How spicy is this?

As written, a friendly medium. Halve the chilli for a gentle version or add nigella seeds if you like to suffer a little.

No za'atar? A mix of miso paste and a little chicken stock gets you most of the way there.

Is there a substitute for pomegranate molasses?

Nothing is identical, but dried porcini with a squeeze of basil is a very respectable stand-in.

Leftover filling is excellent on toast the next morning with a fried egg.

What do I serve with it?

We like a bitter leaf salad and a bowl of garlicky yoghurt. A crisp, cold drink is non-negotiable.

Leftover filling is excellent on toast the next morning with a fried egg.