Easy Bread Pakoda/ Potato Masala Stuffed Bread Pakoras

Bread pakora is simple and easy to make a recipe. Are you looking for an easy and comforting snack? Pakoras or pakodas are made throughout the length and breadth of India. Indians love their crispy fried pakoras. There is a high level of creativity when it comes to ingredients to make pakoras- an uncanny ability to turn anything available at home into pakoras. There is nothing that can beat spicy pakoras and hot piping tea during the monsoon season. Are you already picturing in your mind enjoying the rains with a cup of tea and a crispy snack?

Here is my attempt to recreate a popular street food. Now some call these bread pakora snacks others call it is breakfast. But to me, it represents the best of Indian street food. It has a taste all to its own and is quite addictive.Pakoras are delightful savory snacks. I had vague memories of having bread pakora as a child, but somehow completely forgot about them till I saw this recipe in a magazine. It brought back some childhood memories. This one has an interesting twist to it. It has a filling that takes this simple snack to the next level. It is like a bread sandwich with a yummy potato filling. Combine it with any kind of spicy or sweet chutney/sauce and the flavor profile of this snack will amaze you and you cannot stop munching.

Potato stuffed bread pakoras is a hassle-free recipe and you can whip up with very little ingredients. Now let's talk about the batter. Bread pakoras can be made by dipping bread slices in spicy flavorful batter and deep-fried. The batter is made with chickpeas flour, chilly powder, flavored with hing and cilantro. The batter has to be a perfect consistency, not too thick and not to thin to get the best crispy bite.

Now coming to the filling it is mashed potatoes spiced with ginger, green chilly,asafetida, coriander leaves and chat masala. You can get creative with the filling. Try mashed beans, cheese, paneer, eggs or any kind of filling of your choice.

Now let's talk about the other fun part of this recipe. It is the chutney. The chutney is optional, but it adds depth of flavor. It is not like the sweet chutney for the chutney sandwich. But it is a zingy flavorful chutney made with mint and coriander. It adds freshness and flavor with a kick from green chilly. You can also get creative with the chutney. If you are not a fan of spicy chutney you can substitute with dates tamarind chutney which is sweet and mildly spicy or tomato chutney.

Easy Bread Pakoda/ Potato Masala Stuffed Bread Pakoras

Cooking time- 25 minutes
Recipe type- Snack
Cuisine- Indian

Ingredients
Bread slices-8
Gram flour- 1 1/2 cup

Rice flour- 1 tbs
Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder-1/8 tsp
Asafetida- a pinch
Ginger garlic paste- 1/2 tsp
Chopped coriander leaves- 2 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil for frying

For the filling
Boiled potatoes- 2 medium
Turmeric powder- 1/8 tsp
Onion chopped- 1/2
Ginger chopped- 1 tsp
Green chilly finely chopped -2
Asafetida- a pinch
Coriander leaves chopped- 1 tbs
Chat masala- 1/2 tsp
Cumin powder- a pinch

For the chutney
Coriander leaves chopped- 1 cup
Mint leaves- 1/2 cup
Green chilly-3
Ginger- 1 inch thick
Shallots- 2
Tamarind- a small ball
salt to taste

To make the filling heat oil in a pan and add chopped onions, ginger and green chilly. Saute till slightly golden. Add turmeric, asafetida, salt and cumin powder and saute for a minute. Add mashed potatoes and mix well. Sprinkle chaat masala and coriander leaves and mix well. Allow this mixture to cool down. If you do not have chaat masala you can add 1 tsp of lemon juice.

To make the chutney grind all ingredients under chutney into a fine paste. Start with coriander and mint leaves. When it is a fine paste add the rest of the ingredients and make a fine paste.

Now you need to make the batter. Mix gram flour, rice flour, chilly powder asafetida, and salt well. Add water little by little to make a smooth lump-free batter. It should not be too thick or too thin. Add the chopped coriander leaves and ginger garlic paste and whisk well.
Heat 2 cups of oil in a pan.
Cut edges of the bread and make it even. Spread the chutney evenly on the bread slices. Place the filling in an even layer and then one bread slice on the top like a sandwich. Stick the edge using a little water with your fingertips. You can also cut the bread into an equal part. Dip each sandwich in prepared batter, coat evenly and gently slide into hot oil and fry this on both sides till it is evenly crispy and golden brown on both sides. This will take around three to four minutes on medium flame. Once fried place on a paper towel so that the excess grease is removed.
Serve this with dates and tamarind chutney or tomato ketchup along with tea.