I have been quite occupied over the last week doing cleaning, rearranging furniture and other household activities. That left me very less time to cook lunch for myself. Hence I would mostly end up doing simple stir-fries (bhaji) which even my kid liked to have with his khichidi . The only day I made rice and dal for lunch, I only had about a dozen ladies fingers sitting in the fridge. As I had cleaned out the fridge the previous day, I did not get time to stock up on the veggies. Being in the mood for something chatpata, I quickly decided to make some crispy ladies finger fries. Even my son is fond of this vegetable so i first marinated it with minimum spice/heat. Keeping aside some of the fries, I drizzled mine with more chilli powder and amchur. Totally lip-smacking dish.
While Kurkuri Bhindi is actually a Rajasthani recipe which is much more flavorsome, mine is just a simplified version of it. Read on for this simple recipe -
Preparation Time - 15 mins
Ingredients -
- 12-14 ladies fingers/okra
- 1/2 tsp red chili powder
- 1/4 tsp garam masala
- 1/4 tsp amchur/chaat masala
- 1 tsp besan
- 1/2 tsp rice flour
- salt to taste
- oil for deep frying
- 2 pinch black pepper powder (my special addition)
Preparation - Slit the ladies finger lengthwise and cut into smaller 2 inch long sections ( mine were small so i kept it as such ).
Sprinkle all the spices/masalas over the ladies finger and toss together to coat evenly. Keep aside for 10 mins.
Add the besan and rice flour and mix once again.
Cooking - Heat sufficient oil in wok or deep vessel. Add the ladies finger in batches and fry till they become crispy.
Serve hot as it is or garnished with lemon juice, coriander leaves and tomato slices.