Easy, Crispy Chicken Pakora Recipe [Gluten-Free!] - Beyond Flour (2024)

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Remember when I went on my Pakora making binge, posted my Cilantro-Mint Chutney Recipe, promised recipes, and then procrastinated on it for a few months?

Well, I finally getting around to posting the final recipe from that... only 8 months later..

Anyway... here's my easy chicken pakora recipe!

Delicious chicken pakora - aka chicken pakodi or chicken pakoda - is a popular Indian street food . Tender chicken is battered - the batter including a blend of fragrant spices! - and fried into crunchy chicken bites.

Much like with my other crunchy pakoras, these fried chicken fritters are one of those food items that SHOULD in inherently gluten free, in restaurants - but the batter is often cut with wheat flour, and there’s often a risk of cross contamination.

Never fear, though!

This crispy chicken pakora is easy to make, and tastes quite authentic - it rivals any I’ve had in Indian restaurants!

As with all of my gluten-free pakora recipes, they're especially delicious with my Cilantro-Mint chutney!

Oh, and bonus?

If you leave the spice and cilantro out, and cut the chicken into chunks instead of fingers... these crunchy chicken pakoras
are a great substitute for chicken nuggets!

SO GOOD.

Ingredients

If you’ve cooked Indian food before, you’ll recognize the elements used n the crispy pakoras as fairly simple ingredients.

If you haven’t, no worries - these are all fairly basic ingredients that you should be able to find in pretty much any grocery store.

I do have a few notes for you on the following ingredients:

Chicken

I like to use boneless skinless chicken breasts for this, which I generally cut into strips.

Sometimes I’ll just the chicken breast into chunks / chicken nuggets, but I generally prefer the chicken-to-coating ratio when done as chicken fingers.

That said, you can use whatever boneless chicken pieces you’d like - I’ve been told that people have a lot of success using boneless chicken thighs with this recipe.

Boneless is key, though - I’d avoid using bone-in chicken pieces.

Other than that, just keep a eye on the cooking. The times given are approximate, and will vary with the size of your chicken pieces.

The Flours

When done tradtionally, chicken pakora batter is naturally gluten free, using both Chickpea Flour / Garbanzo Bean Flour and White Rice Flour, rather than a wheat based all purpose flour.

Both ingredients are available in most large grocery stores - assuming they have a decent gluten free section.

Other than that, both are generally readily available at Indian / South Asian grocers. The chickpea flour would also be known as gram flour or besan / besan flour, in those shops.

Herbs, Dry Spices, Etc

I use just a couple basic Indian spices and herbs in this recipe, which I see as a base recipe (more on that in a minute!). At the very least, I use:

Fresh cilantro leaves (AKA fresh coriander leaves)
Curry Powder
Coriander Powder

... This was how I first started making chicken pakora, and I see it as a starting point. While fantastic as it is, there’s a lot of room for customization!

I’ll generally add other spices as I see fit, depending on what we’re in the mood for. A few ideas:

I’ve taken to adding a tablespoon or two of Ginger Garlic Paste to the batter. Grated fresh ginger is another great option, as is ginger paste, with or without pressed garlic cloves.

Sometimes I’ll add finely - VERY finely - chopped green chilies to the batter - and the spice levels.

As for spice powders, there are all kinds of different ways you can customize the batter.

Add some Cumin Powder, Garam Masala Powder , Chaat Masala, turmeric powder, black pepper, or Tandoori Masala for additional depth.

Try a bit of Red Chili Powder, Kashmiri Chili Powder, and/or Cayenne Pepper for a bit of heat.

You’ll also need some salt and baking powder.

Oil for Frying

You’ll want an oil with a high smoke point when deep frying.

I recommend vegetable oil - that’s what I use - canola oil, or peanut oil.

Dips

It’s not part of the recipe, but who wants any kind of battered and deep fried chicken dish without dips?

Personally, I like my Cilantro Mint Chutney - a bright green chutney - to dip these in.

My husband loves Tamarind chutney, so we generally have both on hand.

Equipment

I used to use an actual deep fryer when making chicken pakora, but now that I’m in a smaller kitchen, I just use a heavy bottomed, deep pan.

Because this doesn’t have the built in temperature control that deep fryers do, I use an IR Thermometer to keep track of the temperature.

A candy/deep frying thermometer also works, though!

How to Make Chicken Pakora

The full recipe is in the recipe card at the end of this post, this is a quick step by step walk through, in pictures!

Start heating your vegetable oil temperature to 365 F – you’ll want at least 2-3″ of oil in your pot or deep fryer.

Note: When I’m not using an actual deep fryer, I’ll usually start heating my oil over medium-high heat, then reduce it to medium as the oil approaches the right temperature.

In a large mixing bowl, combine flours, spices, salt, baking powder, and cilantro. Add water, stir well to form a thick batter.

Allow batter to sit for 5 minutes or so, to soften the bean flour.

Toss chicken pieces with additional garbanzo flour - shaking off the excess - then dredge in the chickpea flour batter.

Allow excess pakora mixture to drip off each piece of chicken, before carefully transferring to the hot oil.

Fry in small batches for a few minutes on each side, until golden brown and cooked through.

Use a slotted metal spoon to transfer fried chicken to paper towel, to absorb the excess oil.

Let the temperature of the oil come back up before cooking the second batch.

Serve hot, with cilantro-mint chutney or sweet chilli sauce, and a cup of masala chai!

If you add something like basmati rice as a side dish, you can serve your easy Indian chicken pakoras as a main dish, rather than as crunchy chicken appetizers 🙂

Air Fryer Chicken Pakora

Place battered chicken pieces on a parchment lined baking sheet, freeze until soliid.

Once frozen, you can either air fry them immediately, or transfer to a freezer bag for longer term storage.

To air fry, preheat air fryer to 400 F

Spray air fryer basket with cooking spray, arrange frozen chicken pieces in the basket, leaving a bit of room between each. Spray with pan spray.

Air fry for 20-22 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through.

More Gluten-Free Indian Recipes

Craving some curry, pakoras, and chutney? I’ve got some delicious Indian Recipes for you!

Aloo Pakora
Butter Chicken
Chicken Shahi Korma
Cilantro Chicken
Cilantro-Mint Chutney
Corn Pakora
Cucumber Raita
Gluten-Free Samosas
Gobi Pakora
Mango Lassi Popsicles
Mixed Vegetable Pakora
Mushroom Pakora
Onion Pakoda
Palak Pakoda
Paneer Pakora

... I even have a few diet friendly adaptations on my low carb blog, Low Carb Hoser:

Keto Butter Chicken
Low Carb Chicken Korma
Keto Chicken Biryani
Low Carb Shrimp Curry

Share the Love!

Before you chow down, be sure to take some pics of your handiwork! If you Instagram it, be sure to tag me - @BeyondFlourBlog - or post it to My Facebook Page - so I can cheer you on!

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