Spinach Bhajia comes together quickly and disappears just as fast. Finely chopped spinach is mixed with gram flour, rice flour, cumin, green chilli and coriander leaves to form a thick, scoopable mixture. Small portions are shaped into flat patties, topped with kalonji and fried until the outside is crisp and the inside is just cooked through.
This style of bhajia, also known as palak bhajia, is popular across Indian households and is a well-known fixture in Fiji-style cooking, where gram flour fritters are a regular tea-time snack. The recipe uses very little water, which keeps the texture firm rather than soggy.
About the Recipe
The mixture here is drier than a typical pakora batter. Gram flour provides structure and a slightly nutty flavour, while rice flour gives the outside its crispness. You add just enough water to bring everything together so you can roll the mixture into balls and flatten them.
Too much water and the patties spread in the oil and lose their shape. Kalonji is pressed onto the top of each patty before frying, so it toasts in the oil and turns fragrant. The whole frying time is short, roughly a minute per side over medium heat.
Why You Will Love This Recipe
The ingredient list is short and most of it is already in the pantry. Spinach, two types of flour, a few spices and oil are all you need.
The rice flour does real work here. Gram flour alone tends to produce a softer, slightly doughy result. With rice flour, the outside of each patty fries to a proper crunch that holds even for a few minutes after you take them out of the oil.
If you enjoy Patra Bhajia, the technique and spicing here will feel immediately familiar.
Cooking Tips
The most common mistake is adding too much water. Add it a little at a time and stop as soon as the mixture holds its shape when pressed. If it feels wet, the patties will break apart in the oil.
Fry over medium heat, not high. High heat browns the outside too quickly before the inside is done. Make sure the spinach is properly dried after washing, as excess moisture from the leaves also loosens the mixture.
Top Tips
- Dry the spinach thoroughly after washing. Wet spinach adds moisture to the mixture and makes it difficult to shape.
- Add water gradually, one tablespoon at a time. The mixture should hold a ball shape without sticking to your hands.
- Flatten each ball slightly before frying so the inside cooks through in the short frying time.
- Press the kalonji gently onto the top of each patty so it stays in place when you lower it into the oil.
- Fry in small batches. Overcrowding drops the oil temperature and results in greasy, soft patties.
- Drain on absorbent paper and serve immediately. These are best eaten hot.
Serving and Storing Suggestions
Serve the bhajia straight from the oil with green chutney, tamarind chutney or a simple yoghurt dip. They work well as a tea-time snack or as a starter before a main meal.
Leftovers can be kept in an airtight container for a day and re-crisped in a dry pan or oven. They do not store well beyond that as the spinach softens the coating over time. Reheating in oil again is not recommended as they absorb too much.
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Nutrient Benefits
Spinach provides iron, folate and vitamins A, C and K. Gram flour contributes plant protein and fibre. Because the patties are deep-fried, the overall fat content will be higher than a baked version, so portion size is worth keeping in mind. For more on what spinach offers nutritionally, see What are the Top Spinach Benefits for Health?
Spinach Bhajia
Ingredients
- 2 cups Spinach chopped, washed, dried
- 3 tbsp Gram Flour
- 3 tsp Rice Flour
- 1 Red Chilli Powder adjust as per taste
- 1/4 Cumin Seeds roasted
- 1 Green Chilli small, finely chopped
- 1/4 tsp Kalonji
- 1 to 2 tbsp Coriander Leaves chopped
- Salt as per taste
- Oil for deep-frying
Instructions
- Mix the spinach, gram flour, rice flour, red chilli powder, roasted cumin seeds, coriander leaves, salt, green chillies in a bowl.
- Gradually add 1/4 cup of water and mix well.
- Do not add excess water. You should be able to form small balls from the mixture.
- Heat oil in a deep frying pan over medium flame.
- Make 10 to 12 balls from the spinach mixture and flatten them slightly.
- Sprinkle kalonji evenly over the top.
- Gently drop the patties into the hot oil and fry them evenly for a minute on each side until crips and golden.
- Remove and drain excess oil.
- Serve hot with chutney of choice.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can I shallow-fry or air-fry these instead of deep-frying?
Shallow-frying works reasonably well. Use enough oil to come about halfway up the sides of each patty and flip carefully. The result is slightly less even on the edges but still crisp on the flat surfaces. An air fryer can also be used at around 180 degrees Celsius for 10 to 12 minutes, flipping halfway, though the outside will not be as uniformly golden as deep-frying.
What is kalonji and can I leave it out?
Kalonji, also called nigella seeds or onion seeds, is a small black seed with a mild, slightly bitter and herby flavour. It is pressed onto the top of the patties before frying and becomes more aromatic as it toasts in the oil. You can leave it out if you do not have it. The bhajia will still taste good. Sesame seeds are a reasonable substitute if you want something in its place.
Why is my mixture too wet and the patties falling apart in the oil?
This usually happens for two reasons. The spinach was not dried well enough after washing, or too much water was added when mixing. Start with spinach that is as dry as possible, and add water one tablespoon at a time. Stop as soon as you can press the mixture into a ball that holds its shape. If the mixture is already too wet, adding a little extra gram flour can help bring it back together.
Is this the same as Fiji-style bhajia?
Fiji-style bhajia, common in Fijian-Indian cooking, is a gram flour fritter made with vegetables and spices. This spinach bhajia follows the same basic approach: a thick spiced gram flour mixture shaped and fried until crisp. The specific spice combination and the addition of rice flour for crispness may vary from one household to another, but the technique and the result are very much in that tradition.
Can I use frozen spinach instead of fresh?
Fresh spinach is strongly preferred here. Frozen spinach releases a lot of water when it thaws, which makes it very difficult to get the mixture to the right consistency for shaping. If you only have frozen spinach, thaw it completely, then squeeze out as much water as possible before using it. Even then, you may need to add a little extra flour to compensate.
