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Home » Recipes » Indian

Chicken Pakora

Published: Sep 29, 2022

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Chicken Pakora is deceptively easy to make, and inherently gluten-free. The traditional flours used lend a better flavour & texture to the dish, than wheat flour!

Several chicken pakora strips on a blue plate.

Note: This recipe was first posted on my original blog, Celebration Generation, on March 21, 2013. It was transferred over to this blog - existing comments and all - on 9/29/2022

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 is a popular Indian street food . Tender chicken is battered - Including a blend of fragrant spices! - and fried into crunchy chicken bites

Much like with my other 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.

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.

Several chicken pakora strips on a blue plate.

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:

Chicken

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

Sometimes I’ll just them 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.

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, 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, withor withour pressed garlic cloves.

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

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, 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.

Several chicken pakoras on a blue plate.

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!


Several chicken pakora strips on a blue plate.

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 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 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.

A 5 part image showing the batter being mixed.

Slice your chicken breasts into fingers - or small pieces, as shown with this batch .

A 3 part image showing the chicken being cut into pieces.

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, before carefully transferring to the hot oil.

Fry 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.

A 5 part image showing the chicken being battered and deep fried.

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

Serve hot, with with cilantro-mint chutney or sweet chilli sauce.

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.


Several chicken pakora strips on a blue plate.

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

Several chicken pakora strips on a blue plate.

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!

Also, be sure to subscribe to my free email newsletter, so you never miss out on any of my nonsense. Well, the published nonsense, anyway!

Finally, if you love this recipe, please consider leaving a star rating and a comment!

Several chicken pakoras on a blue plate.

Several strips of gluten-free chicken pakora on a blue plate. They are golden deep fried, with flecks of green cilantro.
Print Recipe
5 from 2 votes

Chicken Pakora

This Gluten-Free Chicken Pakora is deceptively easy to make. The flours used actually lend a better flavour and texture to the dish, than wheat flour would!
Prep Time15 mins
Cook Time15 mins
Resting time5 mins
Total Time35 mins
Course: Appetizer, Main Course
Cuisine: Indian
Servings: 6 People
Calories: 205kcal
Author: admin

Ingredients

  • 1 ¼ cups Garbanzo / Chickpea Flour
  • ¼ cup White rice flour
  • 1 ½ teaspoon hot curry powder
  • ½ teaspoon coriander
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro
  • 1 cup water
  • 3-4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts,trimmed
  • ¼ cup additional garbanzo flour
  • Cilantro-Mint Chutney

Instructions

  • Start heating your vegetable oil to 365F – you’ll want at least 2-3″ of oil in your pot or deep fryer.
  • In a large 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.
  • Slice your chicken breasts into fingers, toss with additional garbanzo flour, then dredge in the batter.
  • Carefully transfer a few battered chicken fingers to the preheated oil.
  • Fry for a few minutes on each side, until golden brown and cooked through.
  • Use a slotted metal spoon to transfer fried chicken to paper towels.
  • Serve hot, with with cilantro-mint chutney.

Video

Notes

Due to software limitations, the nutritional information does not include deep frying.  Expect that the oil will add some fat and calories to the total.

Nutrition

Calories: 205kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 36mg | Sodium: 495mg | Potassium: 463mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 36IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 2mg

Several chicken pakoras on a blue plate.

Several chicken pakoras on a blue plate.

Several strips of gluten-free chicken pakora on a blue plate. They are golden deep fried, with flecks of green cilantro.

Several strips of gluten-free chicken pakora on a blue plate. They are golden deep fried, with flecks of green cilantro.

Several strips of gluten-free chicken pakora on a blue plate. They are golden deep fried, with flecks of green cilantro.

Several strips of gluten-free chicken pakora on a blue plate. They are golden deep fried, with flecks of green cilantro.

Several strips of gluten-free chicken pakora on a blue plate. They are golden deep fried, with flecks of green cilantro.

Related posts:

Several sticks of gluten-free paneer pakora - deep fried cheese sticks - on a blue plate.Paneer Pakora Several Mixed vegetable pakora, on a blue plate.Vegetable Pakora A plate of gobi pakora.Gobi Pakora A plate of palak pakora.Palak Pakoda
« Vegetable Pakora
Aloo Pakora »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lisa

    April 16, 2022 at 8:11 pm

    5 stars
    I have two in my family that are gluten-free, egg-free and dairy free. To find a recipe for breaded chicken that doesn’t fall apart when fried and has amazingly flavour had til now been impossible. This recipe is easy, amazingly flavourful and holds together beautifully !! Our new favourite, thank you!!

    Reply
  2. Supriya Kutty

    November 07, 2022 at 7:10 am

    You made things very simpler for me thank you so much for putting up this article. I tried making this pakora and it turned out to be the same as the restaurant.

    Reply
  3. Kathleen Herman

    December 08, 2022 at 11:16 am

    How do you think these would turn out in the air fryer?

    Reply
    • admin

      December 09, 2022 at 10:18 am

      We do them in the air fryer often! When I do, I cut them more like chicken fingers, batter them, then freeze them on a parchment lined pan. Once they're frozen through, I put them in a freezer bag and keep them in the freezer until we want to air fry them,

      Reply

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Marie Porter


Author of the "Beyond Flour" series of gluten-free cookbooks, autistic polymath, and cat mom.

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